It was by no means a walkover but from the word go, Serious kept their noses in front and never looked like throwing this final away. Both teams traded rounds evenly on both maps but it was always Serious who were able to step their game up when the occasion demanded it. Matmata went right down to the wire with Sec keeping Logitech in the game right till the end and Toujane was more of the same. The scores were level right up until about 9-9 where Serious, with victory in their sight, began to pull away. An incredible rifle ace from Stim gave Logitech their 10th round but it was to be their last as Serious went on to take the win. The Dutch side burst into jubilant celebration with their manager Bas while Logitech were left to rue a disappointing end to what had looked a very promising event for the Finns.
In the words of Stim, "Serious were just better". He also added that his team would really have benefited from better preparation going into this event but it was clear that we were seeing a Logitech side that had learned a lot from their poor shgOpen performance, as they came very close to repeating their famous Wonderbase victory.The Finnish side, despite taking a top four spot in the last European CoD2 rankings, always seem to enter these big events as underdogs and before the finals, Sec jokingly pointed out that nobody had paid any attention to their games up until now. All the focus going into this event had been on the Western European sides, Dignitas, Serious, Speedlink and Tek-9, and although Sec did leave Holland with the CoD2 MVP award, he will rue missing out on the chance to finally boost his team into the spotlight.
Serious on the other hand will be making headlines for quite some time if their recent form is anything to go by. The incredible achievement of three straight lan wins is a feet that even Speedlink at their best did not replicate. The team appeared overjoyed and relieved after the final today and, with Solz joining them as a spectator, there was a clear sense of togetherness and team spirit often missing from Europe's top teams. Not many people would have predicted this result after their group stage loss to eSuba but the team matured as the event went on, eventually hitting top form when it mattered most. Rikk was incredible all weekend, narrowly missing out in the MVP award, and nutec was also consistently a top performer. Their win over Tek-9 in particular showcased the side's depth of character and in the end it was sheer determination and persistence that earned them their spot in the final and eventually their victory. As this game grows and a history starts to develop you can now be sure that Serious-Gaming will play a big part and will be remembered, at least for now, as the most successful team in European Call of Duty 2.
