WARNING: STRONG VIOLENCE AND LANGUAGE AHEAD

Welcome back to H2O, where the hustle never stops. This time, we’ve got some vengeance to dish out. 44OH! has been a thorn in the side of Matt Tremont and his roster for months and now was the time to fight back. Marcus Mathers wanted to take the fight to Rickey Shane Page personally, the rising stars were battling Gregory Iron, Eric Ryan, and the newest recruit Bobby Beverly and the heart of H2O, Sean Henderson, was going for Atticus Cogar. Alongside this, we’d see a four-way for the Hybrid title, a Danny Havoc Hardcore Title #1 contenders triple-threat, the Brandon Kirk open challenge, Stockade vs Devon Moore and Aiden Baal challenges Chuck Payne for the H2O Heavyweight title. Let’s get into this stacked card of action.

44OH! vs H2O: 44OH! (Bobby Beverly, Eric Ryan & Gregory Iron) defeated Austin Luke, Reid Walker & Rocket via Snuff Stomp combo to Rocket

The show opened with the first of three 44OH! vs H2O bouts. It opened with six-man tag action as Eric Ryan, Bobby Beverly and Gregory Iron looked to do battle with Austin Luke, Reid Walker, and Rocket. Who would take the first blood in this series of fights? The dastardly group had already interrupted the opening where Tremont celebrated getting his dog back now, they’d get the first match of the night too. Rocket instantly leapt onto 44OH! from behind and his teammates followed the trend by hitting dives to the outside. Fights broke out around ringside as the rising stars picked their targets, Rocket focusing heavily on Beverly. Luke and Iron ended up in the ring and Luke continued to beat him down. 44OH! turned the tide outside and crotched Luke on a ring-post. Iron took his revenge on Luke and tagged out to Ryan so he could have some fun. Beverly tagged in next and showed off why he’d been the heavy hitter in the companies he’s worked for at Luke’s expense. Luke continued to be a 44OH! pinata until Iron got too cocky and missed an elbow drop. Luke made him pay with a lethal kick and dragged himself to Walker. He sent everyone flying with strikes and a half and a half, then low-bridged Ryan to the outside for Rocket’s Shooting Star Press. Iron became a pinata for the rising stars and ate a lethal kicking German into a Frog Splash for a two-count. 44OH! swarmed again with Beverly taking out Luke with a Saito and throwing Walker into an Iron Flatliner. The 44OH! teamwork continued with arm-drag cannonballs and the final combo of a pop-up knee into a piledriver into the Snuff stomps to Rocket for the win. 44OH! had drawn first blood but the rising stars had left their park and went down as heroes. Alex Stretch saved them from further beatings and got to show he was still alive after last month’s attack.  What an opener. Despite them being dicks I love seeing most of 44OH! together again. Fuck 44OH! count: 1

Stockade defeated Devon Moore via Shining Wizard

Up next was grudge match action. Stockade looked to continue his fight against Devon Moore and his grimy bastard protégé by going one-on-one with Moore himself. Stockade is one of the best members of the H2O roster and he was out to kill off one of the veterans. There were no entrances as Moore jumped Stockade during his entrance and attacked him with a spike. Moore stabbed him around ringside and hit him with a crossbody in-ring. The fight broke to the apron and Moore continued his assault with a diving apron bulldog and a push into the ring-post. He tried to choke Stockade with a rubber chicken but a diving chicken attack was stopped by a water spray. Stockade got mean and started punishing Moore with chops, Slams, and by trying to rip his jaw off. He beat Moore with the chicken and let the blood rush to his head with a Stalling Suplex. The strength games continued with a running powerslam and a duo of doors entered the mix as Stockade launched them into the ring. He kept Moore down with a chair slam and climbed to the top rope. He missed a Swanton so Moore made him pay with jabs, a superkick, and a monkey flip into the turnbuckles. He scored a near-fall with a diving blockbuster and ate a sit-out powerbomb from Stockade. The doors were set-up and Stockade broke both with Moore’s body with a top rope slam and a spear. Moore kicked out at one so Stockade took the win with a Shining Wizard. This hit hard and provided a fun sprint of a match between the pair. Stockade is so underrated and I’m hoping this new, give no fucks attitude leads to big things.

H2O Hybrid Title: Mouse defeated Frankie Pickard, Dyln McKay & Lucky 13 via Cazadora Combo

Things were going to get chaotic next as we got a four-way dance between the brutal veteran Lucky 13, the rising superstar Dyln McKay, the current champion Frankie Pickard and the rabid member of the Extricated, Mouse. Bodies and fists were going to fly before a winner was decided here. 13 was still clearly bitter about his loss to Pickard all those months ago and blocked his entrance to the ring like a dick. Pickard and Mouse spilt to the outside as 13 lit up McKay with chops. McKay came back quickly with an Ushigoroshi into a PK and bust out his first SSP in under 30 seconds. McKay kicked 13 to the outside so 13 dragged him out with him and Pickard threw Mouse back into the ring. Pickard caught Mouse with a corner enzuigiri and kip-up head kick, then KO’ed Mouse with a step-up knee. Things got crazier as everyone hit the ring and bodies went flying as McKay used Pickard as a launchpad for a dive. 13 returned that in kind by using McKay as a launchpad for a Tornado DDT on Pickard and Mouse used Pickard to hit a Shiranui DDT on McKay. He got whipped into the corner by McKay and was hung out to dry with a buckle-trapped neckbreaker. Mouse dropped everyone with a tower of doom and a four-way kick-off broke out. McKay and 13 worked to take out Pickard with a rope snap/dropkick combo and 13 hit Mouse with a buckle bomb into a fucking Moonsault Bomb into the half-package piledriver. He couldn’t capitalise on that ludicrous combo as Pickard drove him into the buckles with a DVD. 13 was finished by an SSP from McKay and Pickard tried to kill off McKay with Apollo 13. McKay kicked out so Pickard went to the top but Darian Hardway appeared and locked him up so Mouse snuck in and finished McKay with the Cazadora combo for the win. Mouse had finally taken the Hybrid Title with a little help from someone with a grudge. It was an excellent clusterfuck of a match with no weak links. Congrats Mouse you earned it. He showed respect to Pickard before leaving with the title.

H2O Heavyweight Title: Chuck Payne defeated Aiden Baal via Monstrous Clothesline

The Extricated streak continued as Aiden Baal looked to make it two for two when it came to taking titles. Baal had personally challenged Chuck Payne for the challenge and the Monster had accepted. This was going to be a big man battle for the ages. The Monster even had a hellacious new mask to celebrate this new era. Things started hot with shoulder tackles and stiff forearms. Payne mauled Baal in the corners and launched him across the ring. Baal bailed and took out Payne’s leg as he tried to exit the ring. He hammered into Payne’s knee and stomped into the underside of his leg as the pair traversed the ringside area. Payne battered back and threw Baal into the ring post, then into the wall. Baal reversed a wall charge and smashed Payne into the bricks. He made the same mistake and charged so Payne scooped him up and slammed him against the wall again. He dragged Baal back towards the ring and dumped him on the ring apron. Instead of rolling him back in, he dragged Baal further out and gave him an apron boot. The fight finally returned to the ring and Payne hammered into the bloody head of Baal with fists. Payne missed a corner charge and Baal went back to the legs. Payne fought back on wobbly legs but refused to go down as he fought off a Saito and dumped Baal with a powerslam. The corner mauling returned and Payne put Baal on the top rope. Baal fought out of a Superplex and took the monster down with a cannonball. He nailed the Saito but Payne wouldn’t stay down and murdered him with a chokeslam. Payne tried to go to the top again but Baal woke up and brought him crashing back down with a Powerbomb. Baal tried for the Tiger Driver but Payne tossed him overhead and tried for a Suplex. His knee gave out and Baal pummelled him with more forearms. Payne rebounded off the ropes with a monstrous clothesline and took the win. He was hobbled and winded but the monster had lived to be champion another day. What a hoss fight. It didn’t end there though; Payne respected his challenger and a new one emerged. Casanova Valentine was back and he wanted that belt, sealing his challenge with a punch to the face before fleeing the chokeslam. Safe to say, challenge accepted.

Brandon Kirk Open Challenge: Deklan Grant defeated Brandon Kirk (w/Casey Kirk) via TKO

Following intermission, where we were treated to a haunting cinematic from Matt Tremont and the roster, we got our next contest. This was originally meant to be a Danny Havoc Hardcore Title match with Bam Sullivan but due to COVID (get well soon Bam) things went south and it became an open challenge because Brandon Kirk wanted to kick someone’s ass. He originally teased a Kirk vs Kirk bout as his wife accepted but it was just a ruse to piss off the fans who’d told him to fuck off. The Grimy one Deklan Grant accepted and the match was rung in as Grant hit Kirk in the head with the microphone. Grant hit an early flurry of strikes and scored a near-fall with a Butterfly Suplex. Kirk took the fight outside and dropped Grant on the apron after a bitchslap. Kirk continued to strike down Grant and took his time disrespectfully kicking at his head or grinding his face into his boot. Grant smacked back and both men threw bombs at each other. Grant got thrown into the ropes and turned it against Kirk with a Blue Thunder bomb. Another vicious strike-fest broke out and Kirk nearly stole the match with a snap piledriver. He dragged Grant back up for a short-arm lariat and couldn’t hide his frustration when Grant kicked out. Grant fought out of a Full Nelson and struck Kirk with a ripcord kick and TKO for what would have been the winner but Casey dragged the ref out. Grant’s girl Jess threw Casey into the ring-post as Grant fought out of a roll-up and tanked another lariat to win with the TKO. Grant had scored somewhat of an upset here in a hard-hitting bout I’d love to see revisited at Hardcore Kingdom. Kirk isn’t capable of bad matches right now, love him or hate him, he knows how to work and bring the best out of an opponent.

44OH! vs H2O: Atticus Cogar defeated Sean Henderson via Roll-Up

Time for 44OH! vs H2O round 2. This time it was 44OH!’s own rising superstar Atticus Cogar taking on the heart of H2O itself, the master of never giving up, Sean Henderson. This would be great regardless of who won because of the talent in the ring. Henderson jumped Cogar and smashed him around the outside area. He choked Cogar with his own hoodie and bounced Cogar off the wall for a superkick. Cogar tried to use a chair but Henderson stunned him by smashing a dish over his head. He slammed Cogar on the ring apron and got punched out of the Code Red. Cogar choked Henderson across the rope and snapped him with stomps and a Suplex. The disrespect continued with a rope slam and multiple face scrapes, Cogar was taking his time and making Henderson feel this. Cogar lit him up with kicks and bounced him off the ropes for a rebound German into a running knee. Henderson refused to quit and levelled Cogar with the Code Red. Henderson tried to hit Cogar with the Brain Haemorrhage and got thrown off into the ropes so he hit a second Code Red. Henderson threw a bag into the ring and pulled out a pack of skewers, a homage to what 44OH! did to him. He looked to skewer Cogar but Cogar rolled him up and stole the win. Cogar not only avoided being skewered but stole the match from Henderson and retribution from the whole of H2O. Brains and wits won here despite Henderson’s best efforts. Fuck 44OH! count: 2

Danny Havoc Hardcore #1 Contender: Jeff Cannonball defeated Jimmy Lyon & Mitch Vallen via Double Door Powerbomb

Next up was the match to decide who would be Bam Sullivan’s next opponent when he was able to compete again. It was going to be King Ugly Jeff Cannonball taking on the barefoot berserker Jimmy Lyon taking on his own Lone Rangers tag partner Mitch Vallen in a three-way dance of destruction and fuckery. The Lone Rangers started with some friendly slugging and knocked away Lyon so they could keep fighting. Lyon didn’t like being left out and speared both through a barbed-wire door. Lyon bounced a chair off Mitch and asked MD 20/20 to sponsor him as he ground Cannonball’s head into barbed-wire. The fans decided Cannonball should get a chair to the back so Lyon obliged them and tried to do an MD 20/20 review but ended up downing the full bottle of booze. He fell over in a drunken stupor so Cannonball tried to take advantage with a pull-up splash. Cannonball shook up a soda and passed it to Mitch to review. Mitch was over the moon until he saw how shook up it was. Cannonball used this as a chance to chain wrestle because he didn’t want to hurt his friend. This went out the window as he dragged Mitch through the barbed-wire with a Gator Roll. Lyon was stirring so Cannonball broke a chair over him and stabbed him with the pieces, doing the same to Mitch. Cannonball gave the fans an up-close view of the murder and Mitch flattened Lyon with a hyperactive apron splash. He dragged Cannonball back into the ring and dropkicked a door into him, then headbutted Lyon out of the air. Mitch powerslammed Lyon through a door and massacred both opponents with door parts. Mitch tried to choke bomb Cannonball but couldn’t lift him so Cannonball let him try again to raise his spirits. When he failed again, Cannonball hit him in the throat and dumped him in barbed-wire, then dropped Lyon on his head with a Fire-Thunder Driver. Mitch nearly KO’ed Lyon with a back-fist clothesline combo and Cannonball nearly KO’ed Mitch with an arm-hooked Driver. Cannonball got smacked with a stop sign, as did Mitch and Lyon set up another door. He set the barbed-wire door on-top and sandwiched Cannonball between them. Mitch knocked Lyon off the top with the stop sign and Cannonball powerbombed Mitch through the two doors for the win. This was a riot to watch. It was equal parts fun comedic to equal parts violent fuckery and I can’t complain at that. All three guys had fun and put on a good match. I look forward to Cannonball/Sullivan in the future.

44OH! vs H2O: Rickey Shane Page defeated Marcus Mathers via Fireman’s Carry Driver

Last but not least, the main event. The final 44OH! vs H2O battle. Marcus Mathers had challenged Rickey Shane Page to this fight and now had the weight of it on his shoulders. H2O was 0-2 down, could Mathers send them away with a win, or was RSP going to embarrass him in front of the whole audience? Before the match even began, I was rooting for Mathers as he came out to All I Want by A Day to Remember. RSP pulled his usual BS and bailed instantly, denying Mathers his hot start and pissing the crowd off. The pair went into a technical showdown where RSP did everything to halt the momentum of Mathers and keep him grounded. He got too cocky off a knockdown and Mathers made him pay with a rope-walk arm-drag into a dropkick. RSP bailed again so Mathers followed and beat him in the crowd. He went for a dive but RSP caught him out of the air and threw him into the ropes. From here things were all RSP as he crushed Mathers and threw him around the ring. He punished Mathers with knees and chops, snuffing out any chance of a comeback with a nasty backbreaker. The punishment continued as Mathers tried to dropkick a knee but RSP just clotheslined him back down. It was all a game to RSP as he fed off the fan’s hatred and continued to throw around Mathers. The tide change when Mathers stunned RSP with a rebound kick and nailed him with the kip-up cutter. RSP snuffed that fire with vicious slaps and got too cocky again so Mathers unloaded on him with slaps. He downed RSP with a lariat and caved in RSP with chest kicks into a high knee. A bridging German followed and he climbed to the top for a rope-walk moonsault. That got two so he charged RSP and ate a throat thrust into an enzuigiri. An X-Plex followed but Mathers wouldn’t stay down. RSP looked for the kill with a top rope powerbomb but Mathers reversed it into a Frankensteiner. He tried for the Crucifix and stretched out RSP but RSP made the ropes. A roll-up war broke out and RSP snapped Mathers in half with a duo of choke breakers. Mathers still kicked out so RSP tanked his slaps and his defiance to take his head off with a spinning enzuigiri. He continued to throw Mathers around with a German and an Xploder, then ended it all with a Fireman’s Carry Driver. Mathers had given it his all and definitely rocked the 44OH! leader but RSP had come here to send a message and that’s what he did. He made his intentions very clear to Matt Tremont through Mathers’ broken body. 44OH! had won the day and won the show as they went 3-0 over H2O in matches. The rest of the goons mobbed Mathers one final time at RSP’s orders until G-Raver came to the rescue and laid down the gauntlet to RSP. We know who 44OH! fights next and it will be epic. Fuck 44OH! count: 3

All images courtesy of H20 Twitter, Chris Grasso, Earl Gardner Photography