Don't call him "Kid" anymore.

Call him "champ".

In a memorable East Coast Wrestling Association card held at St. Matthew's Parish Hall in Newport, DE, on September 23, not only was a new ECWA heavyweight champion crowned, but a couple of old ECWA favorites returned, and WWF champion THE ROCK made a show-stopping remote appearance via the ECWAtron screen.

Attendance estimated at 500-550. ECWA commissioner: BOOGIE WOOGIE BROWN. Former (and still evil) ECWA commissioner: RICHARD NAEGELE. ECWAtron machine coordinated by FLYIN' RYAN. Ring announcer: CHUCK RISTANO. Timekeeper at the bell: JEFF AMDUR. Referees for the evening: ROCK AUSTIN, BOB DENSMORE, LARRY PEACE and PAUL TURNER.

The place was filled with members of the wrestling press: BRANDI MANKIEWICZ of the PWI family; JOE ZANOLLE of WOW; freelancer PETE THEOPHALL; MICHAEL TEARSON of the Philadelphia Daily News; JIM QUIGLEY of 1wrestling.com (didn't even stop by to say hello--phtpthtpthtp); TIM NOEL of Richmond's "Wrestling Power" cable show; and BERNIE DIEHL of ehŠ, ahŠ, ummŠ, ahemŠ, wellŠ, chez Diehl, I guess.

Also seen among the spectators were wrestlers DINO DIVINE and J.R. RYDER; former ECWA manager SEBASTIAN NIGHT; promoters BLAINE DeSANTIS of PCW and GINO MOORE of NWA New Jersey; and jack-of-many-trades GREG GREENLAND. Plus, the usual gang of Net types and superfans: BOB and SARGE MAGEE, BRETT SCHWAN, and the HAWAIIAN HAT GUY entourage, led by Hat Guy himself, JOHN BAILEY.

The ECWAtron screen, after previewing the evening for the fans, panned on the backstage entrance to the arena where RECKLESS YOUTH, back home in the northeast after a year in the Ohio Valley WWF developmental promotion, was asking the BRISCOE BROTHERS the whereabouts of promoter JIM KETTNER. The Briscoes were of little help, and Reckless made his way around the building seeking a booking on the evening's card.

The NATIONAL ANTHEM was played in 1:35. I think it was the Man Mountain Rock version from an old WWF ppv.

MATCH 1: CROWBAR, returning to the ECWA for the first time since his departure for WCW, pinned "AMERICAN ROYALTY" ROBERT EVANS (with E.S. EASTON & NIGEL FAIRSERVICE) in 9:48. The WCW star, who had gotten his start in the ECWA, dazzled the fans and his opposition with various technical and flying maneuvers, including a "Fosbury flop" (you'd have to be my age to remember that Olympics, I guess) over the top rope onto a prone Evans on the floor. Crowbar got the pin after hitting a reverse ddt.

After the match, Crowbar took the mike and told the crowd how happy he was to be back here where it all began for him (crowd chants "Devon! Devon!" in honor of the name he used in the ECWA and other eastern indies). He called promoter JIM KETTNER the "best scout of young talent in wrestling" and thanked Jim for having faith in "an 18-year-old kid who didn't know an arm bar from a salad bar". He said he would be back whenever his WCW schedule would permit.

MATCH 2: "THE BLACK NATURE BOY" SCOOT ANDREWS vs. LOW-KI. This eagerly-awaited match between two of the indies' foremost high-flyers was stopped by the referee after Low came off the top turnbuckle with a 720-degree (I swear it was 720 degrees!) moonsault and hit the floor knee-first after Scoot moved out of the way. Commissioner BOOGIE WOOGIE BROWN came out with various security personnel to help Low to the back. The officials instructed Chuck Ristano to announce that the match had been suspended, and that the medical personnel backstage would examine Low-Ki's knee to see if the match could continue later on in the card.

Then, on the ECWAtron screen, we saw a montage of THE ROCK as his music plays. Out came KEVIN KELLY, wearing a "Just Bring It" shirt and imitating certain Rock mannerisms. He greeted the fans with "Finally, Kevin Kelly has come back to the ECWA!", as the crowd booed lustily. He reminded the fans that the only reason that Rock was so popular was "because of guys like me--Kevin Kelly--who work in the WWF offices on character development". Fans serenaded him with chants of "Michael Cole! Michael Cole!" Turning to the large contingent of fans that had come up from Laurel, Delaware, to see their hometown BRISCOE BROTHERS perform. He singled out MOTHER BRISCOE, offering to prove to her that he was not a hermaphrodite. He said that he would be on the ECWA card scheduled for Laurel High School on October 14, and also made some threats against LHS football coach MIKE PUGH.

Kelly continued, saying that he might be at Laurel on October 14; but one place he would *not* be is in the ring tonight for his scheduled 3-against-2 match where he was supposed to team with the HAAS BROTHERS against CHEETAH MASTER and TY STREET. No sooner did he exclaim "There is no way I will be in the handicap match", than the "Rock" theme started to play again and on the ECWAtron screen appeared none other than the WWF champion himself, THE ROCK. The crowd went crazy seeing Rock on the remote. Rock and Kelly exchanged words, and Kevin wound up tongue-tied to the point that Rock had him admitting that he *was* a hermaphrodite. Rocky then asked "Hermie" why he didn't want to compete in the 3-against-2 match tonight. Before Kelly could answer, Rock chimed in with "IT DOESN'T MATTER why you don't want to compete. Your candy [buttocks] *will* compete in the 3-against-2 tonight, and you *will* always be a hermaphrodite". The Rock montage played once more as Kelly made his way to the back.

MATCH 3: "THE MADMAN FROM THE BADLANDS" GLEN OSBOURNE successfully defended his Mid-Atlantic title by pinning MARK "THE SHARK" SHRADER (with BARRY CASINO) in 4:43. Glen got in some early back flips which sent Mark scurrying to his manager. Glen got in some Flair chops back in the ring. Mark banged Oz's head against the turnbuckle, but there was no effect. What did have an effect, however, was a well-placed Shark kick to Glen's scrotal region. Mark followed up with a double ax-handle delivered from the top rope, getting a 2-count. He went for the move once again and was caught by an Osbourne choke slam and pinned.

Before the next match could start, former ECWA commissioner RICHARD NAEGELE came to the ring to explain to the fans where he has been and to assert that he was the MYSTERIOUS EYE that had appeared on the ECWAtron on recent shows. Then, all lights in the building went off, and the silhouettes of two unidentified wrestlers could be seen beating up on Naegele in the ring. As the attackers disappeared, the Eye once again appeared on the screen, laughing and saying "You didn't really think I was that weakling Naegele? Guess again." The graphic dissolved into the words "Fear us" set upon a flaming background.

As the members of CAMP CASINO--PERSIAN PRINCE, JAPANESE POOL BOY, & MONSIEUR OOH LA LA--came to the ring for the next match, manager BARRY CASINO used his ring time to make a political statement, decrying the decision of the International Olympic Committee not to have pro wrestling as a sport. In light of that fact, Casino decided to have his own "Olympic medal ceremony" in mid-ring to give medals to the "foreign powers" that would have won the awards had Olympic pro wrestling competition taken place. Using milk crates as the awards stand, Prince and Pool Boy received their medals; but when Ooh tried to mount two crates to receive the gold, he never made it to the top, stumbling over the crates and falling to the floor.

MATCH 4: "MAXIMUM" JOHNNY MAXX & VINCE GOODNITE & BENNY STOLZFUS (with "THE ALL-AMERICAN" JEFF PETERSON) pinned THE JAPANESE POOL BOY & THE PERSIAN PRINCE & MONSIEUR OOH LA LA (with BARRY CASINO) in 9:43. Benny was triple-teamed during a good part of the match, as the distracted ref didn't see many phantom tags. The ref was similarly distracted when Johnny had Ooh pinned in a small package and Barry Casino came to the ring and reversed the positions. The ref still distracted, Jeff Peterson rolled Johnny back on top, where the ref finally turned around and made the count.

The ECWAtron then made a visit backstage where LOW-KI told BOOGIE WOOGIE BROWN that he indeed felt well enough to continue the suspended match against SCOOT ANDREWS. Still seeking a booking for the evening, RECKLESS YOUTH asked Boogie to make the match a three-way. Boogie agreed, but the plans were thwarted by KEVIN KELLY, who reminded Reckless that he was still under developmental contract with the WWF and could not wrestle anywhere without the WWF's consent. He told Reckless that the WWF would sue if he attempted to wrestle, and that he should "crawl back underneath the rock you crawled out of". So, no Reckless match this night, even though (Holy Cinderella, Batman!) the WWF developmental contract in question was set to expire at midnight.

MATCH 5: INFERNO, with some CONNECTICUT CONNECTION assistance, became the new ECWA heavyweight champion by pinning J.J. THE RING CREW GUY in 11:59. TAFKAInferno Kid (the ECWAtron introduction at the beginning of the night clearly stated that he didn't want to be called "Kid" anymore) attacked JJ at the start; but JJ countered with a sunset flip and quick 2-count. Shortly thereafter, Inferno pulled JJ off the ring apron, thrusting him onto the floor. Inferno tried to score a submission with a surfboard, then hit a power slam and got a 2-count. Inferno landed on his tuchus when Ring Crew Guy avoided his top-turnbuckle sit-in. JJ hit a splash in the corner. Inferno got a 2-count after a snap suplex. JJ then tried for his pump-handle move but Inferno thwarted it and both wrestlers barreled into the referee. With the ref temporarily out of action, KEVIN KELLY came to the ring and plonked JJ over the head with is championship belt. By the time the ref regained his bearings, Inferno had covered and the pin was counted.

The ECWAtron then had a special remote from the Bob Carpenter Center on the campus of the University of Delaware, where ECWA is to present its biggest show ever on Saturday, November 25. BILLY K was there, explaining to the fans about when tickets would go on sale (stay tuned to the ECWA website for more detailed information).

MATCH 2 (restarted): LOW-KI pinned "THE BLACK NATURE BOY" SCOOT ANDREWS in 7:10. As the match started, RECKLESS YOUTH took a seat at the ringside table to watch the match. The crowd chanted 'Youth! Youth! Youth!" as Reckless sat there munching on a pretzel and drinking a Pepsi. Andrews seemed particularly disturbed by the presence of Reckless. He landed a series of kicks and punches on Low-Ki, and then turned to taunt Reckless. Scoot went to work on Low's injured left knee. He taunted Reckless some more. Reckless threw his pretzel at Scoot, scoring a bullseye on Scoot's face. Scoot tried an Indian death lock and was rolled up by Low for a 2-count. After working on that knee some more, Scoot hit a bridge suplex. Both wrestlers had their arms pinned to the mat as the ref made the count, with Low raising his shoulder at the last moment and getting the victory.

After the match, Scoot pummeled Low. Reckless tried to make the save but was prevented from doing so by the arriving Kevin Kelly, who reminded him that he was still under contract to the WWF and could not get in the ring. Reckless then took the mike and challenged Scoot to a grudge match on the next St. Matthew's card (October 21).

MATCH 6: JAY & MARK BRISCOE pinned "FABULOUS" MOZART FONTAINE & "FAST" EDDIE VALENTINE (with E.S. EASTON) in 12:01. The Briscoe fan club, up from Laurel, DE, was especially demonstrative, both with their screaming and their repeated spelling out of "BRISCOE" in large letters. The teenage brothers put on an acrobatic clinic early in the match, highlighted by Mark's 360-degree dive off the top turnbuckle onto the entire opposition out of the ring. The brothers hit Mozart with a double drop kick, with Mark getting a 2-count as the distracted ref was slow to get into the counting position. The Briscoes then did the slice-n-dice on Mozart, getting a 2-count as Eddie made the save. Eddie and Mo then hit a double ddt, then threw Jay out of the ring so they could go to work on Mark. Mo got a 2-count after a leg drop. Eddie got a 2-count after hitting a twisting atomic drop. Jay tried to come to his brother's aid but was kept out of the ring by the ref, who again was slow to get into the counting position after Fontaine hit a neckbreaker. Mark tried to punch his way out but was plonked by a stiff Valentine haymaker. Mozart hit a pile driver, then got a 2-count as Jay came in to make the save. Jay finally tagged in and cleaned house with some dropkicks and punches. Fontaine and Valentine recovered to set up Jay for a top-turnbuckle, but they got crotched by the Briscoes instead. Mark and Jay then hit a double bulldog from the top rope and covered for the pin.

Immediately after the match, KEVIN KELLY came out, taunting the youngsters while holding the tag team belts that belonged to his charges, the HAAS BROTHERS. The Haases then attacked the Briscoes from behind, with the coup de Haas being the flying elbow to Mark Briscoe's crotch, earning him instant entrance to the Haas of Pain. The Haases accepted the Briscoes' challenge for a tag title match on the Briscoe home turf in Laurel on October 14.

MATCH 7: THE CONNECTICUT CONNECTION (KEVIN KELLY & RUSS HAAS & CHARLIE HAAS) pinned TY STREET & CHEETAH MASTER with a 13:33 pin. Ty hit the ring with a flying head scissors on a Haas, while Cheetah chased Kelly around the ring. The crowd serenaded Russ and Charlie with George W. Bush's favorite major-league word. In the ring, Cheetah suplexed Russ several times, then threw Ty onto Russ where Ty got a 2-count. Rebounding off the ropes, Ty got kicked by Charlie. Charlie got the upper hand, and several tags later, it was Kelly in the ring peppering Street with Flair chops. Charlie tagged in and slammed Ty. Kelly left the ring apron to angrily seize a "Kevin Kelly fears Michael Cole" sign from a ringside fan, then ripping the poster to shreds. With the ref occupied with keeping Cheetah in the corner, the Connecticut contingent triple-teamed Street. Cheetah finally tagged in and cornered Charlie before being kicked from behind by Russ. The brothers applied a double horizontal abdominal stretch (If I don't know the name of a move, I'll just make something up) on Cheetah as Ty is kept at bay. Russ clotheslined Cheetah and got a 2-count. Both wrestlers made tags, and Ty hit Charlie with a couple of flying bulldog headlocks. Ty then lay down on the mat and challenged Kelly to tag in. As Cheetah brawled with the brothers, Ty grabbed Kevin and Flair chopped him into the corner. Kevin then threw a fireball into Ty's face and covered for the pin.

Kelly and the Haases continued to pummel Street until Cheetah made the save, helped by J.J. Kelly taunted the defeated team, punctuating his barbs with "If you smell what Ty Street's face is cooking!" As Cheetah played to his adoring fans, J.J. looked on in mid-ring, a bit perturbed.

The ECWA returns to action with three big shows in October and November. This year's Super Eight champion, "FALLEN ANGEL" CHRISTOPHER DANIELS, has been signed to appear on all three of the shows:

Laurel, DE: Laurel High School, October 14
Newport, DE: St. Matthew's Parish Hall, October 21
Newark, DE (U of DE): Bob Carpenter Center, November 25

Keep in touch with ECWA happenings by accessing www.ecwaprowrestling.com.