He was a grunt that used a gun. And not a very good one i assume. Nothing crisis core showed implied he was any good anyways. He didnt become a great fighter till after his mako infusion. Only feat he had before then was one of those power of love/friendship bs moments where he prevailed just because of how mad he was over a friend being hurt.
That was more of Sephiroth being weakened incredibly by Zack before Cloud came in. Cloud was basically the straw that broke the camel's back. ---
People come up to me... concerned.. that I'll reproduce." - Emo Philips