DICE NATIONAL CUP COVERAGE by prophecy on 31.07.2009, 08:22 PM GUTS (Victoria) - bl4nk, dave, gamz, benoR, oops

Where do you start with these guys? The perennial under-dogs, and their core 3, are playing what I believe to be their 6th straight nationals. One could quote the oft uttered story; the beginnings in Beyond, growth into Snatch and subsequent years of dominating the Melbourne scene. It seems, however, a different story this year. While history bodes true for them, and they do indeed dominate Melbourne, they're now one of the top contenders in pursuit of nationals glory.

How they qualified: 1st at Melbourne Qualifier #1

qmX (Queensland) - crate, crackrjck, dekkO, Takita, Yaman

Why 'School of Queensland', you may ask? Well, looking at the team list, i'd have no issues hazarding a guess, in that Queensland's representatives, as a whole, are one of the oldest and most experienced bunches attending Dice Nationals. This is no exception for Qlimax. They bring a wealth of experience and skill to the table -something immediately apparent when looking at names such as Takita, crate and Yaman - players who've been around as long as anyone can remember. Qlimax incursions of past have taken the dream of nationals success very seriously, and doubtless this time around will be any different.

How they qualified: 1st at Brisbane Qualifier #2

dBc (New South Wales) - nixske, fuLLi, k0r3, vz, sHJARP


Much to the disappointment of quickstep, deathByclick were awarded a Wildcard Invite after a spot was made free due to WA teams declining their invites. A generally underrated team, going unnoticed by most, dBc placed well at both sydney qualifiers #1 and #2, managing a 5th and 4th place respectively, and both times narrowly missed out on progressing further after nailbiting losses to Exile5 (17-19, and 14-16). Often regarded as a team best suited to the internet largely due to players nixske and k0r3, dBc will be out to prove people wrong at what will be the first National event for the majority of the team. Over the past few weeks they have been putting in the hard yards and practising regularly together, and while they may not be such a major threat to the higher seeded teams, if a bit of luck swings their way then anything will be possible.

How they qualified: Wildcard Invite

Fragzone (Victoria) - nezzA, teddyt, ANG, CHIZ, unleashK

The new team on the block, i'd bet my foot they'll be underrated by most of the competition. They have sublime coordination and tactical endeavour, something that became apparent when they marched strongly to an invite at the most recent Melbourne qualifier. They play with confidence, but, due to their overwhelming lack of big game experience, they'll need every bit they can get. Luckily, the skill and smarts of twin#1, twin#2 and unleashK will hold fast, a resilence they probably learnt while playing with me.

How they qualified: 2nd at Melbourne Qualifier #2

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Group Stages (B)

Qlimax 21 - 9 FragZone
Qlimax 16 - 14 dBc
Qlimax 13 - 17

STANDINGS:

Team G W L T RW/RL P

GHB 3 3 0 0 49/38 9
Qlimax 3 2 1 0 50/40 6
dBc 3 1 2 0 49/38 3
FGzone 3 0 3 0 29/61 0


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