Off-season headaches and remedies

The team's first LAN performance

Bonus Trivia : CandyPanda and Nyph have played for more than 3 years together. Their duo dates back to a team called GAMED.de, which participated in the Season 1 finals at DreamHack.

The clash with the Crew

The showstoppers.

Bonus Trivia: For his mastery of Caitlyn and Vayne, CandyPanda is jokingly sometimes referred to as VaynePanda or CaitlynPanda.

Final ache and beginning of the LCS

Bonus Trivia: Current mid laner Jesiz was actually an AD Carry prior to joining SK Gaming.

Mid season and gradual rise to the top

A string of defeats from the reigning champions helped SK quickly rise.

Bonus Trivia : SK and Alliance are the only teams to finish the split without a negative record against an opponent. However, SK's record is superior as we have more positive than neutral records. SK fighting!

The end is here

Bonus Trivia : Early on in his career, fredy122 played on a team called La GG. His teammates there were YellowPete, Krepo and Snoopeh who later on went to become CLG.EU together with Froggen and Wickd. : Early on in his career,fredy122 played on a team called La GG. His teammates there wereYellowPete,Krepo andSnoopeh who later on went to becomeCLG.EU together withFroggen andWickd.

The future

Washed-up, done for, hopeless. Those were the words most fans and competitors used to describe SK Gaming once the League of Legends Championship series came to a close and the team was left in relegation. It was more than obvious that serious change had to happen as soon as possible, dealing with the core issues and establishing a stable squad, capable of competing in the LCS.We can remember what happened next. Rumours began circulating the web and pointed towards several high-ELO competitors, naming them the new SK crest bearers. The off-season "trading games" were a tough period for all. We saw community favourite and SK legendOcelote depart and devoting his time to personal projects and affairs. Along with him, long-standing memberkev1n also decided to seek new challenges and so didhyrqbot. Their replacements came as quite the surprise to the fans.SK Gaming confidently brought in two former LCS players and one young man who was completely new to the highest competitive echelon. From his time inCopenhagen Wolves, most people were already familiar withSvenskeren and his godlike Jarvan IV, Lee Sin and Elise play and accepted this pick-up as a good sign of things to come. Right after, British pridefredy122 was revealed as the new top laner. The formeraAa member, however, did not get the vote of confidence from fans and pros alike, being pointed as the potential weak spot of the team. Finally, the new mid laner washipsterjesiz, a young ace from the Challenger teamIntellectual Playground.After a couple of weeks of practice within the amateur scene and a hard-fought win at DreamHack Winter 2013, the boys were ready for the clash against Supa Hot Crew - a battle that would later on determine their careers.Relegation matches were upon us and unfortunately, on paper, things did seem shaky for SK. Many criticized Jesiz for his inconsistency and his lack of confidence on the big stage and somehow, the title of "weakest SK link" was transferred immediately from top to mid lane. Despite Fredy's stable play, no one was ready to take his words back, given that he is yet to prove if he can do it with the "big boys".As the Crew had a fresh formula - mixing the old with the new, the team came inspired into the match. Fifty minutes later, the Crew were leading 2-0 and SK's hopes and dreams were about to end there. In a recent interview, our AD CarryCandyPanda was asked if there was a specific moment were things just started going their way. Adrian answered with a smile on his face, stating that there was no specific break point. "I went to the bathroom to clear my head and when I came back I just knew we could do it", replied the German.Three games and a dominating bot lane duo performance later, SK Gaming was once again in the LCS, staying tall and triumphant over a stunned Supa Hot Crew. Despite this, only the hardcore fans knew, deep inside, that this was just the beginning.Right before the LCS started, a grim piece of news saddened the SK fans - long-standing memberNyph departed to new-found powerhouseAlliance. What people did not know, was that another experienced veteran and once considered the best European support will take his place. Days later, SK announced the acquisition ofnRated, an S-class support player who can not only deal with his opponents appropriately, but also contribute a ton to the strategic aspect of the team.The first four weeks went decently for the team, despite the small amount of time the players practiced together. An overall score of 4-6 saw the team tie for fourth place together with a rookie Copenhagen Wolves and struggling Alliance. Opinions in social media and forums never seemed to change. Fingers pointed at top and mid lane paired with constant (and deserved) praise for the bot lane duo were the most common sight. Despite the consistency of Fredy and the visible growth of Jesiz as a player, the community was not yet ready to give credit where credit was due.I can remember a tweet by a fellow which stated that "SK are the only certain team that will face relegation" and while many thought the same way, no one dared admit they were surprised of the team's performance. No one would deny that the first four weeks were shaky for the team, but seeing SK hold their own against squads with much more practice did raise eyebrows.Hard work and training always pays off and the team was just around the corner of reaping the results of their labor. In the weeks following up to and including week 9, SK Gaming went on a dominating spree, scoring an overall 9-3 during the time period. This incredible performance spearheaded them right into second place, taking advantage offnatic's slump andROCCAT's inconsistency. The Russian overlords ofGambit and SK now ruled over the table and were undisputed kings at the time.Of course what is an LCS season without drama? A controversial decision by Riot Games allowed a remake of a game between us andGambit Gaming. The remake turned into a victory for our team which in turn, continued the dominating performance and just two weeks prior to the end of the split the players could have potentially set their sights on the first place - a feat which was unimaginable in the beginning of the split.Given that the aforementioned case garnered quite the attention and negative feelings towards our team,nRated gave an extensive interview in which he addressed the issue and managed to relieve the "pressure". Despite all that was said and written in the social media and forums, the team never lost sight of the ultimate goal.Starting from the number 2 spot, SK had an incredibly difficult task ahead of them - maintain your position regardless of the rising Alliance and vengeful Fnatic. While week 10 went well for the team, we did drop off a spot and finished third as the aforementioned duo stormed the top after their relatively quiet mid-season. Preparation for Super Week 11 commenced in full force and the last four matches proved vital in the end.With games against Fnatic, Supa Hot Crew, Millenium and Copenhagen Wolves, the super week proved exhausting. After crisp plays and excellent traps from Fnatic, our boys managed to compose themselves and quickly regain their confidence with Jesiz' Ziggs ending up to be an absolute monster in the late game. Funnily enough, the two members which were labelled as weaknesses came up big in Week 11, demonstrating their immense growth since the beginning of the split. In addition, the German bot lane continued their magic from beginning to end, destroying the opposition swiftly to ensure the best possible score for the team.With a clean 4-0 scoreline at the end of the week, SK Gaming finished in first place of the regular season in the EU LCS, thus silencing critics and naysayers alike.Currently, the team is in the semi-finals, awaiting the winner ofROCCAT againstGambit Gaming. Should we win, SK will be in the finals of the EU LCS Spring split. Given the team's finish we have ensured a spot in the Summer Split, so our strong games and performances will not end here.Last, but not least, on behalf of everyone on SK Gaming, I would like to thank the fans and supporters of our team. Without your cheers and good words, we would not have been able to do this and once again prove that SK is always on top, no matter the game. Ave SK!