Flurry of changes in Advanced as registration deadline looms
With the ESEA league registration deadline coming to a close tomorrow at 3AM EST, a number of Advanced teams have made last minute changes before the roster addition restrictions come into force.
To start, ETHEREAL have swapped out Eric "xeboda" Lee and Anthony "agony" Masterton for Austin "RenZ" Dickman and Shawn "Magowi" O'Malley, having already brought on Malick "dangle" Abid on December 27th.
As a result of this change, ETHEREAL are now:
Dennison "fdeN" Fong- Tony "w0w" Zachary
- Malick "dangle" Abid
- Austin "RenZ" Dickman
Shawn "Magowi" O'Malley
Not one to be left out, agony quickly made his way over to ex-Faint, who are now known as Saskatoon Warriors, to complete their roster for the season. ex-Faint originally broke up after being released from their organization back in December, with only Danny "cxzi" Strzelczyk staying to assemble a new team in the spot.
Interestingly, Dust2.us knows from a source within the team that RenZ and Magowi were originally set to join Saskatoon Warriors before deciding to join ETHEREAL, with the two teams seemingly having done a switcheroo.
Saskatoon Warriors' lineup for Season 33 is:
- Danny "cxzi" Strzelczyk
- George "Powerzz" Yaede
- Alex "vek" Voynov
- Ezekiel "KmZ" Hughes
- Anthony "agony" Masterton
- Huthaifa "blitzz" Khan (Coach)
- London "welly" Purdy (Stand-in)
Due to cxzi being the only permanent member of the roster from Season 32, London "welly" Purdy will need to stand-in for three out of the first four games in order for the team to retain their spot in Advanced.
Additionally, with Alex "vek" Voynov making his exit from ex-Brazen, the team are once again on the hunt for a new fifth just ahead of the start of the season.
ex-Brazen's roster currently consists of:
- Oliver "figment" Thompson
- Troy "ara" Pollock
Marcos "tacitus" Castilho- Antonio "AB" Benzan
Continuing on, Kyle "OCEAN" O'Brien's absolute mad lads have made significant changes to their roster during the off-season, having initially parted ways with Zander "FIEND" Bates on November 26th. The team have now also dispensed themselves of Khizar "MoMo" Rehman and Stefan "Lacore" Paunovic in favor of Derek "desi" Branchen and Arya "arya" Hekmat.
This move acts as a reunion for desi and OCEAN, with the duo having previously played together on the original iteration of absolute mad lads during Season 31. There, the team ended their run in 3-4th place and narrowly missed out on promotion to MDL after falling in Relegation.
With the addition of arya and desi, absolute mad lads are now:
- Kyle "OCEAN" O'Brien
- Tony "aSauce" Guardia
- Derek "desi" Branchen
- Arya "arya" Hekmat
Front have also made changes to their roster as they bring on Daniel "stomp" Pomerantz for Season 33.
After failing to make playoffs last season with an 8-8 record, Thomas "ExToSee" Johnson has moved into a coaching role within the team, making space for stomp to come in as the team's fifth.
Therefore, Front's roster for the start of Season 33 will be:
- Calvin "becker" Becker
- Stephen "SGM" Mechan
- Joseph "clear" Allen
- Nassir "rugrat" Francique
- Daniel "stomp" Pomerantz
- Thomas "ExToSee" Johnson (Coach)
Finally, the Peeker's Advantage roster that was relegated from MDL at the conclusion of the previous season have made a massive overhaul, seemingly looking to pass over their Advanced spot to Soham "valens" Chowdhury and company on Forty Six and 2.
The future of the former Peeker's Advantage players currently remains unknown as David "DAVEY" Stafford has already departed the roster, with the remaining members likely looking to focus on the podcast and creative content alongside DAVEY. However, no official announcement has been made as to the team's immediate plans.
Also read: Bushido Boyz retain MDL spot over Peeker's Advantage; Oceanus secure promotion over FaintRegardless, at least two of the Peeker's Advantage players would need to play in three out of the first four matches in order to keep their spot in Advanced, at which point the torch could be passed on. The transfer would act as a promotion of sorts for Forty Six and 2, who participated in ESEA Open Season 32 and made a run to the grand final, only to fall short at the final hurdle and find themselves facing a season of Main.
The Peeker's Advantage roster currently has:
- Stephen "reltuC" Cutler
- Kory "SEMPHIS" Friesen
- Alex "Mauisnake" Ellenberg
- Soham "valens" Chowdhury
- Nolan "Temperature" Pepper
Jose "SecretAgent" Fernandez- Jet "jet-" Gao
- Jordan "insky" Gonzalez
