EPL Conference Season 16: OCE go back to drawing board as all three squads go winless against international opponents in Sweden

• Order take solace in sole win over Encore after heavy exit to FTW
• Encore crash out in two to Order, HEET
• Vertex admirable in defeat against Falcons, Illuminar

Hopes were high of an OCE squad representing the region at the ESL Pro League group stage in August, but instead it will be just Chris “dexter” Nong at MOUZ flying the flag following a week to forget at the EPL Conference.

All eyes were on Order after Encore and Vertex’s exits early on day two.

But the PGL Antwerp Major Contenders could not find their groove in their following matches, going down without a map win against Endpoint 0-2 (14-16, 5-16) and FTW Esports (12-16, 1-16).

“Not sure what to say, that was embarrassing from us,” said captain Simon “Sico” Williams following their brutal 1-16 Dust 2 loss to Portuguese side FTW.

FTW’s 7 T rounds proved plenty on Nuke in the eliminator opening map.

Order took four of the last five on CT through a stellar defensive effort by Jay “Liazz” Tregillgas (19-20, 1.07 rating), but with FTW following up with the next six rounds, the deficit grew just too large to overcome.

Order’s T side struggles continued in a big way into Dust 2. FTW took the nine rounds with the Aussies nabbing just two bomb plants, while FTW’s Rafael “arrozdoce” Wing tore The Boys to shreds.

A 14-1 half, followed by a won FTW pistol, consigned the Order core to their worst loss since their 2-16 loss to Eternal Fire at the Major. It’s the first time this core has lost 16-1.

Encore’s 0-2 (11-16, 10-16) loss to HEET saw them crash out in two series following their opening day loss to Order.

Jared “HaZR” O’Bree (43-41, 1.06 rating) was the best of the Encore squad, who threatened a comeback on Nuke but ultimately couldn’t close the gap.

HEET’s pick of Ancient favoured Encore, who set out to surprise the French with a 10-5 CT half.

But it was there that Encore’s run would end; a 0-11 T half, which culminated in a dropped bomb in mid and a Alexandre “bodyy” Pianaro one-versus-three spelled the conclusion to Encore’s overseas stint.

“We are out of Pro League Conference — we couldn’t do anything on our T side on either map [versus HEET] which is rough,” summised James “SaVage” Savage following the loss.

“Even though it’s sad, it was an amazing experience here in Sweden and I hope we will be back here soon.”

Also out on day two was Vertex, who fell to Polish squad Illuminar 0-2 (11-16, 7-16) in their eliminator.

“[They were] tough games for us here. It felt like we made a lot of progress in practice but none of that matters if we aren’t able to bring it on the day,” said Liam “malta” Schembri after the Wolfpack’s elimination.

Their international debut, Vertex took it to Illuminar on Mirage — the Aussies led 9-6 on their CT side and, at one point, were up 7-1 behind a Jordan “pz” White (37-37, 1.02 rating) leading effort.

Unfortunately Vertex became undone on the T side as Illuminar’s aggressive CT holds eventually made it impossible for the Wolfpack to recover.

Starting T side on map two Nuke would be tough from the outset, and at 3-3 Vertex dropped a crucial clutch that would set Illuminar on a 8-1 run to close out the half and eventually the map.

While Encore and Vertex will return home in the coming days, Order remains committed to the international circuit for IEM Cologne in a little over two weeks.

EPL Conference Season 16 Schedule & Results

Sixteen teams will be whittled down to six via a full double-elimination bracket.

It’s simple: win two matches, and they’re through to the Group Stage, and a shot at the lion’s share of over $800,000 USD. Lose two, and they’re going home. All matches are best-of-three.

EPL Conference — Standings

EPL Conference — Day 1, Opening Matches (Thursday June 16)

EPL Conference — Day 2, Elimination & Qualifying (Friday June 17)

EPL Conference — Day 3, Elimination & Qualifying (Saturday June 17)

EPL Conference — Day 4, Elimination & Qualifying (Sunday June 19)

EPL Conference — Day 5, Decider Matches (Monday June 20)

EPL Conference Season 16 Rosters

• Making magic the Sico way: OCE’s best must prove themselves worthy of the title
• HaZR & Encore prepare for show-stopping EPL Conference start against Order
• Malta’s Vertex on the hunt in Sweden at this week’s ESL Pro League Conference