Sentinels dispatched Fnatic 3-0 in the VALORANT Champions Tour Masters 2: Reykjavik grand final, though Fnatic did force overtime on two maps. But according to Fnatic in-game-leader Jake “Boaster” Howlett, the difference in experience is to blame for why the European team couldn’t convert those opportunities into wins.
“We’re not saying experience, like, we go on stage and get experience,” Boaster said. “It’s hours and hours of playing, and I think personally the best game to have come from in VALORANT is Counter-Strike.”
"So the main factors in our team's defeat is probably experience" – some insight from @OfficialBoaster on their grand finals performance.#VALORANTMasters
Full press conference here: https://t.co/DK7zC9iW8Q pic.twitter.com/jGHQ2oHSul
— Yinsu (@YinsuCollins) May 30, 2021
The players on Fnatic have put time into Counter-Strike before makings the jump in VALORANT, but only two played the title professionally. Domagoj “Doma” Fancev and James “Mistic” Orfila both competed in Fortnite before VALORANT.
“As long as we keep practicing that stuff when we’re scrimming and at an event and we learn from it, that’s the thing that’s holding us back,” Boaster said.
Other Fnatic members weigh in on VCT Masters 2 final loss
When asked if there was anything the team could have done differently to win the tight games, Fnatic’s coach Jacob “mini” Harris parroted the same points.
“The rounds we were losing today came down to fundamental mistakes, and it’s a fresh new team,” mini said. “We’ve got players that don’t have that big of a tactile shooter FPS background, so we’ll learn from that.”
Fnatic also welcomed two new additions to the team before Stage 2 of the VCT. The two members have been on the team for almost two months, but team’s synergy improved at this LAN event, according to Mistic.
“We’ve definitely bonded as a team and grew in terms of teamwork,” Mistic said.
As for the future, Europe will have four spots for Masters 3 in Berlin and Fnatic are looking forward to improving in time for the next LAN.
“We’re not doing a sprint,” Boaster said. “We’re doing a marathon.”
