With the open qualifier stage of the eXTREMESLAND ANZ Qualifier wrapping up over the weekend, four out of the 32 teams who played in the qualifiers have made it through to the closed qualifier.

There they will face the likes of ORDER and Tainted Minds for a spot at the LAN Finals at the Melbourne Esports Open.

For most people however, these teams are but a footnote, always outshone by the Top 4, who for the most part thrash these teams at every encounter. But the qualified teams have the chance to upset, and why not do it during a qualifier for LAN?

Ground Zero

Ground Zero have had a tough time of late.

Having crashed out of CyberGamer Premier – Pro in 7th last season and are still fresh out of a major roster change (-willyKS -Kaotik +kyoto +NikkeZ), GZ have been unable to find much success against the higher echelons bar a 16-14 win over a depleted Grayhound lineup in the ESL AUNZ Championships a few weeks back.

Last Saturday however saw a change of luck for Ground Zero, as they defeated both MC Esports and Taboo to claim their spot in the Closed Qualifier, also defeating Surge in the Semis before losing to Avant in the Grand Final.

With a first round match up against the Chiefs, most people are not expecting GZ to make it through to MEO.

However with the changes to the squad now complete, NikkeZ, one of the recently picked up members of the squad said he has “no doubts” in his team to upset someone like Chiefs and that they are aiming high.

“Our goal is to break into the top 4. Our current line up definitely has the potential with some very experienced and proven additions. Coming directly after our bootcamp we are looking to make it through to the MEO.”

My Prediction: It doesn’t look likely for Ground Zero to make it to MEO, especially considering recent history against the Chiefs. But they have the players that can perform well enough to cause an upset so tread lightly before outright rejecting the boys from Perth.

Dynasty ESC

From the depths of irrelevance to AUNZ and beyond, Dynasty ESC have come from nowhere to entrench themselves near the top of Australian Counter-Strike. Starting off the year in CyberGamer – Silver (previously Amateur), they quickly made it to the Gold (Main) division in winter.

From thereon in, they started to explode into relevance, making the Grand Final of CyberGamer – Gold and taking an unexpected AUNZ spot in the first qualifying weekend.

They have also just come 2nd in the ESEA Open league, losing to Avant in the Grand Final. And they continued their remarkable run of performances on the weekend, securing another chance at LAN with a good run during the open qualifier.

However, after losing to Avant in the Semis, Dynasty has pulled the short straw as they will face off against ORDER in the first round, a match which doesn’t bode well for them. But they are going in with their heads held high, with the belief that they can pull off one of the upsets of the year, says jayzwow.

“We’ve shown our potential against some of the better teams and with more time and better scrims/practice against stronger teams, I know we can make this happen. We’re all young, dedicated and motivated individuals who are hungry to win.”

My Prediction: While they come into the game against ORDER oozing with confidence, they are more than likely going to be playing for experience as the former Kings lineup look to make their 2nd eXTREMESLAND Finals.

Surge ESC

Surge have had a roller coaster of a year.

From an unexpected ESL AUNZ spot after defeating Avant in the Last Chance Qualifier last season to a respectable placement when most expected them to crash, the squad had seem to have found their groove.

Then, with an unexpected roster swap (+Lyt -Krispy), Surge entered a period of strife, seeing them nearly fall into the MDL (Mountain Dew League) Relegation Tournament and failing to make CyberGamer – Platinum Finals.

For now, Surge has found some success, winning their spot in the closed qualifier with new players Keeyto and Chiswell over teams like Chiefs Academy.

With Chiswell on holiday for the closed qualifier though and a game against Tainted Minds in the first round, it may seem that there will be no lightning come Saturday afternoon.

Still, as with most other teams in this qualifier, Surge are going in believing in victory, if Tensai is to be believed.

“We’re coming into the qualifier with an optimistic mindset and regardless of the outcome.”

My Prediction: To be blunt, I don’t see them making MEO, but being able to play against a team like Tainted Minds will give them some worthwhile experience.

Avant Gaming

Last but definitely not least, Avant have also been on a bit of a roller coaster as of late, with a 3rd place at CyberGamer Premier League LAN a few weeks ago (knocked out by Legacy) and the removal of HazR for Prodigy, a player that Avant Captain MoeycQ believes “was a great addition”.

Things are looking good for the org, as they have just won ESEA Open over Dynasty and have a winning record in ESL AUNZ. But their record against the invited teams leave a lot to be desired for, with a 0-2 a few weeks back by ORDER in ESL AUNZ and loses to both Legacy and Chiefs at LAN, history suggests that Avant may have a tricky time in making MEO.

History on the other hand is no deterrent to MoeycQ, who believes that his team can reach greater heights.

“I think we’re under-estimated being 3-3 in officials against Legacy and towards the latter end of the year we will be pushing top 4.”

My Prediction: The best chance from the qualified teams to nab a spot at MEO, but they are still the heavy underdog in their first match up.

While there is a lot of talent amidst the qualified teams, it’s likely many will be outshone by the invited teams at the closed qualifier.

Upsets can happen though, but will it for these teams? Or will the region’s best keep their spots near the throne?

Time will tell, but as with anything relating with Australian Counter Strike, always expect the unexpected. Follow Snowball on Twitter and keep an eye out for when these matches go live.

Blank Blue

Although Blank Blue might live in the shadow of their sister team, Blank Esports, they are by no means weak. The team of local young guns will be looking to replicate the main teams Pacific success back home in Australia after falling excruciatingly close last season. A 2nd place finish in their group in Season 1 set them up for a favourable playoffs spot, where they beat JAM Gaming 3-0. However, at LAN, they fell down to Masterminds GC, who had stormed off an almost perfect 19 and 0 regular season on their way to the grand final.

“After restructuring and refocusing we’re looking to take our tournament run deep into Rod Laver Arena”
– Smash, Coach for Blank Blue

The team has only made one change coming into Season 2, with the addition of “Aetar” from JAM Gaming. Casting Season 1 grudges aside after being knocked out by Blank Blue in playoffs, “Aetar” will provide a boost in the hitscan DPS department for Blank Blue. “Micro” will be moving to the bench as a result of the change, but knowing substitutes in Overwatch, we could definitely see a bit of rotation between the two to shake things up.

“Smash”, Blank Blue’s coach told us that the team is positive and they are setting their sights on the finals again, “After restructuring and refocusing we’re looking to take our tournament run deep into Rod Laver Arena.” In a season where there’s so many teams in with a chance of making it to the Melbourne Esports Open LAN, Blank Blue will surely have a few tricks up their sleeves to make it there.

Dark Sided

Dark Sided had a very strong group stage finish, with a map record of 18-2, placing just behind Masterminds. However, they weren’t able to make it to the final as they placed 3rd. They had a very close semi-final with Drop Bears, but fell short with their 2 – 3.

“The team are confident they will get the win in the opening match.”
– Project, Coach for Dark Sided

In a trend that is becoming seemingly common among the teams, they have shaken up their roster with a completely new set of players for Contenders Season 2.

Coach “Project” had a few things to say about matchmaking vs tournament and growth in the Australian region:

“It would’ve been nice for the meta the players are on to stay relevant to their matchmaking experience but with Blizzard’s patching and tournament schedule that will never be the case. I feel this hinders the growth of the game and players as there is no support in this region to learn the multitude of heroes required to participate at the top level.”

On their opening match against Masterminds in week 1, “Project” stated: “The team are confident they will get the win in the opening match.”

Masterminds

Masterminds had an excellent run in the first season of Contenders and were on top after the group stages. However, they were not able to secure the win in the finals, with the Sydney Drop Bears proving too strong.

“We’ve never missed a LAN since the start of Overwatch in this region, and this Contenders season will be no different.”
– Polter, Co-owner of Masterminds

They have featured many roster changes this year such as “Knellery”, “Dalsu”, “Tails” and “Colourhex” all leaving the team.

The Masterminds co-owner “Polter”, spoke with us about these changes: “After finishing 2nd in season 1 a lot has changed for us during the off season with James “Taki” Daskalou being the only remaining player from that roster. To the naked eye it appears we have come off the worst from the latest roster shuffle, but we have some extremely talented players who are out to prove their worth against the best in the region.“

They are no doubt ready to take the title from Drop Bears as “Polter” explains their dedication to practising: “We’ve never missed a LAN since the start of Overwatch in this region, and this contenders season will be no different. We look forward to redeeming ourselves and taking 1st place in Melbourne.”

Masterminds certainly have a lot of motivation to win this season.

Sydney Drop Bears

In the group stages of Season 1 the Sydney Drop Bears were 0-4’d by Masterminds. However they then went on to become the inaugural winners of clean sweeping Masterminds right back with a 4-0 in the grand final.

“The team is extremely confident in our ability to defend our Australia Contenders title”
– Face, Coach for the Sydney Drop Bears

Interestingly, the Drop Bears picked up “Colourhex” from Masterminds in the off-season. Speaking of the roster change, Drop Bears Coach “Face” explained: “We picked up ‘Colourhex’ who has really lent a lot of flexibility and skill to our roster and has been meshing well with the team.”

On their focus for the upcoming season, he said: “Right now, we are primarily focusing on getting a grasp on the new meta and increasing our synergy together as a team. Moving into the new season, the team is extremely confident in our ability to defend our Australia Contenders title and we can only improve from here.”

The Sydney Drop Bears sound confident and are looking to fight tooth and nail to keep their title as the current Contenders Australia champions.

Season 2 of Overwatch Contenders Australia starts tomorrow, Monday 2nd July at 12pm AEST. Tickets are now also available for the grand final at the Melbourne Esports Open – find them here.

You can catch more Overwatch Contenders coverage throughout the season here on Snowball Esports, as well as following the action on the Overwatch Contenders Twitch channel.

Written by Ann “Luna”.

Dignity

Dignity is Contenders biggest unknown this season. “Express”, a top 500 player from Canada, bought the slot taken by Noc Predators and built the team from the ground up. There’s been criticism behind the roster, due to the fact they bought in, but they are looking to prove they can hold their own in Contenders, and take it further.

“The talent on our team is outmatched because of the dedication of each player and vision to improve”
– Express, Owner of Dignity

Taking some of the leftovers from Season 1 roster changes, Dignity lines up “Deo” (Serenity), “Specialkid” (NoC Predators) and Render (JAM Gaming) from Season 1 alongside upcoming talent “Yui”, “Mini” and “Cazzette” for their starting 6. While these names don’t really stand out among the big guns, their talent comes from “the dedication of each player and vision to improve.” Dignity aren’t just looking for short term success. Team owner “Express” said Dignity have “the best available talent and a couple of hidden gems who will be superstars in the future.”

Dignity want to surprise the competition with this line-up, and keep on improving week on week. “Express” expressed that he was “pleased with our results and overall improvement in the buildup to Contenders”, and said that “we are looking to prove that we are not a new team looking to sabotage the OCE scene but to sabotage the results of the other teams in turn of our victory”. While other Contenders teams might know a few things to expect from this lineup, it’ll be a viewers delight on Monday to see what they are truly made of.

Kanga Esports

Kanga Esports dealt some blows to other teams in Season 1. Qualifying for playoffs, they took a map off 1st seed Masterminds before falling in the quarter-finals. During the season, they beat SereNity and Tainted Minds, but overall looked looked shaky in a lot of their matchups, not being able to close out maps.

Heading into Season 2, they’ve overhauled their roster. The departure of “Ziggy” left a hole in their their Flex role, but they are flexible. Main support “Davi” has flexed to Offtank, with the team bringing in “Junglejazz” to fill the support gap. However, the most intriguing signing is “ChroNoDotA” replacing old main tank “pzza”.

“We are grinding harder than ever before to win this season, with the org’s full support to make it happen”
– Haydz, Owner of Kanga Esports

While it’s not uncommon to hear about OCE players using VPNs or groups to play on US West, Singapore or Korean servers for a better matchmaking experience, you hardly hear about the reverse. “ChroNoDotA” hails from Arizona, USA, and from all accounts, has absolutely been tearing it up in scrims even with the ping difference.

Speaking to team owner “Haydz”, he said that “the boys are grinding harder than ever before to win this season, with the org’s full support to make it happen.” Obtaining the services of a US college star, and ex-Team Singularity (from EU Contenders) coach “Maid”, Kanga certainly have the org’s support behind them and the makings of a top 4 team.

Legacy Esports

Legacy are one of the only rosters to keep most of their team intact during the offseason. Last season for Legacy was a case of ‘sweep or be swept’, with all of their series ending in 4-0 either way. While they were a good roster, they didn’t have that extra edge teams like Sydney Drop Bears had, eventually falling victim to them in the first round of playoffs (again in a 3-0 sweep).

“I think we have a lot to show with our new roster this season and am looking forward to playing with the team”
– Poom, DPS for Legacy

However, for Season 2, they’ve made some great changes. The additions of veterans “Kiki” (for “Skull” in Flex) and “tails” (for “Wuvo” in DPS) will help solidify a classy roster. Both players were on Masterminds in their grand final run last season, with “Kiki” having also represented Australia at the Overwatch World Cup. He was also on the very successful Blank Esports roster which has dominated the Oceania and Pacific regions.

In saying this though, “Kiki” is on the way out, having decided to hang up the headset on competitive Overwatch in recent weeks. He will still play on while Legacy try to find a replacement. Even with this setback, spirits are still high in the Legacy camp. DPS player “Poom” (formerly “CaramelKoala”, who made final 16 for World Cup Trials this year) thinks that “[Legacy] have a good chance of making it to the LAN finals this season, as we are training hard and the meta suits our players.” With or without “Kiki”, Legacy will try and find success this season and cement themselves a spot in Melbourne.

Avant Gaming

Along with JAM’s spot, Avant Gaming also acquired their roster from last season, before changing a few things up to really shape the team into potential Top 4 contenders. Last time Avant were involved in Overwatch was 2016, where the team hovered around the Top 8 teams in Australia. The roster back in those days featured players like “Taki” (now on Masterminds) and “Tongue” (now on Blank Esports).

“We think we’ve got a pretty good shot at LAN granted we come top 2 in the group.”
– Whipply, Team Manager for Avant Gaming

Avant kept “Crimsonwolf”, “SleepEasy” and “Legabril” from the old JAM Gaming lineup. The addition of “Dalsu”, who has LAN experience from Masterminds in Season 1, will be crucial in this season. The new talent in “Winter” (from Reflex in Open Division) and “Addy” (formerly on $krylla, who qualified for Contenders Season 1) round out a strong lineup filled with talent and experience.

Team manager “Whipply” mentioned the team were “feeling pretty confident going into the seasons…[with] everyone working really hard and getting good results.” About making the Melbourne Esports Open LAN finals, they think they’ve “got a pretty good shot granted we come Top 2 in the group.”. In a group containing grand finalist Masterminds, Dark Sided, the new look Kanga roster, and Trials teams Serenity and PIXL Esports, Avant are looking to turn some heads and make big impressions on the Contenders scene.

The final edition of our Team Spotlight series will feature the Finalists from Season 1: Blank Blue, Masterminds, Dark Sided and winners Sydney Drop Bears. You can catch more Overwatch Contenders coverage throughout the season here on Snowball Esports, as well as following the action on the Overwatch Contenders Twitch channel.

This changes the final standings of the tournament and they have been updated to:

This means the seeding for the upcoming Contenders Season 2 Australia tournament changes drastically, and sees PIXL esports replace Surge Esports Club, who have had their qualification removed.

Understandably, Surge Esports Club are gutted. “Atom” had this to say:

“Unfortunately the team has been relegated from Contenders season 2 due to some complications with other teams and the resulting modification of standings. We tried our hardest and in the end it just wasn’t quite enough. While this is obviously disappointing for the players and management involved, our morale is not broken. We will recoup in Open Division and come back even stronger next season.”
– “Atom”, Surge Esports Club

“Atom” also let me know that Surge do not have plans to release any of the players at this time.

Find the full details of the change at Blizzard Esports ANZ’s official announcement here.

Tainted Minds

Tainted Minds had a season to forget in Season 1 of Contenders. They failed to pick up a map win the entire tournament, only managing to scramble a draw against Kanga Esports. There was no such disappointment in Trials though, with the team going undefeated in all 5 series with a 14-6 map differential.

“[We will] grow throughout the season and be worthy of our position as a Contenders team”
– Solomon “JJJJ” Spearritt, Tainted Minds Contenders Captain

Tainted have replaced old tank “Fullmetal” with Season 1 sub “Trisimail”, with “Godsworld” also being shown the door for “Oxidize”. This roster proved to be successful in Trials, even taking down Serenity who swept them 4-0 last season. A new and improved roster, plus a new attitude towards preparation will allow the team to “grow throughout the season and be worthy of our position as a Contenders team” according to captain “JJJJ”.

For Tainted, “it’s been a long and bumpy road.” The team is hoping to place Top 8 this season and prove to the community that they have earned their spot. With the issues that plagued them in Season 1 behind them, they can only go up in Season 2.

SereNity

SereNity had it a bit better in Season 1, but not by much. Their only series win was a 4-0 against Tainted Minds. While they took maps off Kanga Esports and grand finalist Dark Sided, they weren’t able to string together enough form for a series win. Another run through trials saw them qualify with ease with a 4-1 record and a 14-7 map differential, only falling to Tainted Minds in a tight 5 map series.

“[Our] biggest strength is that we are constantly adapting and striving to improve.”
– Noxious, SereNity Team Manager

Heading into Season 2, SereNity have a point to prove. They had the makings of a great team last season. They’ve decided to not tinker with the formula too much, bringing in “Oily” from NoC Predators for “Archaius”. Keeping the core of the roster the same could prove to be crucial. With so many teams shuffling players around, having a bit of stability can be the difference when the chaos starts and having faith in your team synergy.

According to team manager “Noxious”, “SereNity’s biggest strength is that we are constantly adapting and striving to improve. This season will be all about displaying their development from last season, with “better put together strategies and strong execution throughout the team.”

Surge Esports Club

Sometimes, a bit of luck is all you need. That motto which perfectly describes Surge ESC’s first 2 seasons in Overwatch Contenders. In Season 1, they qualified off the disbandment of $kyrlla, leaving the 5th spot in Trials open. They were only able to pull out 2 map wins against JAM and NoC in Season 1, failing to win a series. They did manage to scrape through Trials even though they had a negative map differential. However, among all this luck, to qualify in the first place, you still need to hold your own, and that’s exactly what Surge has done.

“[We believe we can] secure our top 8 spot and show the Oceanic region that we can compete.”
– Joshua “Vero” Rolon, Surge ESC Captain

There’s been a little bit of roster volatility in the Surge lineup between seasons. “Fate” is the only returning player from their Season 1 lineup, although “Vero” was part of their earlier Trials campaign. As recently as the final weekend of Trials, Surge have been changing things up in various roles after the departure of recently signed “Qvn” and “WillX”, as well as team captain “breeZy”.

With this roster, new team captain “Vero” believes they can “secure a top 8 spot and show the Oceanic region that we can compete. After our admittedly poor performance in season 1, we’ve restructured our roster and we believe that we can take on some of the top teams in Contenders.”

Bin Chickens

The only team to qualify from Open Division this season, Bin Chickens were also the only team to go undefeated in the Open Division swiss bracket. However, after being knocked down into the losers bracket by Peeps Angels in the first round of playoffs, they were forced to run the gauntlet. They got their revenge in the losers bracket final, and while they lost to Interstella in the grand final, they qualified for Trials. In Trials, they got up over Interstella and PIXL, with which the forfeit of Peeps Angels and Alter Ego was enough to secure their spot in Contenders.

“[Our roster is comprised of] Div 2’s best and brightest”
– CounpoN, Bin Chickens Team Manager

As team manager “CounpoN” puts it, Bin Chickens are comprised of “Div 2’s best and brightest”, with veterans “LUSH”, “Bus”, “Zenasis” and “Leveret” leading rookies “Autumn” and “Styrel” through Australia’s biggest league. Flex player for Bin Chickens “Styrel” joked that we should “expect some swift 0-4’s as we transform into Binned Chickens throughout the season”

The team is looking to carry their dominant Open Division form into Contenders, and while the level of competition has gone up a few notches, the team is confident of possibly causing an upset or two this season.

The next edition of our Team Spotlight series will feature the middle-of-the-pack teams in Avant Gaming, Legacy Esports, Kanga Esports and Dignity. You can catch more Overwatch Contenders coverage throughout the season here on Snowball Esports, as well as following the action on the Overwatch Contenders Twitch channel.

League and CS:GO have dominated the Oceanic esports scene for the last few years, but Blizzard are looking to shake things up.

The first season of Overwatch Contenders Australia saw popular organisations like Legacy, DarkSided and Masterminds battle it out against independent talent like Serenity, Alter Ego and Noc Predators. With a final LAN taken out by the very okka-sounding Sydney Drop Bears, Contenders Australia exploded out onto the scene, and in Season 2 it’s only going to get bigger.

Presented by ESL Australia. Overwatch Contenders is a 6 week league, where 12 teams from around Australia duke it out for regional pride, international visibility, and one of the biggest prize pools in Oceania. While there’s no direct promotion from Contenders into the hallmark franchise, the Overwatch League, it’s used as a breeding ground for regional talent. The prize pool is around $60,000, with the winners taking home a handy $10,000 cheque.

The format sees the teams battle it out in a 4 map series. They play one of each style of map:

• Control – which requires teams to capture a point and hold it;
• Hybrid – which requires attackers to capture a payload and escort it;
• Assault – which requires attackers to capture 2 separate control points and;
• Escort – which requires attackers to escort a payload through the map before time runs out.

The team who completes each map the fastest wins the map. If the series is tied 2-2 after the Escort map, teams play out a tiebreaker Control map to settle the score. Season 2 of Contenders Australia sees a complete new map set across the board, including the first competitive appearance of Overwatch’s newest Escort map, Rialto.

Similar to how the OPL used to work, teams can qualify for Contenders through the amateur Open Division scene. The top 4 Open Division teams got a chance to prove themselves at Trials against the bottom 4 Contenders teams from the previous season. Season 2 Trials saw Tainted Minds, Serenity and Surge Esports Club retain their spots, while amateur team Bin Chickens knocked out Alter Ego from the top division.

Those weren’t the only changes to the Australian Contenders scene over the break. JAM Gaming sold their spot to Avant Gaming, who make a resurgence into the scene after disbanding in 2016. Noc Predators also sold their spot to Dignity, an independent organisation run by ExpressOnRs, a top 500 player from Canada. The Masterminds of old have disbanded, with the org running a completely new unannounced roster for the 2nd rendition of the tournament.

The top 4 teams from Contenders Australia Season 2 will play off in a best of 7 finals series at the Melbourne Esports Open in September this year. Masterminds, DarkSided and Blank Blue – who all made the Season 1 finals – are yet to reveal their rosters, and a possible shakeup could see new teams heading off to Melbourne.

You can expect more Overwatch Contenders content from Snowball in the lead up to the season starting on on July 2, with games on every Monday and Tuesday afternoon starting from 12pm AEST. You can catch the action on Twitch.