EXEN allows current players to seek new opportunities elsewhere. EXEN's founder and CEO Patrik "FallA" Falck talks about the journey and future of EXEN's CS representative team.
EXEN releases the current national team players and continues to operate temporarily without a national team. Regarding EXEN's representative team, it has been quiet after the ragged Advanced season and relegation. Let's open up this trip and especially that end of the team a bit. EXEN CEO Patrik “FallA” Falck says:
"About a year ago, we set out to rebuild EXEN's main team, and on the scale of EXEN, we got a team made up of highly qualified individuals. In our opinion, the team had the best potential Finnish players available on the market. Samppa, already known to us and proven to be a good captain, was brought in to lead the team. Many of the team were previously unknown to each other.
At the beginning, we didn't have any expectations about what to expect from the first half of the year, and the sights were more on the year 2023. We thought that the players need time with each other and a routine for the game. The team hit the targets regardless, directly from ESEA Main by moving up to Advanced, which was a big positive surprise and confirmation that the right players had been selected for the team. There were also other glimpses in national series and tournaments. Inside the team, the best atmosphere that I have seen during these three years at EXEN prevailed.
Unfortunately, the story of this five ended at the end of 2022 when Alxc left the lineup. We tried a couple of different players as the new fifth. The game schedule was merciless, and the new player had to be brought in on a fast schedule. This was naturally difficult and frustrating for all of us, and especially for the players. They tried hard to make it work, but at no point this year was the full potential released from the team. Team captain Samppa decided at this point to take a well-deserved break from playing competitively. With this, it was clear that the whole project had to be ditched.
As part of the Finnish scene, we at EXEN want to make sure that players have the opportunity to develop themselves and their own careers. That's why it was decided at this point that the players are allowed to continue in the direction they each choose in the way they feel is best. I personally want to thank every player and coach who shared a journey with us during the past year. Special thanks to Myste and japE, with whom the cooperation has continued for a year and a half. Thanks also to the others involved in the project: nksu, Samppa, Alxc, jamboni, Sooda, Jerppa, choco and Sebu. I really hope that the paths with the players will cross again.
For EXEN, the end of the project means that it is time to take a short break for the representative team. We already have all kinds of content for the summer: the academy team continues to develop and prepares for the upcoming ESEA season, and we participate in summer festivals and other events. New partnerships are being refined, and Valve is working hard on the new CS2. In addition, of course, options for new players and plans for how to continue from here are already being mapped. So autumn is going to be exciting and full of new things.
Now is also time to reflect on the past and think about what was learned from the journey of the representative team. How do we want to work with the team in the future, and what kind of team do we want to build? If something happened along the way that could have been done differently or better, then it's time to turn it into a strength by thinking about future teams. We at EXEN feel that we have a lot to offer our teams and players.
We keep our eyes and ears open for the future team, and interested players and teams can also contact us. We are especially looking for players who are willing to commit to a longer project. Let's build together the next number one gang in Finland!"
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