The explosive 2022 LCO season is set to come to a thrilling conclusion with Pentanet.GG poised to go head to head against the undefeated Chiefs this evening in a heated Margaret Court Arena battle for the winning Oceanic title.
The story so far
Skirmishes between the Chiefs and Pentanet throughout Split 2 landed consistently in favour of the former, with their dominant win streak (in the end, 21-0) snowballing them to the finals completely unscathed whilst PGG ran the gauntlet for a final shot to contest them.
During their series against ORDER in the preliminary finals on Friday night, Pentanet showed their best face in the devastating slaughter, securing their victory with a swift 3-0 in front of a live audience in Margaret Court Arena.
The breakthrough performance came through as a standout surprise, defying the expectations of fans and analysts alike as the supposed underdog team displayed the form of champions.
However, if Pentanet swings their momentum from Friday into their series tonight, they will be able to contest the title.
When it comes to performance, LAN adds an unfamiliar pressure to many of the League players on-stage. Yet, Pentanet thrived on the electric atmosphere of the home crowd, using their “stage buff” to power through the three-game series. Following the liberating experience of the orange-sided crowd during the prelims, the Pentanet roster have been given the opportunity to adjust.
The blue team may be at a disadvantage as they’re thrust into that LAN fire. With no time to prepare for the enthusiastic League of Legends crowd, their form has historically varied at LAN events.
1,100 days ago, the Chiefs and Mammoth competed at the Melbourne Esports Open, contesting the 2019 OPL Split 2 title. With the 2019 Chiefs finishing the split at the top of the leaderboard, they secured their position as the final boss of the gauntlet, only to go 0-3 as the orange team ultimately snatched the title.
Now, it’s 2022–and they’ve been given the chance to rewrite the narrative.
It’s evident in their performance throughout the perfect split that the Chiefs are now more than ever determined to show their domestic and international competition, what the landmark Oceanic organisation is truly capable of.
Everything on the line for Chiefs
As the Chiefs once again stare down an orange team for the title, the question lies in whether history is all set to repeat itself for the League’s juggernauts as their eyes have locked onto the international stage.
Is setting their sights so far a distraction when their real threat is sitting on a Margaret Court Arena stage just metres away from them?
Pentanet have defied expectations throughout the playoffs, and look stronger than ever as they brace for one final meeting with the raid boss of the LCO.
With the undefeated preliminary final performance leaving them comfortably locked and loaded for the finals, will they carry that momentum into the finals and best ‘the best’?
What’s in the air at DreamHack Melbourne?
With Pentanet’s upset on Friday night, the narrative of the perfect split has begun to somewhat falter into something more uncertain, with a wide array of different predictions across the board.
Related: LCO 2022 Grand Final Predictions: CHF vs. PGG
Snowball’s Nadette has run the ruler across crowd (and player) feelings:
- Triana (@TrianaOCE): “I would love it to be Pentanet, but I think it will be Chiefs 3-2.”
- Puma, Order bot laner (@PumaOCE): “I think it will be Chiefs 3-0.” (Aladoric was in earshot).
- RememberTheBeat (@RTB_OCE): “I thought Pentanet but changed my mind. After seeing Dragku’s muscles, I think Chiefs will win.”
- Ducky, Snowball Esports: “Chiefs players have historically performed worse on LAN. Despite their mechanics being better, their performance on the live stage is still lacking. PGG have shown that they’re able to perform under pressure and will take it 3-1.”
- Benvi, Kanga support (@Benvi_OCE): “PGG are playing a ton better and are for sure the second best team, but Chiefs are just on another level. Unless something has changed, they are just too good. Chiefs 3-0.”
- Udysof, PGG coach: “The Chiefs suck c**k. Pentanet is going to absolutely keep the momentum going forward. Chiefs are going to get absolutely monstered by the Pentanet squad. Praedyth is on form, Yuri is on form, BalKhan is on form, Winterer is on form, and Rogue has been on form the entire split.”
- Raes, Chiefs bot laner: “If we drop finals, no one’s going to remember if we had a perfect split. Everyone’s going to remember the fact PGG won, not us.”
After such an amazing split, this series will mark the conclusion of the LCO for the 2022 League of Legends season. With so much at stake for both teams, it will undoubtedly be an explosive set of games to wrap up the season for OCE, played in front of excited Oceanic fans in Margaret Court Arena.
The LCO Grand Final pre-show will begin at 3:15 PM (AEST) with matches scheduled to begin at 4:00 PM (AEST).
Want to study up about LCO Split 2 before the Grand Final? This is the place to be.
