James Raven vs Daryl Prichard

[Alex Smiley]

Reminder:

- Word limit for Group Stage matches is 1500.
- 1 RP per wrestler per match.
- Deadline: December 9, 2018, at 11:59PM Pacific.

[The Raven]

"The Hometown Hero"
by Grace Dean

In January of 2018 James Raven agreed to a series of interviews over the next calendar year with independent journalist, Grace Dean, following him in his return to the ring as he traveled from continent to continent, company to company, to revive his once legendary career. Now participating in the Experts Super 6 tournament, and leading the block based in his hometown of Toronto, Ontario, Canada, the two have agreed to meet again to continue the series.

The frigid December wind whips violently around the base of the CN Tower, tormenting the crowd of tourists as they huddle together in pairs to snap romantic selfies under the Toronto city lights and chasing passersby into the shelter of surrounding restaurants. Flakes of snow fall gently from the sky, melting almost immediately upon contacting the pavement. I see him approaching from a distance, tightening the collar of his long black duster around his neck as he walks through the masses. He smiles at me as he draws near, a brown and gray stubble sweeping across his jaw and more lines on his face than I remember. I glance at my watch; 8:00 PM. He's right on time.

"Good to see you again," he says, his voice strong but welcoming as he extends a hand for me to shake.

Heads are starting to turn, discreet fingers pointing our way as a handful of those nearby begin to recognize the man in front of me. They gasp. They pull out their cell phones. They giggle loudly as he glances back at them, and offers a slight nod of acknowledgement. He turns back to me, an embarrassed grin and twinkle in his blue eyes as he lifts his collar up higher to cover his face.

"Do you mind if we walk and talk?" he asks me softly, and of course I agree.

We both know how hard it will be to get anything done with this many people around. If we were in Chicago or New York or any of the other Super 6 blocks we might have a shot, but not in Toronto... this is HIS city, after all. He's Toronto's favorite son, the Peoples G.O.A.T. He's James Raven.

He poses for a few photos as we try and separate from the crowd, politely thanking everyone for their well wishes in his upcoming match with Daryl Pritchard. They tell him this is his time, that he's going to leave his mark on The Experts. They tell him the entire city is behind him, that they know he won't let them down. He smiles, and politely thanks them all again. Eventually he manages to pull away and we escape the base of the tower, making our way down towards Lakeshore. He's quiet, and I don't try to force the conversation. The heels of his leather shoes clip the concrete loudly as we cross the street in front of the Aquarium, a large billboard for the Super 6 Tournament displayed high above us. Images of Lisa Seldon and Raven himself smile down on us as we walk, but James never looks up at it.

"I'm nervous," he eventually confides, an unwavering sincerity in his voice, "This wasn't what I expected when I got my invitation to the Extreme Tournament, you know? It's no secret that I've never felt at home with the Experts, and that they've not always thought that highly of me. I had come to terms with that, and finally embraced the role I had instead of chasing one that wasn't being offered to me. I wanted to be the Lester Only, the Jack Benevolence, the Georgie Nickles... whether I was liked or not, I wanted to be respected and treated like I had some relevance in that world."

We stop at a corner and wait for the light to change, several cars rounding the corner in front of us. A young man walks past, a double take at James leaving him with a look of shock on his face. James smiles at him and holds up a fist confidently, and the man grins from ear to ear as James turns and leads me across the street with the grace of the green light. It takes Raven a moment to assure himself there's nobody within earshot before speaking again.

"I understand I'm not one of those names. Not to them, not yet. I was ready to stop fighting it and focus on competing. I was ready to embrace that underdog role and start building a new reputation for myself," his voice trails off, and I listen intently, waiting for him to finish his thought and connect the dots for me.

It takes him a while.

We reach the edge of the lake, stopping on a small bridge and leaning on the railing to look out at the water. I notice a small community bulletin board nearby, advertisements for local bars showing the Super 6 events live. I don't point them out.

"They swerved me," he says with a light hearted chuckle, "I wouldn't have predicted this in a million years. I expected to be brought in as some bottom feeding seed in the tournament, with people treating me as a sacrificial lamb to someone like Sewaside or Mark goddamn Mania. But... to have an entire block of the tournament set up in my town, and to hear media and peers talking about me as a favorite to potentially win the group... I don't know..."

We begin to make our way across the bridge, James dropping his face to avoid eye contact with a passing couple.

"This is what I wanted, to be one of the attractions, one of the respected names. It's not enough," he says, tone suddenly sharp, "I won't be satisfied being the poster boy for a Super 6 block people consider irrelevant. The billboards and the crowd support is great, don't get me wrong, but people don't think someone like Daryl or Lisa or myself have a real shot in the Chamber. I'm still the underdog in all of this. With all of the love I'm getting, I still get to play spoiler. It's the best of both worlds, and it starts in a couple of days.

"Daryl Prichard, the guy I'm facing, he's a talent. I don't want to try and take that away from him. There's a reason we're in Toronto and not New Orleans, though. The Super 6 Tournament is a monster; and someone whose career highlights are extreme titles and tag team reigns isn't what sells tickets or causes the 'top dogs' in Group A and B to take notice. Prichard is a good story. He's been through a lot and seen some shit, you know? I don't want to talk down to someone that's lost a sibling, someone that's served in the marines and that's overcome adversity like a prison sentence and tried to make something of themselves in this sport... I'm sure he's inspirational, and a fascinating guy... but he's not the cloth from which to cut a champion. Not yet anyway."

He trails off again, but looks at me after a moment. He shakes his head sheepishly.

"I don't want to bury anyone, you know? It's just how I feel. He's not ready for someone like me, and he knows it. It's why he hasn't shown his face much lately, and I understand. It'll be a learning experience for him when he hears 15,000 people chanting my name at the Mattamy Centre while he stares up at the rafters. You have no idea how much that crowd is going to buoy me. This city has always supported me in the sport, but what I've felt this week is incomparable to anything else. Everywhere I go I feel love. Everyone I speak to gives me love. I can't let anyone down."

We finally reach our destination, a small cafe secluded at the waters edge. We've got two more hours to speak tonight, and plenty of material to cover. He holds the door open for me and allows several patrons to exit. They smile when they recognize him, and yet again he is cascaded with compliments and well wishes. They tell him to destroy Prichard, and he humbly tells them everyone in his block is an incredibly skilled worker that will test him to the utmost. They all smile.

He's James Raven. He's the People's G.O.A.T. and the Hometown Hero this week.

Something tells me he won't let anyone down.