DIVISION DE CAVALERIE LOURDE
From the beginning, the Division de Cavalerie Lourde (DCL) was established as a heavy favourite for this tournament. Winner of the previous 5v5 Groupfighting Tournament under the 1erRC banner and of the CCL Season 2, the DCL has been unstoppable lately, no matter as a regiment or a team. Effectively speaking, they registered two teams under the DCL banner but only one of them was capable to make it all the way and that’s logically the one we are going to mention in this preview.
Their groupstage went as you would expect it for a team of this calibre, only dropping one little round against the other heavy team of their group, the 8pk, but winning all four matches in the most one-sided possible manner. Their quarter-final and semi-final followed the same road as Fire99rs and the 2Lr were quickly dispatched by the DCL, 7-0 and 7-1 respectively.
In the previous 5v5 tournament where they played as the 1erRC, the heavy team already showed a clear dominance in most of their matches but at least they had been slightly contested by the 5eTaz in both their matches, showing they were dominant, but not invincible. For this competition, it seems they have somehow managed to strengthen their gameplay, explaining why no teams managed to come even close to beating them.
There is also another reality which is that looking at the rosters, the two other heavy favourites, Animals and Gimps, were in the other side of the knockout stage meaning the DCL is yet to have faced the very best team in the tournament. It could be a downside for them yet it is hard to picture a team such as the DCL coming unprepared in this grand-final. Even though they did not get challenged yet in that tournament they are all experienced and aware enough to know that they were the team to beat from the get-go and that they have to take any opposition in that grand-final as seriously as possible.
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GIMPS
Gimps were one of the teams assembled specifically for this competition, as it is often the case for groupfighting tournaments. Its members come from very different horizons but with such experienced and skilled players as the ones Tival recruited, it became fairly obviously at the start of the tournament that this team would be a very strong contender for the title.
Interestingly enough, Gimps were placed in the same group as Animals - who finished 3rd in the last 5v5 tournament - which gave them a way to test their real strength early on. With both teams swimming through their group with ease, it was expected their encounter would be a tense and close battle and that it was. Animals got the lead most of the time but it was Gimps’ experience and morale which helped them closing it in the end, 7-6. Both Gimps and Animals were expected to meet again later on, which they did, after having defeated HellSquad and Only Ping and Luck in their respective quarter-finals. Their rematch was once against a back and forth affair and once again, Gimps prevailed in the end by a small margin, 7-5.
These two matches against Animals, no matter how mentally tiring they have been, will definitely play in the favour of Gimps in this grand-final. Unlike the DCL, Gimps have been contested yet they came on top of their opponent each time. They have faced this situation where they were down in the score but managed to bring it back, which can only comfort them in their mental abilities.
Going against the DCL, this will be a key aspect that will definitely help them. Everyone knows how tiring a match against skilled and experienced heavies can be and that’s precisely where the mind of your players is as much an important factor as their skill. In the sense, I believe Gimps to be 100% up to the task and that’s why this grand-final should prove to be an exciting one.
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