THE SCI FINAL – How good are Old Continentals?
After having watched the SCI Final between Full Wipe (FW) and Old Continentals (OC), it is obvious that OC are here to win.
Their good opening set-up of rollout and clear understanding of the map was immediately evident as the teams faced each other on the tournament modified Mutaha. The concise effort by OC to maintain good map control paid dividends, despite some early skirmishes going in favour of Full Wipe.
The better rally set-up and more broad spread by OC allowed them to almost immediately counter Full Wipe’s bunker strategy. Who had dumped significant numbers into the bunkers below the centre caps. This gamble that OC would not be able to take the bunkers was a risky one. FW’s strategy makers clearly staked their game on the fact that their team would be able to hold the bunkers and minimise their ticket losses on the surface.
Full Wipe’s strategy, in that sense, worked. OC never successfully contested the bunker hold, and the caps were successfully defended, however, OC’s broader map play meant that FW lost nearly everywhere else. FW’s vehicle crews were left to fend for themselves and soon into the first round, resulting in their demise and retreat into main. The lack of numbers on the surface meant that there was no effort made to maintain a good back door defence and their vehicles were threatened by constant backdoor AT. Tickets were being thrown, and FW was unable to capture both centre flags to initiate the ticket bleed which would have closed the ticket gap.
The FW players that remained above saw their efforts be squashed by a more methodical OC, who looked to maintain control of the map and use that to gain leverage on the players holding the bunkers. This resulted in a very slow match where the only real exchanges happening were FW’s non-bunker players fatally trying to gain some kind of foothold. Eventually resulting in a 117-ticket win in round one for Old Continentals.
Round two saw a much more standard opening rollout from Full Wipe to match Old Continentals. This was too little too late from FW. Their rollout, despite playing the map more broadly, was quite reserved and defensive, ceding early pressure on both mid-caps for a more stable rollout. OC were quick to react and used their timing advantages to take the ground and immediately raced to inflict the ticket bleed on FW. Which they did successfully, creating passive pressure on Full Wipe to force a reaction out of them that would stem the bleed.
As the round progressed, we saw OC stabilise their map control and start making a broader push toward FW’s last cap. The round was a controlled smothering by OC despite attempts by FW to create pressure elsewhere and winning some vehicle engagements. OC systematically reacted to these attempts, even when losing some gunfights, the round never really seemed to slip from their grasp. Eventually, this culminated in a 135-ticket win and 252 tickets overall crowning Old Continentals as SCI champions.
The performance by OC was solid. One can say that they are good. Full Wipe were never in contention to win the final, their gamble in round one did not pay off and they were being outperformed in general with OC reading the map better. Old Continentals’ win was never really in doubt. Being the favourites heading into the final they were generally expected to win and did so in a reliable fashion. The true test for OC is yet to emerge though. Whilst they know how to play, they have not faced a team that could genuinely give them problems such as team Einherjar.
The hybrid team composed of former members from teams; Außer Kontrolle, Speaking in Tongues and Raven is a well-crafted outfit that has proven to outperform the competition after winning Rivals, a major Squad tournament. They are widely regarded as one of the teams to beat. Einherjar has yet to face OC in a major tournament and that match-up will be what cements Old Continentals as one of the best teams in the entire competitive scene.
If they can win.