Imminent vs Encore Match Preview:

Finally, we have reached the final of the CEVOGG-Professional league, and what a match this looks set to be with two of Australia’s powerhouses going at it. Imminent have been the team to beat this season, losing only one match all season, Imminent will definitely going into this match as firm favourites. Encore have had a relatively good season, losing three matches during the season and placing third, Encore have looked very solid since the pick up of flabboy. Encore demolished virtue (infernal) last week in the semi final and will hopefully keep their momentum rolling into this match.

Going into the match it is a best of 3 formats, the first map to be played is Train, followed by Inferno and if needed the final map will be Dust2.

The Teams

Imminent

Imminent are a very solid team with lots of different game styles, the teams dedication to the game is second to none and because of this they have many different methods to win. They have fantastic aim and are able to win rounds purely by out aiming their opposition, but if that approach doesn’t work for them they have very solid strats and team work to fall back on.

huk: I’ll start off with huk, although at one point a controversial figure in Australian source, he has fast become one of Australia’s best source players, not only has he got great aim, but he also knows the game very well, his uncanny ability to be in the right place at the right time is what makes huk such an important figure to Imminent.

Havoc: Havoc like huk, is one of the best players you will find floating around the Source scene, ability to get quick and important kills early in rounds make him a vital player for Imminent, when Havoc wants to, he can dismantle a team single handedly.

Twelve-60: Unfortunately for 12-60 he has been caught up in the horrible floods in Sydney, he will most likely still play for Imminent however his absence over the last few days may just weaken him slightly for this match. In my opinion 12-60 is one of, if not the, best clutcher in Australia, I couldn’t think of a better player to have in a 2v1, 3v1, 4v1 or even 5v1 scenario than 12-60.

Gummerz: Gummerz is Mr. Consistent for imminent, a true all round player, he can not only get the entry kills and picks, but he can switch to been a support player within a matter of seconds, he is an important part of imminents success because of his ability to be in the right place at the right time.

zeke: Imminent’s newest member, zeke has already proven his worth in Imminent’s previous matches pulling out some great scores, it seems like zeke slipped into the imminent line-up as if he had been there for years. He is definitely one player that encore should not under-estimate.

Encore

What is there to say about Encore that wasn’t already said after their performance against virtue? Encore are looking sharp, they have finally gotten together and have started practicing as a team. Their teamwork last week was flawless, their aim was flawless and if they can come out again on Thursday with that type of performance, I believe they could dent Imminent’s great run of results.

Tegs: Poor Tegs plays with 30fps, unfortunately for his opponents, that doesn’t bother him, he is still able to play some outstanding games, an important player for Encore he can change the out come of matches single handed.

zpor: zpor is another game changer, he is an extremely smart player, and although his aim isn’t as sharp as the boys from imminent, his positioning and prediction skills are far superior, he is not only a good entry fragger, but he is a good support player as well as a good clutch player, watch out for zpor as he will do big things this Thursday.

Racs: Racs is one of the most under-rated players going around, I have heard some say that Racs is Encore’s weak spot, I totally disagree with this, when Racs performes, like he did last week, and when he has had a couple of drinks of rum (as long as its not to many), he is a great asset to the Encore team, he can pull up some big scores as well as get many important kills.

flabboy: flabboy recently became an official Encore member after leaving f4f, his move to Encore seemed to immediately make a huge impact to the way they played, I believe flabboy has taken a strong role in this team as an in-game leader, he is the type of player who will keep the boys calm in tough situations as well as help keep the momentum rolling in their favour. Flabboy is also an amazingly gifted player, he just seems to know what the other team are going to do even before they do it.

digz: I deliberately left digz last because I believe digz is the biggest threat to Imminent, there is one word to describe digz, and that word is brilliant. He can just adapt to any situation on any map at any time. His aim is as good as any one else’s and he also has the smarts to go with it. Watch digz on Thursday as he will show what true brilliance is with a top performance.

The maps

Train

Train was the first map played in this season, and the good news for both these teams is that they both won this map rather comfortably, Imminents beat New Type 20 – 10 and Encore beat Swindlers Inc 19 – 11. The bad news for Encore however is that they already faced Imminent on Train earlier in the finals, and Imminent destroyed Encore in this map with a 16 – 7 final result, this result will give Imminent a lot of confidence going into this match, however Encore will be looking for revenge, you can guarantee they have been practicing this map over the last week and they will be at their best come Thursday.
defiler’s prediction: You can guarantee this game will be a lot closer than 16 – 7, Encore will have practiced this map a lot to rectify any problems they had. However I still see Imminent coming out the winners on this map.
Imminent 16 > 12 Encore

Inferno

Once again good news for both teams as they both won this map during the season, Encore defeated Livid 20 – 10, a big result considering how impressive Livid are on Inferno. Imminent destroyed Redemtpion 24 – 6 in what was pure dominance. We also saw Encore’s incredible Inferno performances get even more impressive as they beat New Type on Inferno 16 – 9.
defiler’s prediction: The impressive revent wins that Encore had over Livid and New Type on this map will boost their confidence. I believe with the extra practice they have been doing over the past week will help them take this map out.
Encore 16 > 13 Imminent

Dust 2

A fan favourite Dust2, a very even map that both teams will know very well, once again during the season both teams won Dust2, Imminent had a hard fought match against virtue taking the match 16 – 14, these two teams also faced each other earlier in the finals with Imminent destroying virtue 16 - 6. Encore beat Redemption on this map 21 – 9 in what was a top all round performance. Unfortunately Encore did not play this map in the finals however Dust2 is such a popular map that they will be well prepared for this match.
defiler’s prediction: Imminent were well prepared for virtue earlier in the finals, fine tuning any small flaws they had during the season. Encore won’t be as well drilled as the Imminent team for this map and you can probably expect to see an Imminent win.
Imminent 16 > 10 Encore