old one-two

the old one-two (punch)

1. Two quick punches delivered to one's opponent in rapid succession, one coming from each hand. The boxer's put his opponent in a daze with a flurry of punches, then brought him down to the mat with the old one-two. The guy refused to leave us alone, so I gave him the old one-two and shut him up for good.
2. Two actions, events, strategies, people, etc., that work in combination to deliver a very effective or powerful result. The two lawyers have become the one-two punch of the firm, bringing a perfect combination of abilities to tackle any case. The storm is predicted to bring the old-one two—devastating winds and a deluge of rainfall.
See also: old
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms.

old one-two

a series of two punches delivered quickly, one after another. Tom gave Bill the old one-two, and the argument was ended right there. Watch out for Tom. He's a master of the old one-two.
See also: old
McGraw-Hill Dictionary of American Idioms and Phrasal Verbs.
See also:
  • the old one-two
  • draw first blood
  • a waiting game
  • waiting game
  • shoot the lights out
  • more by luck than judgment
  • (some number of) games in hand
  • be level pegging
  • box
  • boxed
References in periodicals archive
THE OLD ONE-TWO Goal scorers Jordan Owens and Paul Heatley celebrate going 2-0 up on Saturday
CRUESING AT ALTITUDE.. Baxter's boys are setting early pace after derby victoryall the weekend's action
LEE MILLER insists he and Ryan Hardie are ready to give Livingston's rivals the old one-two now that they've teamed up again.
We'll click it to em; Lee and Ryan ready to be Livi dynamic duo again
ENGLAND'S dream of a 3-0 whitewash is still bang on course after Ben Stokes and Adil Rashid hit Sri Lanka with the old one-two.
'DIL AND BEN; Bowling duo flower as Sri Lankans batters go to pot
Welsh trainer Ron Harris lands the old one-two at Wolverhampton
Welsh jockey Sean Bowen makes long trip to Scottish Borders pay off; Rider makes journey to Kelso for one ride... and it turns out to be a winning one
OLD ONE-TWO Coulibaly drills in first (above) and (right) Kent finishes from close range for Gers' second
SIMPLY THE REST; RANGERS 4 DUNDEE 0; Gers are break dancing as they bounce back refreshed after international shutdown
The old one-two WASPS laboured badly through a third quarter which was played almost exclusively in their half, and badly needed a spark to reignite their attack and secure the third try which would clinch the result.
DEBRIEFING: Paul Smith looks at someof the key points from Wasps' 31-6 win against Newcastle
And, like it or not, Wales' stamp on it was clear to see as an old one-two saw Ryan Giggs and Craig Bellamy combine to put names into the record books with a goal that looked to have handed Stuart Pearce's controversial collective a winning start.
GB's Olympic dreams suffer setback after Senegal draw
* THE OLD ONE-TWO: Town striker Jordan Rhodes climbs high above the Brentford defence to put his side ahead and, below, repeats the feat with his second goal of the 4-0 win which moved Town up to fifth in the League I table * COOL AS YOU LIKE: Lee Novak lobs home his eighth goal of the season in the excellent victory at Griffin Park
TURNING UP THE HEAT; Sparkling show as fitness and skills rewarded
The big man in red couldn't have done a better job than But the uniformed staff played the old one-two, giving me hot, fresh chips GRAHAM YOUNG
CheapAsChips DOVEHOUSE FISH BAR, 361 [...]
Forget about the old one-two punch: foundation and powder.
Summer classics
OLD ONE-TWO Darren Bent celebrates his second against Birmingham, above.
Bent double puts Cats nearer safety
Yet credit unions are on the receiving end of the old one-two punch between unintended consequences at the fore and an uppercut of being loved to death.
Keep your friends close and your enemies closer
OFF AND RUNNING: Skipper Stiliyan Petrov launches a Villa raid FOOT UP: Michael Brown comes under pressure from Gabby Agbonlahor FIRING LINE: Villa's Steve Sidwell tries to get in a shot MY BALL: James Milner hangs on to possession THE OLD ONE-TWO: Villa goalscorers James Milner and Gabby Agbonlahor are all smiles at Villa Park
VILLA PUT POMPEY ON ROPES; O'Neill's men land double blow
Findlay gives it the old one-two, first by hitting Davey with punchy questions about how he knows so much about her son--and then dancing away before the boy's nerves snap.
Vincent River
In modern dance, Paul Taylor had danced his magnificent two-act Orbs (1966) to Beethoven quartets, while even before that Martha Graham had given the Trojan Wars her old one-two with Clytemnestra (1958).
Attitudes