(NOAH) Global Junior League 2019, Night One (Korakuen Hall, 27th June 2019)

"It was good to go to see Noah at Korakuen today!! The excitement from the first match to the last was amazing".

Despite the rain starting because of the summer typhoons approaching Japan as they have from time immemorial, fans left work and hurried across the city to Korakuen Hall for the first night of Global Junior League. Noah didn't have a full house (which is understandable following Riki Choshu's "Power Hall" which was held the night before, it being a Thursday night and also the typhoon sweeping in), but they had a large one, and an enthusiastic one.

Referee Ben is back (much to fans delight, but no funky ties as he was in company uniform, i.e. a t-shirt and slacks), and Noah released new goods at the merchandise shop. One of these goods is Junta Miyawaki's first ever t-shirt. Hajime Ohara manned the booth today, and he bought with him a sheaf of calligraphy that he had done which he handed out to fans.

Opening ceremony

The participants came out to the ring and lined up as per tradition. Everyone attended even Stinger, who had refused to attend the Global Junior Tag League one. People were surprised to see Yoshinari Ogawa in particular.
In a change to the usual ceremony, the trophy was placed on the floor in the middle of the two blocks by last years winner, Kotaro Suzuki, rather than the new one being bought out, and the winner holding his own.
YO-HEY, naturally, acknowledged the crowds cheers by pointing "GETZ". He also decided to wind Harada up, and Harada shot an evil scowl at him that would rival Kenoh.

MATCH ONE
Shuhei Taniguchi, Akitoshi Saito, Hi69 & Masao Inoue vs Mohammed Yone, Quiet Storm, Hitoshi Kumano & Kinya Okada.

Masao Inoue fell prey to Fifty Funky Powers, but he had been using some old techniques in the match that no one had seen for a long time.

WINNER: Shuhei Taniguchi with the modified camel clutch on Kinya Okada (7 minutes, 13 seconds)

MATCH TWO
Kotaro Suzuki & Junta Miyawaki vs Tadasuke & HAYATA 

Tadasuke and HAYATA teamed together today as neither of them had league matches, and they came out in the old Osaka Pro style of masks (which HAYATA effortlessly made look photogenic). Tadasuke naturally was out of control, and so much so that in the post match promo afterwards, HAYATA just turned and faced the wall until after Tadasuke had finished yelling to no one in particular about winning.

Yes. HAYATA. HAYATA looked away.
HAYATA who has to normally team with a man who says he wants to fight Stevie Wonder in the finals, who refers to him as "wife" and speaks at high speed about things that no one at all anywhere can understand, thought that Tadasuke was crazy.
HAYATA was cold, calculating and somewhat sadistic in the match, as he drove his foot into Miyawaki's head, and he also had that eerie smile on his face too.

Junta Miyawaki debuted new ring gear, keeping his traditional orange, but adding a pattern to it on the trunks, boots and kneepads. He said he was also very touched that people came to the autograph session for his new "Orange Riot" t-shirt.

WINNER: HAYATA with the moonsault on Junta Miyawaki (9 minutes, 58 seconds)

After the match HAYATA (unusually) went to shake hands with Tadasuke. Tadasuke refused!

MATCH THREE
Hideki Suzuki vs Yoshiki Inamura

Despite the fact that Inamura put up a good fight with Suzuki working on his arm, it was a complete victory for Suzuki.

WINNER: Hideki Suzuki via submission with a modified necklock (7 minutes, 38 seconds)

After the match Suzuki went to shake hands with Inamura. Inamura glared at him and pushed his hand away before walking off. Suzuki didn't let this nine month old career boy phase him (plus he is used to this kind of disrespect from his own unruly trainee in Big Japan), as he got on the microphone and challenged Go Shiozaki to a singles match (if Shiozaki was "brave enough" that was). He didn't want a pre-match either. He wanted just that one match, and that was it.
Afterwards Suzuki praised Inamura saying he had everything that was needed, "power, speed and technique".

MATCH FOUR
GLOBAL JUNIOR LEAGUE
Minoru Tanaka vs Yoshinari Ogawa

As you would expect this was a very technical and very psychological match, with Ogawa putting on a "headlock clinic". Tadasuke summed up fighting Ogawa as playing into his hands, even when you are attacking him, so you can imagine what this match between two veterans was like.
Said to be one of the matches of the evening. 

WINNER: Minoru Tanaka with the forwards roll (11 minutes, 33 seconds)

MATCH FIVE
GLOBAL JUNIOR LEAGUE
Hajime Ohara vs Chris Ridgeway

"Chris has a lot of amazing techniques, he is really interesting to watch" 

This was a unique match with two different styles which was interesting to watch. At the end of it (not surprisingly) Ohara seemed to be holding his knee, but I don't think he has picked up an injury (although some fans were concerned).
Lots of praise for Ridgeway (including his blue eyes!)

WINNER: Hajime Ohara with the Muy Bien submission (9 minutes, 20 seconds)

MATCH SIX
Kaito Kiyomiya, Naomichi Marufuji & Masaaki Mochizuki vs Kongoh (Kenoh, Masa Kitamiya & Atsushi Kotoge)

Kongoh apparently made two separate entries today; Masa Kitamiya, Atsushi Kotoge and Yoshiki Inamura (who was seconding them) came out first, and then waited for Kenoh to join them, lining up beforehand so they could do their pose!

Kenoh, furious about not only Naomichi Marufuji and Kaito Kiyomiya appearing on the front cover of the last issue of "Weekly Pro" under the headline, "Noah's True System", and there being an interview with them plus LIDET'S president, was there to greet Marufuji the moment he got into the ring. When it was Kiyomiya's turn, Marufuji lent back in the corner and watched the next generation of Noah squaring up over the GHC Heavyweight tag belt to a waterfall of green and white streamers.
Mochizuki and Kenoh had a kick war, and this had the fans on their feet and wanting more, which was something Mochizuki seemed to hint at after the match.

WINNER: Kaito Kiyomiya with the Tiger Suplex on Atsushi Kotoge (17 minutes, 40 seconds)

At the end of the match, Marufuji decided to prank Kiyomiya by lifting up the strap of the belt which lay over Kiyomiya's shoulder and down his back. Kiyomiya turned around and batted his hand away! Despite this (and in the post match promo), there was send to be a "subtle sense of distance" between Marufuji and Kiyomiya.

MATCH SEVEN
GLOBAL JUNIOR LEAGUE
Daisuke Harada vs YO-HEY

"Daisuke Harada...I definitely want to exceed you."
YO-HEY

Harada and YO-HEY fought tooth and nail, hammer and tongs, and when they had worn both of them down, they fought with dust. Both pulled out techniques they both used and rarely used, with Harada using the Boston Crab at one point. It was thought though that YO-HEY had some moves that he wasn't using just yet as he was saving them. They were said to have a great understanding of each other, and where able to read each others next moves well.
This was a match that was unique to them, and at the end of it, neither could stand.

WINNER: Daisuke Harada with the flash pin following YO-HEY'S Bamboo Dragonfly (15 minutes, 20 seconds)

MATCH EIGHT
GHC HEAVYWEIGHT TAG TITLE MATCH
The Sugiura Army (Takashi Sugiura & KAZMA SAKAMOTO) vs AXIZ (Katsuhiko Nakajima & Go Shiozaki)

"I believe in the future of Noah keeping up such matches. I truly believe in a major reinstatement". 

The main event was said not to be overly technical (that was for Ohara, Ridgeway, Ogawa and Tanaka earlier) and consisted mainly of kicks, elbows and chops - but what a match it was. The crowd at Korakuen where pounding their feet on the wooden floors of the benches giving it an old Noah feel. The match was emotional with some fans in physical tears, but whether people cried or not, everyone was on the edge of their seats, especially with the close pinfalls, and Sugiura getting Nakajima in the ankle lock, the move he has tapped out twice to...
It took three kicks to the face, a long hang time and the vertical spike for Nakajima to put Sugiura away.

WINNER: Katsuhiko Nakajima with the vertical spike on Takashi Sugiura (29 minutes, 4 seconds)

As AXIZ where doing the famous lean with the belts (which are now "back where they belong" according to Go Shiozaki), Kaito Kiyomiya and Shuhei Taniguchi came to the ring, and challenged for the belts (Taniguchi made a rare show of speaking on the microphone). Hideki Suzuki looked on, smiling from where he was standing on the stairwell facing the ring, as Nakajima said he would only allow them to challenge if Kiyomiya accepted his challenge for the GHC Heavyweight.
Go Shiozaki then spoke on the mic, and said that he accepted Hideki Suzuki's challenge for a singles match.
Both matches have been set for Kultz Kawasaki on the 27th July.

Noah's next event takes place on Saturday June 29th in Shimada City. Bell sounds at 5pm JST.

"I am looking forward to Noah in the future"

ATTENDANCE: 1193 
WITH THANKS TO: Metal Noah, Abeshin, Saito, Wresling Lady Hiro, Tomoaki Take, KO-HEY, Tetorin, Yuzukabocha, Hiroshima Capu (also known as "Otohashi Dorao"), Hamahamarin, Munehiro Hashimoto, Osamu Kawata, IwasBorn, Yama, J, Maki, Matsuki,        
PICTURE CREDIT: Noah GHC, PKDX, Naomichi Marufuji
GIF CREDIT: Noah GHC