Now or never for Counter Logic Gaming
There are many rivalries in League of Legends, but none so old or so fierce as Counter Logic Gaming vs. Team SoloMid.
A new year, a new hope
This season, we've seen clutch plays, new players, and fresh coaches for CLG. Zaqueri "Aphromoo" Black said early on that he didn't want to take a backseat role, and needed to prove himself as a godlike support.
CLG came out to a fast start in Spring, with Darshan "ZionSpartan" Upadhyaya even admitting the team was getting cocky in some of its blowout wins. But he also reinforced that the team had to exercise patience, and had a long way to go.
For TSM, Marcus "Dyrus" Hill told us that the team has been battling complacency for some time and needed to continually reignite the hunger to remain a 1st Place team. It was their first bout with CLG that would sate their appetite.
With pride, glory, and even pink hair on the line, TSM emerged victorious over CLG in Week 4 of the Spring Split -- and each subsequent time in 2015. Though CLG has been favored in many of the matches, as Dyrus explained, Team SoloMid just never gave up.
New cast, same script
Throughout the year, both teams have seen different players, but it's the same game. CLG added Xmithie while TSM brought on Santorin for Spring. In Summer, it was the boy wonder Pobelter who hoped to steal the show. Though it seems no matter what changes, TSM's able to capitalize on CLG's mistakes -- dominating the rivalry since 2014.
After their most recent match, TSM's ADC Jason "WildTurtle" Tran explained, "It just feels like winning a bigger game. Like when we win against any other team, it doesn't feel as satisfying. But when we win against CLG it just feels a lot better."
Do or Die
All of the players on both sides of the rivalry know that this match always means something special. The script is the same, but CLG has a chance for some re-writes this time around. While both teams usually come into the showdown on a hotstreak, CLG comes into this as the unquestionable best team in North America. If it wasn't for CLG's history, this game wouldn't even be in doubt. CLG have been playing great in the 2015 Summer Split while TSM have been struggling.
But this matchup does have history.
Can CLG prove the doubters wrong and finally beat their rivals? Or will TSM's empire rack up another win?
Tune into Lolesports Sunday at 2:00pm PST to find out!
