NGL and NiP

Back in May of last year, NGL-one was still in its infancy and Alternate Attax was just another German team, albeit a team sitting top of the EPS. Few people outside Germany paid much attention to Germany's top league; however, the team had yet to make their mark on the world. The various incarnations of Attax had always promised much over the years but delivered little and so - coming into their NGL game against NiP - nobody really gave them a chance.

Starting off on the defensive side of Inferno, Attax let their intentions be known early on. They allowed NiP into the Banana bombsite where they planted with a five-on-four advantage. However, they retook the site in dominating fashion, losing just two players to NiP's five. Despite a third round buy for the Swedes, Attax was quickly up 3-0 and looking good with their lead. NiP finally got on the board in round six, but the seventh round saw them run into a four-man defense at the netted site. Left in a three vs. one, Zet managed to plant but was quickly dispatched, forcing NiP into another eco and a 7-1 deficit. With AK's back in-hand, NiP went right after the main site again only this time they were shut down completely without a kill for the whole round. Yet another eco put Attax 9-1 up and looking firmly in control.

Up to now, Attax had been content to sit back and let NiP come to them, mowing them down as they entered the bombsites. In the eleventh round, however, Attax showed the world what they were really all about, and what made them such an exciting team to watch in later games. Confidence brimming with their dominance of one of the world's best teams, Attax took the game to NiP and pushed down second-mid and Banana, cutting off NiP near their spawn, and winning the most convincing round of the game. The Swedes responded positively with their second round of the game, yet again they were unable to put two rounds together. Attax won the next round and went up 11-2. This pattern of win one-lose one continued to the end of the half where Attax lead a commanding 12-3 lead.

NiP, whom was touted as one of the favorites for the upcoming ESWC, had been dominated by an underrated German team but weren't about to lie down. They came out blazing in the second half and won the first four rounds. Attax looked like a completely different team but a somewhat surprising buy resulted in their first round of the half as Tixo came up with an incredible clutch play against three defenders. Unlike their opponents, Attax was able to string rounds together. They were quickly at match point with a 3-4 second half score. NiP won the next three rounds to give the score a respectable appearance, but the last round showed another side of Attax - a side that set them apart from other teams.

There is a seemingly ancient stereotype about Germans, and especially their sports teams. They are functional, hard-working, team orientated and a little dull. Look at German football, for example. They had their Voller's, Klinsman's and Bierhoff's, but these were players who were part of a team, not players who could change the game on their own like a Brazilian or a Dutchman. Attax is a team that really broke the mold. The NiP match showed how solid they could play as a team but unlike German teams of the past, they also had the players who can come up big when needed. The two halves of the game were perfect juxtaposed examples. On defense, they communicated perfectly and worked with so much coordination that it was frightening, yet on the other hand the offensive side seemed to show that they relied almost entirely on individual skill. A good example is the round in which Tixo won a three vs. one with the bomb planted.