By: Jessica McKeown
As the match for the PPW Tag Team Championships drew near, special guest referee TJ Masters entered the ring to protect the integrity of the match and keep things fair and square. The cheers beginning with his entrance only grew louder and echoed through the building once South Philly’s Finest made their way to the ring. Luca Brazzi and Jimmy Konway came out with bats at the ready and with plenty of baby powder raining upon the PPW Nation.
Arrogance of Excellence members (and current PPW Tag Team Champions) Clutch Adams and Johnny Moran seemed to have damper rain on their parade once they entered, however. Masters demanded their manager stay in the locker room (despite the loud objections from the two competitors). Unable to win that argument, they entered on their own only to have Brazzi and Konway leaping onto them outside the ring.
South Philly’s Finest seemed to take control early in the match with polished teamwork, athleticism, and power once the match officially started and the bell rang. Brazzi and Konway used their knowledge of one another and their abilities to keep Moran down on the mat. Konway was ready for a good ol’ fish hook, but Moran scurried into the corner just in time. Ready for a fight, Konway chased Moran into the corner only to get dragged into the turnbuckle, surrendering control to Arrogance of Excellence.
Moran and Adams showed a just as respectable amount of teamwork once the control fell into their hands. Despite having good chemistry with each other, they were less than thrilled with Masters and his involvement in the match. Moran’s “arrogance” about him, though, led to him trying to take out Konway while also wailing on Brazzi. And this mistake opened an opportunity for Brazzi to recover and regain control of the match.
After Brazzi tagged in his partner, Konway finally hooked his fish in the middle of the ring. However, he did not expect three more fish to swim to the line. Out came John Wes, Pat Sawyer, and Andy Header to try and take South Philly’s Finest out of competition. Masters did not seem to approve this move, as seen by a superkick landed right to Header’s chin. Brazzi and Konway took the opportunity to continue their work until two shoulders hit the mat.
They heard “One.” They heard “Two.” The final three-count was silent, and Masters’ hand hovered over the mat. The crowd sat silent, and Konway’s rage grew. While confronting Masters about the count (or lack thereof), Adams shot a low blow to Konway and picked up the victory with a roll-up and the quickest count in Hazleton history.
As if being cheated out of a title win two months in a row was not enough for South Philly’s Finest, Header, Sawyer, and Wes ran back into the ring and beat Brazzi and Konway before throwing them out of the ring. All five men, Masters, and manager celebrated their victory amongst a sea of boos and outrage from PPW Nation.
Arrogance of Excellence seems to keep their titles (regardless of how they did it), and South Philly’s Finest seem to be hitting as many road blocks as there are on Pennsylvania state roads during summertime.
Will Brazzi and Konway be able to snag another championship win for themselves? If they can’t end the reign of Arrogance of Excellence, who else in PPW can? More answers are bound to unravel at PPW Throwdown on 5th Street on Saturday, March 16!