One of the best tag matches ever and for my money the second best match NOAH has ever put on behind the Misawa vs Kobashi 2003 match.

The first 20 minutes of this are two heat segments on the jrs with flashes of hope spots quickly cut off through sheer brutality from misawa or slyness from Ogawa. First they work over KENTA destroying his back and once he gets a hot tag to Maru the jrs take over for a minute or so before Maru gets his head worked over.

These are both great heat segments but the KENTA one is all time level brilliant and brutal. The last 10 or so minutes feature finally some sustained offence from the jrs as they surprisingly attack Misawa with everything they have got and Ogawa has to save the GOAT a couple of times. KENTA using Kawada moves is incredible as is the crowd and Misawa’s reaction as he plays pissed off elder to perfection throughout but it peaks in the finish where he has enough of their shit and lays into Maru until finishing him off with a great emerald Flowsion Kai.

It is both an emphatic win as they dominated so much but there was still a scare and for a short while you could believe the jrs might do it. All time great tag very few tags are better than this one *****

• NOAH
• NOAH 2004