The London Spitfire came out for their second game of the week against the Atlanta Reign. They started their lineup as they did in their previous game. Most notably, Ji-hyeok “birdring” Kim remained in the starting lineup over new addition Hee-dong “Guard” Lee. Birdring played well against the Florida Mayhem, especially when he was able to run DPS characters. Atlanta lost their previous match this week against the Boston Uprising, and are also without their Stage 1 star Daniel “dafran” Francesca, who retired to focus on streaming.
Courtesy of Esports.net
London took control of the point first, and continued to hold and win team fights. Atlanta wanted to run the Winston 3-3, and did not switch to the Reinhardt 3-3 until London had gotten almost 70% of the point. The Spitfire held firm, and took the first round without giving up any percentage on the point.
The second round saw the Spitfire come out with Jae-hee “Gesture” Hong on the Winston, while Seung-tae “Bdosin” Choi ran the Moira and Joon-yeong “Profit” Park got to play Sombra. Atlanta opted for the triple DPS with a Wrecking Ball, but London were able to take the point first. Atlanta switched compositions too late once again, and the Spitfire swept, taking Oasis 2-0.
London started Anubis on attack, coming out with an interesting composition. They ran a triple tank with Profit on Wrecking Ball, trying to hide that Birdring was playing Widowmaker. While they were unsuccessful at first, eventually they took the first point with just over a minute remaining. London were able to walk onto the point and take two tics, but the interesting Mei defense from Atlanta stopped them from quickly taking the second point. After regrouping, the Spitfire took the second point with just over two minutes left.
Courtesy of the London Spitfire
Atlanta’s mishandling of their ultimates, along with some stellar Winston play from Gesture, led London to almost full hold the Reign. Atlanta took the first point just before overtime began, and immediately after rushed to the second point. The snowball effect was enough for Atlanta to get 90% of the second point in that first push. London were able to gather themselves and mount a defensive comeback, as Gesture switched over to the Reinhardt. The most exciting moment from this match was when both teams’ Graviton Surge ultimates were eaten by the other team’s D.Va.
The Spitfire started off playing Hanzo and Pharah, trying to poke at the Atlanta defense. Baptise was the only hitscan hero for Atlanta, and the Spitfire were able to rush onto the point easily and take it quickly. Fight after fight London was able to keep pushing the cart forward, communicating well to eliminate the Reign quickly. London easily pushed the cart to the final checkpoint with plenty of time left in the time bank.
Atlanta were able to push the cart quite far, but not nearly as quickly as London. Gesture played well on the Reinhardt, landing large shatters and winning team fights for his team. London pushed extremely close to the Reign’s spawn to force them off of the point. After Jun-ho “Fury” Kim ate another Graviton Surge, Atlanta were able to start moving the cart in Overtime. However, London’s last ditch effort on defense was based on the back of Gesture playing Wrecking Ball and an incredibly well timed D.Va bomb by Fury. Atlanta were able to finish the map at the last minute, forcing Overtime and hoping to get a draw out this map. After a fantastic play from Profit as Pharah, the Spitfire were able to take the one tick that they needed to win on Blizzard World.
London began their attack on Gibraltar on the Winston 3-3, which was mirrored by Atlanta. It was Atlanta who found the first pick of the map, who held off London as long as they could. Right as the Spitfire thought they were taking the first checkpoint, Atlanta decided to try a last ditch fight, which almost worked for them. However, with some great ultimate economy and communication, the Spitfire won the team fight, and continued moving the payload. Fury continued to eat Graviton Surge after Graviton Surge, leaving Atlanta’s Zarya in disbelief. While London looked certain to not finish the map, a clever final fight led them to go the distance.
2018-02-10 / Photo: Robert Paul for Blizzard Entertainment
Atlanta came out swinging and took the first point quickly. They continued to push forward to try and keep the Spitfire from contesting the payload. Fury delivered another great D.Va ultimate, clearing out three members of the Reign at once. With just under a minute, new addition Nathan “frd” Goebel got a massive quad-D.Va self-destruct. This led to the Reign finishing the map with a few seconds left in the time bank.
London moved to a Pirate Ship composition to try and get as far as they could with only a minute in their time bank. Atlanta were able to take out Profit on the Bastion, and hold the Spitfire just shy of the turn. Atlanta came out strong, and in overtime a massive team fight commenced. However, London were able to get their members back and finish off the map.
Overall, the defending Overwatch League champions looked to be back to their old ways. They dominated the Reign in all aspects of this match, showing that they are able to run 3-3 compositions well. Their flexibility showed in this map, especially on Blizzard World. Gesture played very well today, and got to play Winston most of the time. Profit continues to be dominant for London, and Fury showed that his D.Va is always hungry for Graviton Surges. If the Spitfire can continue this form throughout the season, they should have no problem making the playoffs.
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Featured Image Courtesy of the London Spitfire
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