Curse vs TSM - A Growing Rivalry
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The rivalry between Team Solo Mid and Curse Gaming has been one-sided one for years. Curse has never won a major tournament against TSM, while TSM has appeared in every World Championship, and beaten down Curse along the way each time. Curse looked like they may have finally found an upper hand in the 2013 LCS spring split, only to fall short and watch TSM claim yet another title. Year after year, split after split, Curse has watched from the outside as TSM stood at the top of the mountain (or close to the top, since Cloud 9 joined the scene). TSM fans would argue that there really wasn’t even a rivalry to speak of between the two teams.
However, all that changed when Xpecial joined Curse.
Fans who watched TSM’s reality show Game Cribs will be familiar with the rift that had been forming between Xpecial and Reginald. Coming out of an impressive performance at the 2013 All Stars, Xpecial was ready to take on a larger leadership role within the team. The secret to beating TSM had always been to get Reginald off his game and affect his shot calling, and Xpecial hoped to alleviate some of that pressure by stepping up as another voice. Episodes of Game Cribs were filled with heated arguments between Xpecial and Reginald, making it clear that TSM’s captain was not interested in having Xpecial take the reins any time soon.
That rift would eventually result in Xpecial being benched, and eventually picked up by Curse.
Now on Curse, a team that has struggled to find effective leadership since the retirement of Saintvicous, Xpecial will have the opportunity to prove what kind of leader he can be. The rest of Curse’s roster now has a solid split under their belt, and each player has shown moments of star quality in the past. The only thing left to pull Curse up to the next level will be the team’s leadership. Curse’s record at the end of this split could be Xpecial’s best way to tell his former team what they lost by getting rid of him.
This Time, It’s Personal
Last split’s TSM looked quite different from the team that finished third in Season 1. TheRainMan had long since been replaced by Dyrus, the faltering Chaox was quickly overshadowed by Wildturtle, and Reginald finally stepped down for the young EU star, Bjergsen. Only TheOddOne and Xpecial were left of the old guard. TheOddOne retired and remained as a coach with the team, but the shock of the offseason came when it was announced that Xpecial was being benched and removed from the team. After a second place finish, TSM owner Reginald had made the decision to remove one of his most experienced players, for an unproven challenger player in Gleebglarbu, whose team (Cloud 9 Tempest) had failed to qualify for the LCS. While a shock on the surface, the move had been coming for a long time.
Fans who watched TSM’s reality show Game Cribs will be familiar with the rift that had been forming between Xpecial and Reginald. Coming out of an impressive performance at the 2013 All Stars, Xpecial was ready to take on a larger leadership role within the team. The secret to beating TSM had always been to get Reginald off his game and affect his shot calling, and Xpecial hoped to alleviate some of that pressure by stepping up as another voice. Episodes of Game Cribs were filled with heated arguments between Xpecial and Reginald, making it clear that TSM’s captain was not interested in having Xpecial take the reins any time soon.
That rift would eventually result in Xpecial being benched, and eventually picked up by Curse.
Now on Curse, a team that has struggled to find effective leadership since the retirement of Saintvicous, Xpecial will have the opportunity to prove what kind of leader he can be. The rest of Curse’s roster now has a solid split under their belt, and each player has shown moments of star quality in the past. The only thing left to pull Curse up to the next level will be the team’s leadership. Curse’s record at the end of this split could be Xpecial’s best way to tell his former team what they lost by getting rid of him.
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