Squadron, the time to dwell on the past is over. The time to look towards new horizons has come. The May Melee may not have gone as fans may have liked, but the June Joust is here. The London Spitfire will seek redemption in the difficult first few weeks of qualifiers of this new tournament. The path to glory has to come from significant improvement to their team coordination, while also battling a new foe: Hero Pools. The pools for the month don’t exactly do the lads any favors. Reinhardt and Tracer being banned has the team missing two of its most powerful weapons. Without them, the team will be looking to Shax and Hadi to showcase their flexibility in their respective roles.
The team’s schedule is rather unforgiving. Featuring no games in which the team is not looking like a clear favorite to win. Going up against both Texas teams, an angry Florida Mayhem, and an out for blood Atlanta Reign will push the EU lads to the limit. All fans can do is hope that the break between tournaments has given the team the time they needed to iron out their issues. As the Spitfire begin the June Joust against two very difficult adversaries.
Florida Mayhem (May 21, 2021)
Coming in hot, and tanned from their trip to Hawaii for the May Melee there is no doubt the Mayhem want to start the joust on the right note. They were somewhat of a surprise in the previous tournament, upsetting some favorites in their quest for the beach. A big focus was on main tank OGE, who was considered a wildcard going into the season. However, he proved the doubters wrong. Delivering excellent tank play across multiple heroes during the qualifiers and in the tournament itself.
Hero Pools shouldn’t give this team much trouble, although they also may miss Tracer, due to Yaki‘s dominance on the hero. The pools could aid the series in going in their favor. OGE‘s best hero is arguably Winston, so if the pool’s meta heads into a more Winston-focused comp they may have another edge over London.
Rainy Days Ahead
London fans should expect to have a tough go in this match. It is not outside the realm of possibility for the team to have leveled up, and take an upset win. However, the Mayhem will not just roll over and let them have it. In a role by role matchup, as of right now the Mayhem are the clear favorites. Playing a higher tempo level of Overwatch gives their star dps duo the space to secure picks when needed. Their support duo have also shown their quality, they will need to be silenced if the Spitfire wish to have a chance of victory.
Negatives aside, London can take the lessons from their disappointing May run and turn them into positives. They have had time now to take a long look back at what went wrong, and hopefully have worked hard on fixing their mistakes. The hyper-aggressive playstyle of Shax didn’t seem to be meshing well with how the team played. They have to either adapt to it or figure out a way to work around it to stand a chance.
Prediction: Mayhem 3-1 Spitfire
Atlanta Reign (May 23, 2021)
The Reign are an interesting beast to look at in 2021. Many will agree that they possess immense power at the dps position, yet elsewhere the community is torn. Some consider the other parts of the team underwhelming. Their tanks are simply average, and their supports a mixed bag.
The previous tournament saw them go 1-3, yet that score could have very easily been far different. The majority of their games were incredibly close. The team just couldn’t seem to find a way to close it out. This is a team fueled by swagger, injected into their veins by previous teammates such as Dogman and BabyBay. When they find their groove they are fearsome, yet their aforementioned failure to close it out could give London the chance to force their game upon the Reign.
Changing the Tempo
The Reign seem to have a bit of an issue when they are forced to play against their preparations. Ironically something that should be addressed in said prep. Kai and Pelican can only do so much to carry their team across the finish line. This game is the Spitfire‘s best chance at leaving the weekend with a point in the W column. The matchups mostly favor the Reign, yet if the Hurricane crew can recapture their winning ways at tank and support then the possibility of an upset becomes all the more real.
They can not rely on the possibility of a Shax Tracer carry as 1. She is banned, and 2. The carry hasn’t been there this season. The other dps need to step it up and at the very least contest the Reign‘s devastating duo. If they can do this then there is a chance that Hadi and Molf1g can bulldozer over Gator and Hawk. The tank battle could decide the game if the dps can trade evenly. This game is a major question mark, and could give a glimpse into the future of the June Joust for either team.
Prediction: Spitfire 3-2 Reign
Follow Ethan on Twitter @EthanButler for all your London Spitfire, Overwatch League, and Esports needs.
If you would like to see more, don’t forget to visit TheGameHaus.com