The Houston Outlaws announced on Friday the departure of main support Chris “Bani” Bennell, their second player release of the 2019 offseason.
Today we say goodbye to @BaniOW.
Wherever we needed him, Bani was always there.
We can't thank him enough for all the work he put in these last 2 years.We wish him all the best the moving forward with his next destination. pic.twitter.com/6rciPhphuO
— Houston Outlaws (@Outlaws) November 9, 2019
Bani has been part of the Outlaws roster since its creation, and was previously on FNRGFE in Contenders with several of his Houston teammates. He also started for Team Canada in the Overwatch World Cup in both 2018 (winning the bronze medal) and 2019 (eliminated in groups). He was one of three free agents on the Outlaws roster after the 2019 season, along with Wonhyeop “ArHaN” Jeong, who was also released, and Daniel “Boink” Pence, who was re-signed.
This leaves the Outlaws with only Boink and Shane “Rawkus” Flaherty in the support role. Fans and analysts have speculated that the team would shore up their support line with new signings. This could be a step in that direction, especially as general manager Matt “flame” Rodriguez teased earlier on Friday that more big announcements were to come:
MULTIPLE cups of juice will be squeezed in the next 7 days. pic.twitter.com/N1F83AremL
— Matt Rodriguez (@flameirl) November 8, 2019
With Bani’s release, more signings seem likely, as all of the other Outlaws are still under contract except for Dante “Danteh” Cruz, who is under team option.
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