RoH Border Wars 5/12/12

-From Toronto

-Hosts are Kevin & Nigel

-Match 1: Rhino (w/Truth Martini) VS Eddie Edwards 

-Not much happening early. Hurricarana sends Rhino outside, but he manages to trip Edwards and smack his face on the apron to gain control. Back in, Rhino hits a vicious shoulderblock in the corner. Rhino military pressed Edwards over the top and out. Rhino works on the midsection to set up the gore. Edwards hits a very dangerous German suplex. Edwards hits a bunch of chops, a kick to the knee, and a shining wizard for two.

Martini grabs Edwards' ankle, but it doesn't work as Rhino misses a gore through the ropes, and Edwards hits a moonsault off the apron. Back in, Edwards hits a missile dropkick for two. Rhino comes back with a belly-to-belly suplex, but Edwards counters the gore with a dropkick. Martini almost strikes Rhino with the book of truth, and the pause allows Edwards to get a schoolboy for the pin at 11:00. Not much of an opener. Nigel did more to sell the rib work on commentary than Edwards did in the ring.

-Rhino teases killing Martini, but takes a wad of cash not to.

-Match 2: The Young Bucks & Mike Mondo VS The All Night Express & TJ Perkins 

-Perkins sprays water into Mondo's eyes, then holds Matt Jackson in Boston crab position for a low dropkick by King, which gets two. King gets a double-leg on Mondo, and pounds him down for two. Crowd chants "Spirit Squad" at Mondo (a.k.a. Mikey). Mondo takes some more damage before tagging in Matt. Titus hits Matt with a Rough Ryder from behind. Nick pulls Titus outside. Titus ends up getting dropkicked off the apron, right into the arms of Mondo, who slams Titus into the guardrail.

Titus plays face-in-peril. Mondo fucks up what looked to have been a triple low dropkick spot, getting the appropriate chant for it. Matt and Mondo double-team Titus in the corner, then Nick Jackson does a flip into...a back rake. Tremendous. Titus almost makes the tag, but Mondo & Nick pull King & Perkins off the apron to cut it off.

Rhett finally makes the hot tag to King, who cleans house. Perkins gets in, countering a kick from Matt into a powerbomb for two. Match breaks down into some contrive spots, which end up leaving all six men down. Bucks hits a buckle bomb/enziguiri combo on Titus, then follow up with a Mondo head scissors into a frog splash from Nick, which gets two. Just about everyone is wiped out by a series of dives, then the ANX hit Matt with the powerbomb/blockbuster combo, followed by a 450 from Perkins for the win at 12:56. Started out with some solid tag formula, before transitioning into the contrived spots associated with the Bucks. This was pretty entertaining, all-in-all.

-Match 3: Tomasso Ciampa (w/Prince Nana, RD Evans & Ernesto Osiris) VS Jay Lethal 

-Ciampa has a goatee that's dyed white, making it look like he's foaming at the mouth. They brawl outside before the match officially starts. Ciampa goes for the exposed knee strike, but misses and hits the barricade. Ciampa fights back and grabs a sign, but ends up getting catapulted into it. Still out on the floor, Ciampa runs into the hiptoss/low dropkick combo. Lethal goes for a dive, but Evans gets in the way, taking a springboard dropkick for hit troubles. Lethal again goes for the dive, but Ciampa jumps and hits the exposed knee strike, and the match officially starts.

Ciampa gets two off the knee strike. Ciampa works Lethal over, applying a modified dragon sleeper. Lethal finally comes back with a leg lariat, as the crowd amuses themselves with a "yes" chant. Lethal drops Ciampa onto Lethal's knee with a TKO for two. Lethal hits a handspring elbow for two. Ciampa hits a Lethal Combination for two. Lethal slugs down Nana & Osiris then goes for the Lethal Injection, but Ciampa hits a follow clothesline for two.

Lethal counters Project Ciampa with a hurricarana for two. Ciampa hits a nasty knee strike for two. Flying knee sets up three exposed knee strikes, but Lethal counters Projecy Ciampa into an Alabama slam into the buckles. Todd Sinclair shoves Nana down, thus missing a small package, but it's questionable whose shoulders are down. That gets two anyway. Ciampa talks shit, but Lethal comes back with a flurry of strikes and the Lethal Injection...but RD Evans pulls Sinclair out of the ring at two.

Lethal hits Hail to the King (Savage elbow) for two. Lethal hits the back breaker part of the Lethal Combination ten times before completing the move, and that ends Ciampa's year-plus undefeated streak at 10:50. This was really good, and while Ciampa lost, he looked great coming out of it, considering what it took to put him down.

-Ciampa apparently loses his sanity after the loss, and leaves on his own.

-Match 4: Mike Bennett (w/Brutal Bob Evans & Maria) VS Lance Storm 

-Former WWE ref Jimmy Korderas is the official. Storm controls the early going with striking. Bennett turns the tide by sending Storm into the ringpost. Bennett works Storm over on the outside, focusing on Storm's back. Bennett continues to work the back, but Storm hits a mule kick to get back in the match. Bennett regains control with a big backdrop. Storm wins a "boo/yes" punch exchange, and hits a back spring elbow for two.

Storm hits a code breaker for two. Bennett blocks a superkick, and hits a spinebuster for two. Storm misses a springboard clothesline, and walks into a spear for two. After a couple reversals, Bennett hits the box office smash for two. Bennett hits a dragon screw leg whip, and Storm sells it like Bennett broke his leg. Bennett adds insult to injury by applying a single-leg crab. Storm reverses into one of his own to a HUGE pop.

Brutal Bob pulls Bennett into the ropes, then distracts the ref as Bennett grabs a chair. That doesn't work out, as Storm ends up hitting a chairshot to the back, and Storm finishes with a superkick at 12:34. This was OK. The Showdown in the Sun match was better though.

-Storm sucks up to the crowd after the match.

-Intermission

-Match 5: Adam Cole VS Michael Elgin (w/Truth Martini) 

-Face reaction for the hometown boy Elgin. Cole controls the early going with strikes, hitting a missile dropkick for one. Cole goes for a dive, but gets caught in mid-air, and Elgin hits a running powerslam onto the ramp, which gets two. Elgin pounds Cole down, and gets two. Elgin blocks a tornado DDT, but gets shoved into the turnbuckles. Elgin comes back with an Alabama slam for two. Cole gets a schoolboy for two. Elgin wins a strike exchange and talks some smack.

Forearm exchange proves nothing, then Cole counters a tilt-a-whirl into a tornado DDT that spikes Elgin into the mat. Cole hits a DDT on the apron, then a splash off the top for two. Elgin fights off the Florida key, and hits a chaos theory for two. Cole comes back with a couple shining wizards for a couple two counts. Cole hits superkicks to the front and the back of Elgin's head, but Elgin hits a massive blind clothesline.

They exchange enziguiris in the ropes, then Elgin pulls Cole off the apron into a falcon arrow off the second rope for two. Elgin applies a crippler crossface, but Cole counters into a rollup for two. Cole hits a suplex into a backbreaker for two. Cole goes for a cross-body off the top, but Elgin catches him, hits a buckle bomb, and finishes with the spinning sit-out powerbomb at 13:54. Match started out pretty slow and was unimpressive for the most part before picking up at the end.

-Truth sends Elgin to the back, but stays for the TV title match. Cole gives Martini a pop for calling him a "piece of crap" and "untalented". Elgin retrieves Martini, giving Cole a shrug on his way out. Elgin is going to be king-sized when he turns face.

-Match 6 for the RoH Television Championship: Roderick Strong [c] VS Fit Finlay 

-Unlike other RoH TV title matches, this has no time limit. Feeling out process to start. Finlay works on Strong's leg, as they appear to be setting up to go long. Finlay responds to a stiff chop with a single leg takedown. Finlay hits a short-arm clothesline, and drops a knee for two. They go outside, where Finlay drops Strong chest-first on the barricade. Strong fights back by dropping Finlay onto the apron. Strong locks on a reverse bearhug, takes a chinbreaker, and hits a dropkick for two.

Strong kicks Finlay to the outside, and sends him into the barricade. Strong works on the back and ribs, then Finlay comes back with an avalanche and shoulderblock. Strong fights back, hitting a belly-to-back suplex for two. Strong stops to stare at the ringside fans, allowing Finlay to get a schoolboy for two. Strong applies the Stronghold (Boston crab), but Finlay almost immediately fights his way out.

Finlay hits the Finlay roll and the Celtic cross for two. Finlay goes to the second turnbuckle, but gets shoved out over the top. Back in, Strong hits Death from Above for two. Finlay hits a sitdown splash for two. Strong slides out of the Finlay roll, and hits a roaring elbow and the sick kick for the pin to retain at 17:16. I liked that they tried to make this a struggle, but it wasn't particularly exciting. Not bad, but nothing memorable. The best part was Nigel openly marking out for Finlay on commentary.

-Finlay gets the sympathy standing ovation following the loss, with a "please come back" chant.

-Match 7 for the RoH World Tag Team Championship: The Briscoes [c] VS Wrestling's Greatest Tag Team [Fight Without Honor] 

-"Fight Without Honor" = street fight. They tease that Mark got held up at the border, but he eventually comes out in a hockey jersey and wielding a hockey stick to start the match. Briscoes clean house right off the bat. Match spills outside, where the Briscoes continue the beating. Back in, Mark hits Shelton with a drop toe hold onto a seated chair. Haas catches Jay with an exploder suplex for two. Jay responds by driving Haas head-first into a chair.

Haas gets busted open by a chairshot from Jay as Mark hits a somersault splash off the apron onto Shelton. A bicycle wheel gets used by Jay. Shelton throws Mark off the top through a table. In the ring, Jay hits Shelton with a death valley driver. Shelton throws Jay off the top for two. Shelton hits Jay with a spinebuster off the second rope for two. Haas steps on Jay's nuts.

WGTT try to ram Jay's nuts into the ringpost, but Mark makes the save and utilizes some redneck kung fu. Mark hits Haas with a frog splash into an elbow drop for two. Crowd chants for table, and Jay abliges. Mark tries to splash Shelton through the table, but gets caught with an Angle slam by Haas. Shelton ends up dropping Jay through the table with an electric chair drop. Haas brings back THE ETHER SOAKED RAG OF DEATH to put Mark down and win the titles at 14:29. Match was an OK street fight before that outdated finish. I was worried about them going too long and it didn't, so that's nice. This doesn't seem like the feud ender, but where do they go from here? Ladder war?

-Match 8 for the RoH World Championship: Davey Richards [c] VS Kevin Steen (w/Jimmy Jacobs)

-Steen comes out draped in the Canadian flag, sucking up to his home country crowd. Crowd is 100% for Steen. The piledriver is legal for this match. Richards clotheslines Steen out over the top, and follows with a dive. Jacobs distracts Richards, allowing Steen to hit a ropes-assisted DDT. Steen welcomes Richards to Canada by whipping him into a part of the barricade where a fan has draped a Canadian flag.

Steen crotches Richards on the ringpost, then takes him to another corner, and does it again. Richards hits an exploder suplex on the ring apron for two. Richards goes for a tequila sunrise, but Steen fights it off, so Richards applies a trailer hitch instead. Richards keeps taking his mouthpiece out. Why wear it if you're going to keep taking it out? Richards takes Jacobs out with a kick off the apron, but Steen avoids it, and hits the apron powerbomb.

After the ref reaches 10 (the count in RoH is 20), Steen adds another apron powerbomb, and follows up with a cannonball for two. Steen goes for a swanton bomb, but it hits knees. Richards hits a German suplex, followed by a lariat for two. Richards slides out of an F-5, takes a superkick, lands a spinkick, but then takes a discus clothesline for two. Steen hits the pumphandle into a drop on the knee for two. Steen puts Richards' mouthpiece in, and goes for the package piledriver, but Richards fights it off.

Richards hits a low dropkick, but runs into a powerbomb for two, which Steen transitions into the Sharpshooter. Richards ties the knee in the ropes, then hits a couple double stomps off the top for two. Richards applies an anklelock. Steen ducks a big kick, and gets a schoolboy for two. Richards fights out of both the F-5 and the package piledriver before hitting the DR Driver (double underhook brainbuster) for two.

Steen absorbs some Kawada kicks, slaps the taste out of Richards' mouth, and hits the F-5 for two. Steen hits a moonsault for two, hurting the knee in the process. Richards slides out of the package piledriver, and hits a running kick for two. Richards hits a couple stiff kicks to the head, but a third is counter into an anklelock, which Richards counters into one of his own.

Steen counters the anklelock into a Sharpshooter, then Richards counters back into the anklelock. Steen pulls off one of the middle turnbuckle pads while fighting the hold, then sends Richards into it, hitting a sleeper suplex on the rebound. Package piledriver wins the title for Steen at 24:44. This was your typical Davey Richards match, elevated greatly by the crowd, which turned it into the RoH version of Cena/Punk from Chicago last summer. I was definitely expecting a screwjob and a double-turn heading into this.

-Steve Corino gets into the ring...and embraces Steen. Steen, Jacobs, & Corino celebrate as the show ends.

-FINAL THOUGHTS: This was an OK show, greatly elevated by the main event. Other than that, only Ciampa/Lethal was particularly memorable, but nothing was bad, except the finish to the tag title match.