WRESTLER Stu Fury was a big hit when he brought a local flavour to the American grappling phenomenon and took to the ring in Horwich.

A crowd of almost 500, hooked on larger than life characters getting to grips with each other from extensive TV coverage, gathered to watch the event at Horwich Leisure Centre.

And they cheered on the 23-year-old -- real name Stuart Farrimond, of Leigh Road, Westhoughton -- as he beat his opponent, Chris Curtis in a 15 minute TLC (tables, ladders and chairs) match.

The match, which involved the wrestlers beating each other with props, came to an end when Stu, a former pupil of Westhoughton High School, brought down his opponent with a frog splash -- which involved him climbing up a ladder and jumping onto his back.

Stu said he was "over the moon" to have won but admitted he had still received quite a beating and said his mum Carol, who was watching in the crowd, was close to tears.

He said: "It was pretty brutal and I think my mum found it a bit too hard to watch. Probably the worst thing was when Chris picked me up in the air and drove me back through a table -- but it looked worse than it was."

Stuart, who has been a fan of the sport since he watched the likes of Big Daddy and the Giant Haystacks as a boy, was taught how to wrestle at a school in America, by former WWF champion, Afa The Wild Samoan.

He returned to England as a professional last June and since then has taken part in fights in Holland and Germany.

The Horwich event, which consisted of eight different matches, featured American Nova, a big name in the States, and Dutch wrestler Bas Van Kunder.

Now, the Westhoughton man is preparing to travel to the Costa Brava in Spain for five months, where he will be wrestling in matches on the beaches and in the hotels.

He said winning the TLC match was a great send off, and he was pleased at how popular he was with the crowd. He said: "The audience really got behind me and cheered me on. It was a very successful match and I am still in one piece."

He added: "The most important thing is that you don't hurt yourself and you give a good show -- thankfully I was able to do both."