FRS WINS THE CLASH OF TITANS, DEFENDS THE TITLE
FRS and iMMORTALiS were the last two teams standing in the COD UO Reborn Cup #3. In what was an exciting match to watch, FRS took a lead on Peaks and never looked back, defeating iMMORTALiS 2:0.
Beginning of the end
A Thursday evening in late October, 2020 marked the day: The 3rd edition of the COD UO Reborn Cup was coming to an end. Only two teams remained. Hungarian iMMORTALis and the European team as well as defending champions First Recon Squad.
The scene was set but with a twist for the reining champs: The Belgian top performer and later appointed MVP of the tournament dietchi was out of the lineup because of an illness. Taking his place was nana who would prove to play a major role in the Grand Final.
Strong start from iMMORTALiS
After winning the initial pistol bash with a team ace, FRS chose to play the map choice of iMMORTALiS first which was Peaks. Opting to start on the Axis side the European squad had a rocky start while iMMORTALiS came out fast on the attacking side with heavy grenade bombardments and control of Burned house which left FRS’ defense shaky. The strong start from the Hungarians resulted in a 2-2 score after 4 rounds.
Despite the good start from the Hungarians, First Recon Squad managed to stay resilient and started building momentum on the Axis side by closing gaps in the defense and finishing up the half with a 9-3 lead.
Especially noteworthy was the substitute nana. The Welshman had a tight grip on A house and managed to fight off multiple attackers in more than one occasion locking up the Hungarians to play an attacking style centered more around the street side of the map, where the rest of a refocused and recoordinated FRS team would prove to be a troubling task for the attackers.
Nana finished the Axis side with a 17-6 score and an impressive 2.8 KD ratio.
Peeking on Peaks
Going into the 2nd half of the map was iMMORTALiS – known for their aggressive holds and Barn pushes on the Axis side. The Hungarian defense did prove to be a challenge for FRS who had troubles gaining control of vital positions such as Barn and Burned without losing too many members of their team. Leading the charge for the Hungarians was Limewax and Cobr4cska who was a constant nuisance for the Europeans, switching up positions to keep FRS on their toes.
FRS did manage to gather rounds regardless of the strong defense from iMMORTALiS and grinded enough wins out on the American side, eventually taking the map 13-9 and leading the series 1-0.
Gambling on Cassino
The 2nd map of the Grand Final and the map pick of FRS was Cassino. A surprising pick to some since the defending champions had strong and undefeated maps like Railyard and UO Dawnville at their disposal.
“We wanted to bring back that vintage feeling…”, said FRS member xratEd in a post-game interview, talking about old cup games between FRS and TcfC, and continued: ”… but we also felt like it was a strong pick for us and as long we could just get a handful of rounds on the attacking side we were pretty sure we would beat them on a strong Axis sided map.“
A handful of rounds proved to be just what FRS needed.
Against the ropes
There was no doubt that iMMORTALiS had to pull something out their sleeves and perform above expectations to get back into the Grand Final and force the match into a 3rd map. The groundwork for a comeback had to be laid on the Axis side which is traditionally viewed as very strong on Cassino.
It didn’t start out too well for the Hungarians who lost the first round of the map after a 3 vs 1 post plant challenge for Limewax. iMMORTALiS fought back winning the next round but the team never managed to build proper momentum on the Axis side.
First Recon Squad constantly challenged the defenders around Hole ruins and some rounds even gaining more or less control through Mid house with set attacks. The score was 6-6 as the teams switched sides.
Two times champs
Going into the 2nd half FRS only needed 7 rounds on the Axis side to once again raise the virtual trophy and being called champions of UO.
The Europeans set up a tough defense for iMMORTALiS to deal with and in a classic First Recon Squad performance, the lineup was firing on all cylinders – utilizing smooth teamwork with glimpses of high individual skill from the likes of Snurk, Tjebbi and once again: nana. And so the rounds steadily rolled in.
As the first players disconnected from the server the result was set in stone: With a 7-3 score in the 2nd half of Cassino and winning the map with another 13-9 victory, FRS had secured their 2nd title since the revival of Call of Duty United Offensive.
Huge thanks to all teams and players, streamers and casters, admins and viewers who participated in making this tournament a reality! We will look forward to seeing you all again in the next cup as well as the upcoming ladders. GL and HF!