Match Recap: Chiefs vs Direwolves - LCO Week 9
This recap proudly presented by Energizer
After claiming the LCO minor premiership in a convincing split where we equalled our best regular season with, our dominant League of Legends team arrived on the Rift for the last game of the LCO regular season ready to tame the Dire Wolves. After a tough loss to Pentanet.GG earlier in the week it was all systems go to make this battle our 19th win of the split and regain momentum ahead of the upcoming playoffs.
A gorgeous tower dive in the bot lane definitely signalled we were out for blood, with Dragku singlehandedly setting up Raes’ Aphelios to send Shinki to a grey screen to open his account very early into the match. The early game continued at a rapid pace, with the multiple skirmishes erupting across the map swinging both ways as the game hurtled towards the twenty minute mark. No side truly gained ascendancy but we were able to create small leads that put us in good stead for the rest of the game.
Barely a minute before Baron spawned the game sparked to life again as we found a convincing fight and walked away with enough kills to barrel down and pressure the top lane, as the outer turret falling brought our gold lead up to 5k. An attempted response from the Wolfpack didn’t land, as an overcommitment onto killing Arthur’s Viego was quickly punished, with both Raes and Topoon freely demolishing two inner turrets.
Sensing the play had got away from them but emboldened by the lack of the enemy jungler, the Dire Wolves launched an assault on the Baron and attempted to burst it down. Unfortunately for them, despite managing to secure the buff, the timely arrival of our ADC and toplaner was enough to turn the following fight in our favour.
During the brawl Raes was able to rip through the Wolfpack, scoring a triple kill before Goodo came back to donate our veteran ADC his fourth kill of the fight — take a look at how the fight played out in today’s Energizer Play of the Game.
Topoon stepped up yet again as the fourth drake spawned, landing an incredible Gnar flank to turn a fight again initiated by the Dire Wolves. We quickly used the advantage to secure the Ocean Soul as well as blowing up two inhibitors. On the edge of victory, one last teamfight laid open the Wolfpack’s base and we wasted no time in taming the Dire Wolves for the third time this season.
With the regular season finally finished off, we can now look ahead to our all-important playoff campaign. With our spot in the second round of the winner’s bracket, we await the result of the two previous LCO champs going head to head — and a victory there will send us directly into the LCO finals and one best-of-five away from returning to the international stage for the first time since 2016.
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