“Now we just have to do the work.” Vantage make changes to wrap up the season

by BreadHead

The Vantage CS2 roster has undergone five changes in just four months, as head office reveals a new lineup to wrap up the season. The core is now Drox, alecc, and Jynx, with the addition of supar as rifler and Mingovi as the IGL. 

It was also revealed that hudzM will be taking the mantle as coach for the new squad, previously working for Bizarre in 2020 and LFO in 2022.

Currently at ESL Challenger League Season 48, Vantage sit bottom of the table with a 3-11 map record. With the roster’s stability issues throughout this season, the team is looking to rebuild and put those issues behind them. Vantage was a major focus in the CS2 Oceania rostermania article, where I explored their tumultuous roster timeline which continues to evolve.

I had the opportunity to ask Vantage CEO Hayden "Hoackz" Saunders and hudzM a few questions about how the team will operate and their vision for the organization’s future. 

Coach HudzM has joined the team with a clear vision: “I wanted to put together a roster of prospects with an abundance of raw talent and provide the structure and strategic vision to help them push through to that next level,” he said.

With an average player age of just under 22, Vantage has invested in long-term success to regain a top-five position in the regional rankings. Hoackz shared his vision has remained unchanged since Vantage was created over a year ago. “The vision for us as an organization is to be a consistent top competitive team in the region with solid foundations for long-term success.”

"I wanted to put together a roster of prospects with an abundance of raw talent..." - HudzM

The team will see a structural shakeup, replacing long-time member and AWPer Aron “N1ightraid” Dang, along with IGL Cody “nauh” Huang. Alex “alecc” Mackechnie will now take on the AWP role full-time, similar to his time with RKON last season. “Having Alecc back on the AWP was a natural move, as it’s where he feels most comfortable” HuzdM said.

Former KZG IGL Ming “Mingovi” O'Mallon has been selected to lead the team within the hudzM system, making him Vantage’s oldest player at 24 years old. “From our previous conversations, I knew that Mingovi and I shared a similar approach to the game,” the coach remarked. Joshua “supar” Bundle as the final piece is set to add a lot of additional firepower to the squad after gaining experience in his time with Mindfreak and Arcade. 

Mingovi has been selected to lead the team within the hudzM system

Vantage look to claw their way out of ECL relegation territory with a 27.8% map win rate over the past three months. The squad has just four games left in the season to gain enough points to at least finish top eight and avoid instant relegation to ESEA Open league.

Both N1ghtraid and Nauh are ranked among the bottom 20 players this ECL season; with the addition of Supar and Mingovi, the team's skill ceiling has drastically increased, giving younger players the opportunity to shine.

“Having Alecc back on the AWP was a natural move, as it’s where he feels most comfortable” -HuzdM

The Vantage camp seem to be intent on moving back up the rankings. “I'm super stoked with the roster we were able to put together as everyone's on the same page on where we want to go and how we are going to get there,” hudzM said. “Now we just have to do the work.”

Vantage are now:

• Braiden “Drox” Webb
• Alex “alecc” Mackechnie
• Ryley “Jynx” Linde
• Joshua “supar” Bundle
• Ming “Mingovi” O'Mallon