With the slight overlap in games because of some technical difficulties for TLR, i arrive to the Crack Clan and Fragmasters Toxic game late.

That said I’m just in time for the action, with Luke “Kritikal” Green blaring like the human foghorn he is. “Oh Beta... What is he doing?” he shouts before delivering his characteristic derisory laugh. Tom “beta” Hanna had missed a few easy AWP shots just as I got sat down at the press desk. It looks like it might be a strange game in the making... The score is 5-0 to Crack Clan but you wouldn’t know it from the way the Fragmasters mix were conducting themselves. All the stranger is the fact that the top scorer for FM is a player who has only been playing Source for eight weeks. Yes, Audio Technica’s ZEOX can actually play... so much for the negative news post, eh boys?

On the other side Jim “Mx” Smale is top fragging and indeed looks like he has finally cracked this LAN business, no pun intended of course. While taking this all in Fragmasters are starting to up their game and it has somehow gone to 7-3 in a flurry of aggressive play. Crack Clan are working the terrorist side to begin with on the ever familiar de_dust2 and certainly the trend of late at these events is that the side that can put together something vaguely resembling “solid” as CT is the side that will emerge victorious.

Crack are playing a lot more patient in the later rounds, something that belies their supposed “mix” status. But the rounds are all close, being separated by little except one moment of brilliance here and there. Certainly that was the case when Richard “ritch” Gibbs managed to make a clutch against the one person who will be representing FM Toxic next season, Callum “sulphh” Buckley. But perhaps the moment of the match so far was saved for the final round when Callum looks to have snatched a victory from a certain defeat, a double deagle dropping two of the Crack players. With a 2v1 situation Mx is in the tunnels missing AWP shots and looking in trouble, but in the blink of an eye he peeks and makes the next two count for an incredible clutch.

So with the score at 11-4 at half time extra importance is attached to the pistol round if FM are to get anything from the first map. With George “HudzG” Hoskins any pistol round is likely, and with a delayed split on A they make the early frags and catch Crack out on the rotations. It should be another easy couple of rounds in the bag and that is true of the first but not the second... HudzG is put in a 1v5 situation to win the round and the ESL commentators don’t fancy his chances. One thing you can generally always back George to do, whether you’re a fan or not, is clutch a round. Armed with an AK he moves into B and makes one, two, then three frags. There’s a desperate spray down on ritch at B doors, but he holds his nerve and takes it to a 1v1, against his old team mate Tom “beta” Hanna. As Tom peeks his head is ripped off and the crowd, the players and the commentators go wild. It is another one for the Hoskins scrapbook...


Kritikal watches over ZEOX But with that round put to bed Crack get down to business of winning the first buy round for them, which they do convincingly. And the assessment that is offered by our very own Corin Cole, who has taken over on commentating duties, is that “Fragmasters are simply being out-aimed” which is something that can’t be denied. With most of the energy expended in that clutch and the volume decreasing Crack mop up the few remaining rounds, Lewis “hughsy” Hughes going in to a higher gear and working some great rifle kills. Much like the first match, the comeback flatters to deceive and the first map finishes 16-7 in favour of Crack Clan.

Crack lose the knife and end up as terrorist on de_inferno, which could help settle FM if they can get a run of rounds on the board as Counter Terrorist. They get the plant and are defending the bomb on A site in a 2v3 situation. Erik “HaZ” Holm takes up position behind the pillar using a retrieved USP to deadly long range effect. It is an exemplary way of forcing his opponents hand and playing for time and in the end he doesn’t need it, peeking and making the final frag to clutch the round. On this map you take any round you can get as the offensive side. Haz has just bought his side a likely three.

With the first buy upon us you might be expecting a visit from sir Leonard of Lockdown, but he doesn’t materialise and Crack are simply getting into any site they want at will, without losing enough players to leave gaps in the set-up. Retaking the site is not an option against players with this sort of aim if you are losing the battle for numerical supremacy. With the next round being a deco Crack Clan move into a comfortable 5-0 lead.

Fragmasters do take the next round, but it’s still a close thing, James “Pez” Perrot holding his nerve to take down ritch while his team mate is on the defuse, but the next round sees them immediately pegged back again. By the time it’s 7-1 for Crack Clan Haz is on 21-1, a score that would be amazing in any situation, let alone as an offensive player on de_inferno. Crack Clan’s dominance is clear and it is not a tactical victory... This is simply superior aim doing the business on the day and you can see how relaxed that Crack Clan are while they are playing. Even the usually serious beta can afford to periodically smile directly into the TV camera being forced under his nose.


Crack Clan... Getting it done. Toxic must know the writing is on the wall and to be fair to them they do not seem to be too bothered with the way it is playing out. They have nothing to lose coming into it, they all have their own concerns and other teams to concentrate on once this is over and I have a feeling that they will be in fine mood no matter what come the end of the match. Their manager, Darren “yakkkkkk” Ball, is just happy to have a side out at all given the last minute problems caused by train-fearing players and a host of stuff that sounds straight out of the gaming equivalent of “This is Spinal Tap...”

The half time score rolls in at a disgustingly one sided 13-2 to Crack Clan. As terrorists. On inferno. I’d like to say something balanced and complimentary, but at this level that simply shouldn’t happen. Crack Clan have comprehensively outclassed their opponents across two maps. FM players look across to the bar... Just get out lads. This one is done.

Crack clan take the pistol, and it looks like it’s going to be “all she wrote” but for some reason FM Toxic decide to pull out an eco from nowhere. Then they pull out another round to make it 14-4, but this would be a comeback beyond even the team they are trying to beat, that have established themselves as “comeback kings” in recent tournaments. But they do win the next for 14-5 and maybe, maybe they could make this a close affair. I’m not convinced, but I’ve already hit the wall for lack of sleep and partially hallucinating.