There was a roster move a little while ago that didn’t get the publicity it deserved. EFG parted ways with Josh “Dominator” Sievers, as he joined JMC to replace Shawn “Des1re” Khan. There are two quick things I want to mention before I get to EFG. (Please don't mind the smoke, it's just their team burning to the ground.)
1) Why is this under Counter-Strike 1.6 news on GotFrag? EFG is a Source team. JMC is splitting their time between the two engines, but the article says they’re going to be focusing more on Source in the coming weeks because there aren’t any major 1.6 tournaments coming up. There just doesn’t seem to be any reason for this to be filed under 1.6. It’s just a small thing, this isn’t some issue that’s going to rot GotFrag from the inside … I just don’t understand the reasons behind their actions, especially with regards to news posts and headlines.
2) My pet peeves aside, it’s a good pickup for JMC. Dominator is underrated despite being a former starter for 3D. JMC’s owner, Alex Conroy, mentioned in the GotFrag article that the team felt Khan’s leadership style wasn’t meshing with the team, so hopefully Dominator can provide them with a little boost as they prepare for CGS. Dominator’s certainly got the talent, and they have a little over a month to find out if he meshes with his new teammates.
With those out of the way, the biggest story about the roster move is actually about EFG. I only have one question for them: wha' happened?! Five months ago (before coL, 3D, and the other teams switched from 1.6 to Source) they were one of the two best teams (along with verGe). They won or placed second in all the major LANs. They consistently played well in CEVO and CAL. And now they finish 8-5 in CEVO and can’t keep a stable roster? It would have been crazy to say this before, but EFG might be the eighth best Source team, and in real danger of not making the cut for the CGS.
coL and 3D are clearly better. rSports and verGe both placed better in CEVO and have better recent results. The new Forbidden team looks great, I don’t think EFG would be favored against them. Hyper was already a good team (second place in CEVO for a couple seasons) before NightFall joined, so there’s no reason to think they’re going be pushovers now that he’s gone. Of course, we have to mention the new team NightFall is creating as a possible contender. That’s already seven teams, and I haven’t even mentioned EG, JMC, or Check-Six. All three of them could give EFG a run for their money, at the very least.
All of that is assuming this EFG team even survives. Right now they have four players and a fill-in, I believe, and NightFall is making another team, Heroic, under the EFG management. (The whole situation is a little bit strange. Basically the owners/management of EFG are creating another organization with NightFall leading the CS team. But it’s going to be completely separate from EFG … somehow. Not only is that situation a little confusing, but I don’t know if they could have picked a dopier name. Heroic? What, Valiant and Brave were already taken?) With the shakiness of EFG’s roster and NightFall building a new team, I wouldn’t be surprised if some of the current EFG players ended up on the new team.
There isn’t some light on the horizon, either. At least a team like the Boston Celtics can pray for some ping-pong balls to grant them Oden or Durant in this year’s draft – EFG just has to hope they can find a starter from another team or the free agent pool. The CGS regional tournament and player draft is in May. But judging from recent results, one of the best teams in the short history of Source might not make the cut.
