Matches of the Year

Another year has come to an end and so, inevibaly, it becomes time to start scatching your metaphorical beard and start contemplating just what were the best matches of 2006.

It's been a far from vintage year for WWE as they have focused increasingly on entertainment over great wrestling. This year has been more about DX and Big Dick Johnson than 5 star matches and as a reulst, even Wrestlemania was a decidely lacklustre affair. Not even the arrival of the new ECW brand could rescue the in-ring content from mediocrity and by the end of 2006 we ended up with three almost identical brands putting out below average wrestling. Great young in-ring workers like CM Punk, Shelton Benjmain, Chaarlie Haas, Carlito and even more established names like Super Crazy and Gregory Helms have languished on the outskirts while muscled up mnsters like Chris Masters, Test, Bobby Lashley and the Great Khali have been given the spot light. As such, there are only two matches on my list from WWE, one featuring two veterans having a classic wrestling match just to prove that they still had it in them and one spot-fest featuring several young-guns who would not be given the chance to succeed in any other environment as they are too small to be anything more than novelty acts.

In 2005, TNA became a major player in the world of professional wrestling with a series of amazing matches between Samoa Joe, AJ Styles and Christopher Daniels. Although the company has retaiend much of the momentum these matches gave them, TNA has again relied on those three men to carry the workload for TNA. The tag team of Styles/Daniels helped carry the company over the summer, while Joe has been a prominent player, albeit it in a greatly restricted role since his move to the heavyweight division. 2006 has also seen the continued influx of former WWE names as well as the arrival of Vince Russo into creative that has moved the product away from it's strong in-ring work ethic that was a highlight of those early pay per views. Although the product has improved greatly, it is alarmingly close to WWE in style and content and as such the logic holes that come with sports enterteinment have creeped back into TNA damaging a lot of potentially great match-ups, for example the first Angle vs. Joe match which many thought would be a shoe-in for match of the year.

Which leaves us with just ROH and the indies consider and thank god they are there as this has been the year ROH became the high water mark for professional wrestling in the US (and beyond!). After a strong 2004 and an outstanding 2005, ROH managed to do the unthinkable and actually improved in 2006. The title reign of Bryan Danielson went from stregth to strength, the ROH vs. CZW feud made independent wrestling exciting again and the tag title reign of Austin Aries and Roderick Strong helped revitalize the mid-card as well as giving ROH another main event option to help elevate some of their below average shows into must-sees. Add to this the arrival of Kenta from Japan for an extended run, the Dragongate stars at the Wrestlemania triple shot, the shows in the UK, the road of Homicide, the return of the Briscoes and development of young talent like Matt Sydal and Davey Richards and ROH is looking stronger than ever for 2007.

So here it is, my definitive list of matches of the year for 2006:

1. Brian Kendrick & Paul London vs. MNM vs. the Hardy Boyz vs. William Regal & Dave Taylor (WWE Armageddon)
2. Austin Aries & Roderick Strong vs. Jay & Mark Briscoe (ROH Unified)
3. Bryan Danielson vs. Nigel McGuinnes (ROH Unified)
4. Team ROH vs. Team CZW (Death Before Dishonor IV)
5. LAX vs. Styles/Daniels - Ultimate X (TNA No Surrender)
6. Americas Most Wanted vs. Styles/Daniels (TNA Slammiversary)
7. Roderick Strong & Jack Evans vs. the Briscoes (ROH Best in the World)
8. Blood Generation vs. Do Fixer (ROH Supercard of Honor)
9. Undertaker vs. Kurt Angle (WWE No Way Out)
10. Samoa Joe vs. Scott Steiner (TNA Slammiversary)