LA Gladiators Pull Off Epic Creative Strategy to Defeat London Spitfire in Overwatch League Quarter-Final Series
Robert Paul for Blizzard EntertainmentThe Los Angeles Gladiators pulled off an epic creative strategy to help close out their victory over London Spitfire.
The two teams clashed in the first series of their quarter-final match in the Overwatch League season one playoffs, with the Gladiators securing a convincing win even without star main tank Baek ‘Fissure’ Chan-hyung.
The third, and ultimately final, map of the series was King’s Row. Having held the Spitfire in the second stage of their offence, the Gladiators had a chance to end the series with a successful offence of their own.
Point A on King’s Row can be tough to crack against a well set-up defensive team, but the Gladiators pulled out an incredibly creative and intelligent strategy to secure it easily.
As they pushed out on their initial spawn, the Gladiators grouped up and rushed all the way past the point, bypassing the defence as they made their way through the second stage of the map to wrap back onto the high ground.
Crucially, however, the Gladiators had left Lane ‘Surefour’ Roberts in the offensive spawn room. Given that he was playing as Brigitte and the whole Gladiators squad had pushed through together, the Spitfire never considered as they repositioned that they could be vulnerable from that angle, and by the time Surefour had switched to Widowmaker and begun eliminating key London players it was far too late.
The strategy was one of the most creative set plays seen in the Overwatch League so far, an enticing teaser for what the playoffs might continue to offer as teams pull out all the stops and an emphatic way for the Gladiators to close out a dominant victory.
The Gladiators now find themselves just one series victory away from advancing to the semi-finals, where their opponent would depend on which of the Philadelphia Fusion or Boston Uprising wins the other quarter-final.