You could say Order are one of the most consistent teams in the Oceanic Pro League. They’ve yet to win a split, but since their inauguration into the OPL in 2018, they’ve qualified for a shot at the OPL trophy every time.
For the captain of the Order roster and one of the titans of the scene, Brandon “Swip3rR” Holland, yesterday marked the fourth anniversary of the last time he lifted the prestigious Oceanic Pro League trophy. That moment in celebration would spell the end of a dominant reign by the old Chiefs roster.
However, Swip3rR has continually proven himself to be resilient. After a fourth-place finish in the last split, himself alongside the rest of the Order roster were hungry to prove themselves.
The Order roster comprises some of the hardest hitting talent across the board. As a team, they have 21 years of competitive experience. However, Swip3rR has seven of the years alone on his back.
“I think the boys just lacked experience and had to realise they’re actually good players.” Swip3rR mused.
The players he’s talking about are Jordan “Only” Middleton in the jungle, Harry “Haeri” Kang in the mid lane, Ronan “rare7” Swingler down bot, and Bill “Eyla” Nguyen in support. They all have three years of experience under their belt, but it takes a lot of determination and grit to take out the OPL victory.
“I think heading into the split we had similar growing problems to the first split, but we found our form way earlier [than last split] and gave ourselves a good opportunity to take the second seed heading into playoffs”
Brandon “Swip3rR” Holland
Looking forward to the playoffs kicking off tonight for Order, they’re facing Pentanet.GG up first. Their record against them this split is 3-0, and looks to be a favourable matchup for them. However, there is one key difference — they’re playing in a best of five series.
“Honestly it [confidence against Pentanet] doesn’t change. It’s always different on the day. Previous results don’t matter in the playoffs — just going in with your best gameplay and executing is all that matters. I’m not really looking at Pentanet as a team, I just want to play my best League of Legends and give it my all,” Swip3rR said.
The best-of-five matches only come around in playoffs, and with that comes the opportunity for teams to pull out surprise wins. However, this also allows teams to readily adapt to strategies that may come their way — and it’ll be key for the Order roster to maintain focus and adapt. Their confidence in their ability to defeat their opponents and mental fortitude will be how they cement themselves as playoffs frontrunners.
“I think as a team [our games] are decided off mental. If we go in confident this weekend we will beat both teams. We will decide it ourselves, and that in itself gives me confidence and all I have to do is trust the boys are gonna bring their A-game and we should take it this weekend.”
Discipline equals Freedom pic.twitter.com/lSUGmkZm1U
— Leo 🛸 (@BabipOCE) July 4, 2020
If the stars align and they face off against the Dire Wolves, Swip3rR is looking forward to their match. The reason? Ryan “Chippys” Short.
“I have a bone to pick with Chippys from DW as he took me out last gauntlet – and I need my revenge,” he admitted.
Going forward, the Order roster has big dreams – to make it all the way to the grand finals and win. Swip3rR feels confident in the team to take it, and with the right attitude, they’ll be the ones flying over to Shanghai come October.
Those are some big words coming from the Captain, but it really builds up the narrative for the weekend and the rest of the gauntlet. They’re not letting the pressure get to them, and Order will finally clinch the title that’s eluded them for three years.
“I think regardless of this weekend we will likely vs Legacy or the Dire Wolves in the finals. Don’t get me wrong, all teams can take it this split but experience is a real thing and they have players who have won championships. The other teams don’t, and this actually does matter in high pressure games.
“Conceding to the pressure is what a lot of players fall into, including myself in the past. This split I won’t be though.”
The OPL returns today for the 2020 Split 2 playoffs. Follow Swip3rR & Order on Twitter.
