REF WEEK: APWG To The NWA Title By All Star Nigel Pearson
I’d like to start off with saying I feel like I’m one of the luckiest referees in the country. I had the privilege of sitting under the learning tree of 3 of the best possible people.
I started training at The Australian Pro Wrestling Gym under one of Australia’s best wrestlers Jay Law.
For as long as I can remember you could see Jay had so much knowledge and he wanted to pass it on to others. He genuinely wanted to help all the students succeed. I have the up most respect for him and what he has taught me. It didn’t matter what role you wanted in the business he was willing to go above and beyond to help get you there.
I refed a couple of the APWG VIP shows and the advice and feedback he gave me still helps to this day. He has helped me become the ref I am today.
After the unfortunate closure of The Australian Pro Wrestling Gym which was deeply sad for all involved. The Deadly Shot Kasai continued training me. Every time we’d have a training session he’d always say “The referee is the only real thing about Wrestling. A good ref can make a bad match good, and a bad ref can make a good match shit” we’d continuously go through ring positioning, cardio and getting up and down drills. Because of his training it’s made me so much more aware of my positioning and what’s happening around me.
Through my friendship with APWG original Keegan Brettle I was able to meet Mitch Christen, the owner of All-Star Wrestling Australia. Mitch gave me an opportunity to grow as a referee and started booking me for the collector con shows. Being that Mitch, himself used to be a referee he passed on so much advice and feedback that really helped. I’ve been with All-Star ever since. All-Star has gotten better and better every year and I’m lucky to be a part of it and because of this I’ll be forever grateful for what they have done for me. I’ve been able to be part of some of the biggest and best moments we’ve had at All-Star.
Being selected to referee the NWA title match was a dream come true. I was honoured when Mitch told me I’d be referring that match. It was such a big moment for me in my referring career and for All-Star Wrestling. It had been 12 years since it was defended in an Australian wrestling company. The atmosphere and energy from everyone from the crowd and workers that night was intense. It was such a big moment for all of us. Growing up my favourite wrestler was Harley Race, being able to officiate for a belt he once had was such an honour and a privilege.
If there’s anyone looking to become a referee, I highly recommend the All-Star Wrestling school. The trainers are teaching not only the wrestlers but the referees so well. Referee Jeremy is proof of that. He’s become so good in such a short amount of time. At times referring can feel like an overlooked part of the business. But because of this is just made me want it more. it made me more hungry for it. But when you get to the back and the workers shake your hand and saying good job, it’s all worth it. It’s truly humbling.
I like to hide in the metaphorical shadows until the point in the match where I feel I need to step in.
There is nothing I would be rather doing than being a referee. I love what do I and hope I get to do for many years to come. To anyone who wants to get into referring. Please come and ask me questions and if I can help you and or point you in the right direction I will. Biggest thank you to Mitch, Jay Law and Kasai for helping me achieve what I have.
