Highlanders (professional wrestling)

Last updated

Highlanders
Rory & Robbie-McAllister -Postmatch,-RLA-Melb-10.11.2007.jpg
Rory (left) and Robbie McAllister in 2007
Tag team
MembersRobbie McAllister
Rory McAllister
Name(s)Highlanders
Scottish Highlanders
Billed heights6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) – Rory [1]
6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) – Robbie [1]
Combined
billed weight		488 lb (221 kg; 34.9 st)
Hometown Oban, Scotland [2]
Billed from Oban, Scotland [3]
Debut2000 [1]
Disbanded18 January 2014
14 December 2019
Years active2000–2014
2019
Trainer Waldo Von Erich, [1] [4]

The Highlanders were a Scottish professional wrestling tag team consisting of storyline cousins Robbie McAllister (Derek Graham-Couch) [4] (born 20 September 1974) and Rory McAllister (Russell Murray) [2] [4] (born November 28th 1979) who were best known for wrestling for World Wrestling Entertainment on the Raw brand.

Contents

History

Couch and Murray were both born and raised in Oban, Scotland, where the team was billed from. [1] Couch was born on 20 September 1974 and Murray was born on 28 November 1979. [5]

Couch first started going to a wrestling school at the behest of co-worker at CAMI Automotive, Inc. [6] where he met future tag team partner Murray. The two were trained by Waldo Von Erich at the Von Erich/Hart Brothers School of Wrestling. [1] [4]

Independent circuit (2001–2005)

They debuted in 2001, and the two men began wrestling as the team Highlanders with promotions such as GLCW, PWA and NSPW, which ran shows in Ontario, Canada. [1] [4] They also had longtime feud with another team out of the Ontario indy scene known as the Texas Hell-Razors which lasted for over 2 years. They also worked dark matches for WWE since 2003 and debuted on Heat in a losing effort against Tajiri and Rhyno on 26 July 2004. [1] [4] [7] The team's last independent match before signing to WWE, was for PWA against Andrew Davis and Phil Latio in Cambridge, Ontario.

World Wrestling Entertainment (2005-2008)

Ohio Valley Wrestling (2005–2006)

In July 2005, they signed a developmental deal with World Wrestling Entertainment and were assigned to their "farm territory" Ohio Valley Wrestling (OVW) where they wrestled for several months. [4]

Robbie (left) and Rory McAllister leaving the ring after a match The Highlanders in Kitchener, Ontario, Canada.jpg
Robbie (left) and Rory McAllister leaving the ring after a match

In June 2006 vignettes began airing on Raw featuring The Highlanders exploring "the big city" and comparing the differences to their native Scotland in classic Fish Out Of Water style. [6]

Raw (2006–2008)

The Highlanders made their Raw debut on 3 July, with a victory over the duo of Matt Striker and Rob Conway. [8] They followed this victory with another over the same team and were put on the fast track to a match for the Spirit Squad's Tag Team titles. [9] When they were granted a match against Spirit Squad members Kenny and Mikey, The Highlanders were defeated after abundant interference by the other members. [10] Throughout the month of August, The Highlanders continued to battle different tag teams until they won a Triple Threat tag team match over the team of Charlie Haas and Viscera and Lance Cade and Trevor Murdoch, which made them the number one contenders to the Spirit Squad's title on the 4 September edition of Raw. [11] They were unsuccessful in winning the title at Unforgiven, again because of interference from Spirit Squad members not technically a part of the match. [12]

The Highlanders went on to lose a Texas Tornado match at Cyber Sunday and a Tag Team Turmoil match at New Year's Revolution for a future tag tile shot. In-between the pay-per-views, The Highlanders briefly feuded with Lance Cade and Trevor Murdoch, both teams exchanging wins on Heat before ending the feud on the 4 December episode of Raw, defeating Cade and Murdoch in a Roddy Piper tribute match.

In late 2006, they mostly competed on Raw's sister show Heat , occasionally making appearances on Raw, throughout 2007, primarily to job to other teams or singles wrestlers such as Snitsky. [2] [13] On the 24 September 2007 episode of Raw, The Highlanders interrupted a match between Paul London and Brian Kendrick and Lance Cade and Trevor Murdoch, due to The Highlanders getting tired of being held back from a World Tag Team Championship opportunity, thus the duo turning heel. [14] Nothing came of this turn, however, as they lost a number one contenders match on 12 November. [15] They then feuded with London and Kendrick and Jim Duggan and Super Crazy, mainly on Heat.

The Highlanders had a Royal Rumble qualifying match, but lost to the team of Mick Foley and Hornswoggle.

The Highlanders only appeared once on ECW before Rory tore his pectoral muscle and was sidelined for six months in February 2008. [2] [4] They lost to then WWE Tag Team champions John Morrison and The Miz. Robbie started wrestling on Raw again during this time, mostly on Heat and also formed a brief tag team with Charlie Haas during this time. Robbie also made an appearance on the 17 March episode of Raw as a part of the Raw roster taking on John Cena and Randy Orton. Robbie was the fourth man to be pinned, when Cena pinned him after a flying leg drop.

In their last televised match on 11 August 2008 they were defeated by Cryme Tyme. [16] Both members of the team were released from WWE on 15 August 2008. [17]

Return to independent circuit (2008–2019)

In September 2008, Rory and Robbie returned to the Independent wrestling scene appearing mostly in single matches all over the U.S. and Canada, as well as Europe. In April 2010 they became the CWI tag team champs in Ontario Canada. Also in 2010, Robbie became the MPW Ontario heavyweight champion by defeating Tyson Dux. In August 2011 Highlander Robbie appeared on the CWI east coast tour with his hair cut short and beard shaved off and announced he was no longer Highlander Robbie McAllister and from that point on he was to be known as Robert Graham.

The Highlanders reunited on 19 January 2013 at the WAR X - 10th Anniversary show in Lima, Ohio. [18] The two would reunite again for the last time at WAR 11th Anniversary on 18 January 2014. [19]

In December 2019 they reunited and fought in two tag team matches together at the Battle On The Border Christmas shows, during which they won the Battle On The Border Tag Team Championships. [20] [21] They never defended the titles however, with the titles remaining inactive. They were eventually vacated in September 2021, with the duo having technically reigned as Champions for 637 days. [22]

Personal life

Murray, a graduate of Clemson University, now works in aviation management and is a single father raising his son, Ian and a daughter, Sophia. Rory makes limited wrestling appearances and is signed to Think Ink Signatures out of New York. In his spare time Rory can be found boxing or doing canvas painting. Rory now resides in a rural area outside of Cincinnati, Ohio.Archive|access-date=2011-02-23 |publisher=twnpnews.com |date=2008-02-06}}</ [4]

Robbie married Rhonda in 2003, and they have a son named Treyton, born on 27 April 1996.

The Highlanders both have Scottish designed tattoos, of which some represent their families. [23]

On the live, 27 March 2008 episode of TNA Impact! , Robbie was in attendance at the Impact Zone and was shown on camera (under his real name to prevent a WWE/TNA lawsuit). [4] This reportedly had a WWE official calling him and ordering that he leave immediately, which he did. [4] The event was mere days prior to WrestleMania weekend when both companies were in the Orlando area. Robbie lost his $5,000 WrestleMania paycheck due to the appearance. [24] Robbie later said in an interview that "I was very unhappy in WWE, and in retrospect I think it was kind of my way to get fired." [25]

Robbie signals to the crowd Robbie-McAlister-Postmatch,-RLA-Melb-10.11.2007.jpg
Robbie signals to the crowd

Championships and accomplishments

Robbie McAllister in January 2011 Robbie McAllister in January 2011.jpg
Robbie McAllister in January 2011

Kayfabe Conquest Heavyweight champion (1 time) Rory

Robbie is one of TNA’s most watched moments ever.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Val Venis</span> Canadian professional wrestler

Sean Allen Morley, better known by the ring name Val Venis, is a Canadian retired professional wrestler. He is best known for his appearances with the World Wrestling Federation/World Wrestling Entertainment (WWF/WWE) from 1998 to 2009. He has also worked for Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre and Total Nonstop Action Wrestling.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Matt Hardy</span> American professional wrestler (born 1974)

Matthew Moore Hardy is an American professional wrestler. He is currently signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW). He is best known for his tenures in WWE and Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA). With his brother, Jeff, Hardy gained prominence in WWF's tag team division during the 2000s due to his participation in TLC matches. He is a 14-time world tag team champion, having held the WWE World Tag Team Championship six times, the WWE Raw Tag Team Championship three times, the WWE SmackDown Tag Team Championship, ROH World Tag Team Championship, and WCW Tag Team Championship once each, and the TNA World Tag Team Championships twice. They are considered one of the major teams that revived tag team wrestling during the Attitude Era.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lance Cade</span> American professional wrestler (1981–2010)

Lance Kurtis McNaught was an American professional wrestler. He was best known for his time in World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) where he performed under the ring names Garrison Cade and Lance Cade.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rosey (wrestler)</span> Samoan-American professional wrestler (1970–2017)

Matthew Tapunu'u Anoaʻi was an American professional wrestler. He was best known for his tenure in World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE), under the ring name Rosey.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gregory Helms</span> American professional wrestler

Gregory Shane Helms is an American professional wrestler. He is currently signed to WWE under a legends contract, as a wrestler and as a backstage producer. In WWE, Helms has wrestled as The Hurricane, Gregory Helms, and Hurricane Helms. He is also known for his time with World Championship Wrestling (WCW), where he wrestled as "Sugar" Shane Helms.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Road Dogg</span> American professional wrestler

Brian Girard James is an American professional wrestler currently signed with the WWE, where he serves as the Senior Vice President of Live Events. James was best known for his initial tenure with World Wrestling Federation as The Roadie from 1994 to 1995 and as "Road Dogg" Jesse James from 1996 to 2001. He is also known for his appearances with Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA) as B.G. James from 2002 to 2009, and has also made appearances for several other promotions such as Smoky Mountain Wrestling, World Championship Wrestling, the United States Wrestling Association, the Catch Wrestling Association, and World Wrestling All-Stars (WWA).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Paul London</span> American professional wrestler (born 1980)

Paul Michael London is an American professional wrestler. He is best known for his time with WWE.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hardcore Holly</span> American professional wrestler

Robert William Howard is an American professional wrestler better known by the ring name Hardcore Holly or Bob Holly. He is best known for his 16-year career with the World Wrestling Federation/World Wrestling Entertainment (WWF/E) where he also worked under the ring names Thurman "Sparky" Plugg, Bob "Spark Plug" Holly, and Bombastic Bob.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brian Kendrick</span> American professional wrestler

Brian David Kendrick is an American professional wrestler. He is best known for his tenure in WWE. He is also known for his time in Ring of Honor (ROH), Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA), New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW), and Pro Wrestling Zero1 (Zero1).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hardy Boyz</span> Professional wrestling tag team

The Hardys, also known as the Hardy Boyz, are an American professional wrestling tag team consisting of brothers Matt Hardy and Jeff Hardy, who are currently signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW) They first began teaming together in 1993 on the independent circuit, winning the NWA 2000 Tag Team Championship in NWA and founding OMEGA Championship Wrestling, where they held the OMEGA Tag Team Championship. They signed contracts with the World Wrestling Federation in 1997. In 2000, they were joined by Lita, and the trio became Team Xtreme during her stay. They are the only team to have held the WWE/World, WCW, TNA, ROH, Raw, and SmackDown Tag Team Championships. They are considered one of the major teams that revived tag team wrestling during the Attitude Era. In 2012, WWE named them as one of the greatest tag teams in WWE history.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Hurricane and Rosey</span> Professional wrestling tag team

The Hurricane and Rosey were a professional wrestling tag team in World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) based on the Raw brand. While in the WWE, their ring personas were those of a duo of superheroes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shad Gaspard</span> American professional wrestler and actor (1981–2020)

Shad Javier Gaspard was an American professional wrestler and actor. He was best known for his time with WWE, where he performed under his real name, or mononymously as Shad.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Steven Lewington</span>

Steven Paul Lewington is an English professional wrestler. He is best known for his time in World Wrestling Entertainment, where he performed under the ring name DJ Gabriel on the ECW brand. Lewington currently wrestles independently as "The Swole-verine" Bronson.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Trevor Murdoch</span> American professional wrestler

William Theodore Mueller is an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name, Trevor Murdoch. He is currently signed to National Wrestling Alliance where he is a former two-time NWA Worlds Heavyweight Champion and former WildKat Sports Heavyweight Champion. He is also a former one-time NWA National Champion.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lance Cade and Trevor Murdoch</span> Professional wrestling tag team

Lance Cade and Trevor Murdoch were an American professional wrestling tag team most famous for the time they spent performing for World Wrestling Entertainment's Raw brand. The team debuted on the September 5, 2005 episode of Raw and in their time together held the World Tag Team Championship on three occasions. The team was briefly broken up in 2006, but was later reunited. During the 2008 WWE Draft, Murdoch was moved to the SmackDown brand, separating the two. Shortly after being drafted, he was released from the company. Later the same year, Cade was released as well, and the team reunited again on the independent circuit. On August 13, 2010, Cade died from heart failure at the age of 29.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Afa Anoa'i Jr.</span> American professional wrestler

Afa Anoaʻi Jr. is an American professional wrestler. He is best known for his appearances with the professional wrestling promotion WWE in the late 2000s under the ring name Manu. He now owns BattleField Pro Wrestling, a promotion based in Pennsylvania.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Paul London and Brian Kendrick</span> Professional wrestling tag team

Paul London and Brian Kendrick were an American professional wrestling tag team for World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE). They are former WWE Tag Team Champions and World Tag Team Champions. Their 2006-2007 reign as WWE Tag Team Champions was the longest in the title's history until their record was broken by The New Day on July 20, 2016.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cryme Tyme</span> Professional wrestling tag team

Cryme Tyme was an American professional wrestling tag team consisting of JTG and Shad Gaspard, best known for their tenure in WWE.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">JTG</span> Professional wrestler

Jayson Anthony Paul is an American professional wrestler. He is currently signed to National Wrestling Alliance. He is best known for his time in WWE under the ring name JTG.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jamin Olivencia</span> American professional wrestler (born 1985)

Jamin Olivencia is an American professional wrestler best known for his time at the Ohio Valley Wrestling (OVW) promotion, where he is a former three-time OVW Heavyweight Champion holding the former record for the longest reign at 241 days. He is also tied, with Mohamad Ali Vaez, for the most OVW Television Championship reigns with eight.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Rennie, Steve (19 April 2005). "Highlanders set sights on WWE". SLAM! Sports. Retrieved 6 July 2006.
  2. 1 2 3 4 "The Highlanders Tag Team Profile". Online World Of Wrestling. Retrieved 16 January 2008.
  3. ↑ "Rory McAllister Bio". World Wrestling Entertainment. Archived from the original on 2 February 2007. Retrieved 13 August 2008.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 Xamin, Mark. "Humble Highlander grateful for WWE run". SLAM! Sports. Retrieved 9 September 2008.
  5. ↑ "Russell Murray". IMDb .
  6. 1 2 Smith, Cory. "Highlanders make their Raw debut". Slam! Sports. Canadian Online Explorer. Archived from the original on 15 January 2013. Retrieved 5 July 2006.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  7. ↑ "WWE Raw Results – July 26, 2004". Online World Of Wrestling. 16 July 2004. Retrieved 19 September 2008.
  8. ↑ Williams III, Ed (3 July 2006). "Stolen Championship". WWE. Retrieved 27 December 2007.
  9. ↑ Williams III, Ed (10 July 2006). "Service with a slam". WWE. Retrieved 19 September 2008.
  10. ↑ Zeigler, Zack (24 July 2006). "Samoan Sabotage". WWE. Retrieved 19 September 2008.
  11. ↑ Zeigler, Zack (4 September 2006). "R-K-Ohhhhh". WWE. Retrieved 19 September 2008.
  12. ↑ Hoffman, Brett (17 September 2006). "Strength in numbers". WWE. Retrieved 19 September 2008.
  13. ↑ Clayton, Corey (6 August 2007). "Checkmate: Booker beats Lawler in battle of kings". WWE. Retrieved 19 September 2008.
  14. ↑ Clayton, Corey (24 September 2007). "Tag turmoil". WWE. Retrieved 19 September 2008.
  15. ↑ Adkins, Greg (15 November 2007). "Reluctant Partnership". WWE. Retrieved 19 September 2008.
  16. ↑ Sitterson, Aubrey (11 August 2008). "Culture clash". WWE. Retrieved 19 September 2008.
  17. ↑ "WWE releases several Superstars, referee Wes Adams". WWE. 15 August 2008. Retrieved 25 August 2008.
  18. ↑ "WrestlingData profile" . Retrieved 2 January 2014.
  19. ↑ Kreikenbohm, Philip. "WAR 11th Anniversary « Events Database « CAGEMATCH - The Internet Wrestling Database". www.cagematch.net. Retrieved 9 April 2018.
  20. ↑ [https://www.cagematch.net/?id=28&nr=47&page=2 CAGEMATCH » Tag Teams Database » Highlanders » Matches
  21. ↑ CAGEMATCH » Events Database » BOTB Christmas Chaos"
  22. ↑ CAGEMATCH » Titles Database » BOTB Tag Team Championship
  23. ↑ "The Highlanders: Celtic pride". World Wrestling Entertainment . Retrieved 30 November 2007.
  24. ↑ "Final Smackdown Number, Highlander Loses Money, DH Smith". Wrestling-Edge. Archived from the original on 18 April 2008. Retrieved 15 April 2008.
  25. ↑ Colin Hunter (28 February 2011). "CANOE -- SLAM! Sports - Wrestling - Highlander Robbie still making a living on indy circuit". slam.canoe.ca. Retrieved 13 March 2011.
  26. ↑ "TWA Championship Title History". TWA Powerhouse. Retrieved 9 June 2010.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.