Sorry it’s taken so long but the videos are now up on YouTube. Points in brief follow each video
Conor “The Top Man” Kelly [youtube link]
- Got taken down when he went for the high kick, got underhooks, recovered well to reverse.
- Didn’t apply enough top pressure, no shoulder of justice, no blocking of the near hip – should have moved to North South when he couldn’t stop his opponent turning into him. It mightn’t have stopped his opponent escaping, but it would have prevented the reversal.
- Legs not used enough in the guillotine (very good effort however). Because guillotines fail so often you need to have a follow up attack ready straight away, like an armbar, triangle, sweep, or be ready to stand up.
- Very close on the aligator roll – where Conor made the mistake is that he tried to roll and bring his opponent with him, rather than rolling under his opponent, which takes away their base.
- Completely out struck his opponent
Paul Brady
Match 1 [youtube link]
- Best competition performance by Paul ever. Aggressive, inventive play throughout
- Shot from too far away and stalled briefly on contact, this led to the guillotine attempt (Guillotines are always tried a lot in the league, as they’re “safe”, you invest a little energy and maybe get the submission. Sprawls are hard work)
- Defended well, was never under pressure – doesn’t make for interesting watching, though
] - Good work bugging the neck, this allowed Paul to focus on his attack, and stop his opponent gaining ground
Match 2 [youtube link]
- On bottom – good work in terms of activity, constantly moving. Should have placed his far foot on the ground while shrimping to make the space to recover guard. Does well to get back to turtle.
- Paul’s opponent is a superior wrestler, so he should have switched from the elbow roll to a single, or bailed out when his opponent stood up.
- Kicking from too far away. This is a problem I see in southpaws when they’re unused to kicking.
- Overall this is a good example of someone being outskilled. Paul put in as good a display as he could of, and didn’t make any massive technical/tactical errors. His opponent was just better on the day.
Rich Crossdale
This was Rich’s first run out at the MMA League. Like all first timers, the aim is just to have them experience the adrenaline rush and excitement of competition, and work from there for future events.
Match 1 [youtube link]
- Good striking (that kick is sore!)
- Note how Rich goes for the guillotine off his opponents shoot – this is an example of why it’s a better idea to sprawl and distance yourself from your opponent.
- Tries to strike out of a submission – bad idea!
Match 2 [youtube link]
- Grabbing the head in clinch – we see this time and time again in submission wrestling/MMA. Grabbing the head feels like you’ve gotten somewhere, when actually it means very little in terms of control. Hence the takedown
- A little too early on the armbar attempt – gets reversed. Patience Young Padawan!
- Inefficiently holding half guard – should be using the lock down
Rob Freeman
Match 1 [youtube link]
- Too much time on retreat without enough counter striking
- Again, trying the guillotine in clinch – bad idea!
Match 2 [youtube link]
- Wins by DQ – What can you write about?