Dr. Gonzo recaps an incredible final match.

The final had come around and given the events of the first day it was no surprise who would be competing in it. VeryGames were in the final right from the start, they are simply that good, it was just a matter of who would be keeping them company. Crack Clan have been on form all throughout the event and even managed to beat the dominating European force in the seedings tournament. The question was could history repeat itself? In terms of tactics and set-ups the encounter would definitely deliver, with both teams being so well drilled and knowing every facet of every competitive map inside out.

Perhaps then it is a disappointment of sorts that the first map was to be de_dust2, something that will reduce any match to simply who can aim better on the day. I was speaking to Tom “beta” Hanna the day before this game, a rare conversation between the two of us and he was upbeat and confident. He felt there were maps they could beat them on but if they played them on de_dust it would be a bit of a lottery as to who would come out on top.

Not that it’s all that disappointing given that both teams are made up of some of the best natural aimers to play the game. Cedric “RpK” Guipouy was looking immense in the group stages and Lewis “hughsy” Hughes has been playing well. He seemed happy with his game when I managed to get a brief chat with him in the hotel lobby. Both sets of players also seem to have a lot of respect for each other too, or at least that was the impression I got when the conversation with Lewis was interrupted by heavily accented shouts of “HUGGSY” from the VeryGames players.

If you thought that the French side might be on the wane any doubt is removed within five rounds of their terrorist half. Their build-up play is so patient, so controlled, the do not commit to a site until they have twenty or so seconds on the clock and by then they have usually managed to isolate at least one player and pick him. Edouard 'SmithZz' Dubourdeaux has enjoyed being probably the only first choice AWPer in the competition and his picks were making it extremely difficult for Crack Clan to even risk reconnaissance by peeking as they were swiftly decimated. It also made cross double doors a nervy experience as he can be relied on to consistently tag players.

While on the subject of AWPing, it can’t have gone un-noticed that Richard “ritch” Gibbs has been pulling off some incredible shots with that weapon all competition. His overall play has really rolled back the years and I haven’t seen him look this good for some time. He will certainly be in with a shout of being awarded the MVP for the tournament come the end and he has probably been Crack’s stand-out player at this event, which is no mean feat in itself.

VeryGames simply dominate the T half, executing the kind of devastatingly well timed splits that Birmingham Salvo made their own some time ago. The tactical smokes and flashes on display are also very impressive, even if at times it does make you long for some “US” style dry assaults at key chokepoints. With each round almost having all of its time used up it is a massive test of concentration for the defensive players and it is not one they are looking likely to pass. With VeryGames at 8 – 3 up the QuadV announcers say “let’s just hope that VeryGames aren’t going to run away with it” but even now they are looking too strong for a Crack Clan not in top gear yet.

After lavishing praise on Eric “HaZ” Holm the other day he has followed that up with what would best be described as a disappointing Counter-Terrorist half today. Not that there is much he can do. A typical round for him consists of being blind and getting shot or getting shot in the back as he rotates. It is hard to be critical of players when the opponents they are up against are not giving them an opportunity to even come close to outaiming them. He does look as dejected as I’ve seen him all tournament though and he is normally a player who always has a smile on his face.

With a brief attempt at trying to make the first half score respectable they manage to pull back another round but that is to be their lot as VeryGames go on to win out the rest of the rounds and make what looks like an unassailable lead of 11 – 4. In such situations you’d be forgiven for thinking that the Crack players have one eye on the next map and would simply go through the motions and maybe previous incarnations of teams involving these players would have. But as I said at i-series they do have a steel about them now, which is why it was so surprising that they didn’t get a top three finish.

They take the pistol and the first buy round and manage to go 5 – 0 up – including a round with a comedy flashbang kill, the first one I’ve ever seen in a final – before VeryGames can reply. Some of the defensive positions that the French players take up are technically fantastic, reducing the impact that flashes have and also are so awkward that they usually provide a few easy kills before they are thwarted. Given such set-ups it was only a matter of time before the defensive side gets a round on the board, quickly followed by another. We all know that Counter-Strike Source is a game of momentum so credit to Thomas “beta” Hanna for holding his nerve and winning his 1v1 against Matthieu 'MateOo' Dal Maso to make it 6 – 2 to Crack. The comeback has gone from “improbable” to “difficult”.

The direct tactics that Crack were pulling out were working, a stark contrast to the more methodical approach of the European team. But while it is impressive stuff, in the end it doesn’t take long for VeryGames to adapt to it. In the end rather than contest, they elected to play passive and play for the retake. With a full compliment of smokes, nades and flashes all being perfectly thrown in complete harmony, there is little anyone can do even with the bomb planted.

I can also tell you that if ever there was a hide and seek competition involving all CS:S players the clear favourite to win it would be Sebastien “krL” Perez. Numerous times he somehow manages to avoid detection on A bomb-site and ends up picking up some easy kills at the expense of some surprised Crack players. I can honestly say I would hate to play against someone like that.

In the end VeryGames get the necessary rounds, despite a gutsy showing from the UK players, setting up the second map of de_nuke. Having already seen both teams execute some impressive offensive tactics on this map it was going to prove interesting. It was clear that VeryGames would do what they did so well against Team CoolerMaster. They will work slow picks before engulfing their chosen bomb site based on which one they have access to. They pretty much had a player on the roof every round executing the skylight flashes that turn the Counter-Terrorists guarding upper into a duo of Ray Charles and Stevie Wonder.

It started out no differently and they clearly hadn’t made any changes to their system in anticipation of this final. If it isn’t broke, as they saying goes, why fix it? They are able to pick where they want to go at will and work the sites so well they actually make it look like it’s easy to play as terrorists on this map. Richard “ritch” Gibbs is doing his best, clutching rounds single handedly and looking like he can’t miss, but once they start to build up a head of steam VeryGames are virtually unstoppable. It shifts from a 3 – 0 lead to in favour of Crack, to suddenly being tied at five rounds a piece. Five rounds is always respectable on de_nuke, but there’s more to come. The half finishes an impressive 8 – 7 to Crack Clan, VeryGames very much in the driving seat to close this final out.

The pistol round sees VeryGames bring out the old 1.6 vents and retake strategy that not many teams seem to use these days. It is effective, the flashes to upper rendering everyone powerless to hold the site and the synchronised push sweeping the upper site clear. It runs to 5 – 0 and the admins were getting ready for the awards. Again though the boys in blue dig deep and bring about a complete change in momentum. The HaZ that was playing on de_dust2 is gone and has been replaced by an absolute machine. It is rare to see a team as goo as VG completely overwhelmed but they are unable to handle this sudden elevation in tempo. They put together an unbelievable run of six rounds as terrorist, courtesy of not only some very well executed strats but also some brilliant individual play – see Eric’s 1vs3 clutch for evidence of this.

It now looked likely that a third map was coming and had it arrived I think this final would have truly belonged right up there with some of the great event finals I’ve witnessed down the years. However, just when you think you can read the game, it swings back again and the French players – being dragged through their CT half by a dazzling performance from Richard “shox” Papillon who is another MVP candidate – manage to take control of a game that should never have gone this far. In the end it finishes 16 – 14 and once again I am left to write about Crack coming close, but not close enough.

The improvement from the performances at I-series is remarkable and if they continue on such an upward trajectory maybe LAN79 could be their event. Today though VeryGames were just too good and are worthy winners.