These Power Rankings are done by a committee of 6 people consisting of:
CJCJ Active player for Tainted Minds and co-host of The Pinch.
Avid fan and viewer of Rocket League, more so than DMonkey.
Avid fan and viewer of Rocket League, more so than Bbouy.
Colour caster and analyst for ThrowdownTV.
Oceanic Rocket League cognoscente and budding global Twitch mod.
The Round Up
In case you’ve been living under a rock, the Throwdown OCE Championship Finals have just passed and the two teams going to London are Chiefs ESC and Tainted Minds! While it may have been predictable to see Chiefs make it for their third time in a row, it was almost impossible to predict the first ever perfect season in top flight Rocket League. A tumultuous season from Tainted Minds meant they were outside being favourites to make the top 2, but they turned up on the day and did not let the chance go to waste. Chiefs will be going up against overconfident team of Evil Genius in the first round Worlds, while Tainted Minds will be facing the formidable side of Complexity. With regional league play being more competitive than it ever has, the competing teams would underestimate OCE at their own risk. - n0lsk1
Tournament Results
Recent Team News
* Team Obsidium, Simple Physics and o/ have officially disbanded.
* Avant Gaming picks up the Legs are Silly roster.
Rankings
1 - Chiefs ESC
Jake, Drippay, Torsos, Requiem | Nil movement
Chiefs have proven time and time again, that they’re the kings of the region. OCE meta stepped up to challenge the Chiefs earlier in the season but Chiefs adapted to further improve themselves and to once again dominate the region. 7-0 in league play and 3-0 in regional playoffs just more proof to show their dominance and being the first team in the world to obtain the title of a ‘perfect season’. They now seek to emulate their regional success to the international level. Their RLCS journey will kickoff in London against ‘Evil Geniuses’ (North America’s fourth seed). “When they win”, they’ll face World Champions Gale Force Esports in a rematch from ELEAGUE. They’re here to show the world the hard work they’ve put in this season and once again prove the doubters wrong. - Bbouy
2 - Tainted Minds
Kamii, CJCJ, Julz, xkorez | + 2
It’s official. Tainted Minds are nutty and they’re going to London.
After a bumpy season where they won half of their games, CJCJ and the boys found themselves down 1-3 against Retirement Home in the losers final of the Throwdown Top 6 playoffs. What happened next? Before I tell you - a week later, after brutally ending Legacy’s season in a 4-0 whitewash, Tainted were down 1-3 against rivals Dark Sided in the losers’ final of the Top 4. Now what happened next? Well, on both occasions, Tainted Minds stormed back to win 4-3. Although they looked shaky at times during league play, in the playoffs with their backs against the wall, they found another gear that teams who aren’t the Chiefs couldn’t handle. Julz (the new starter) and Kamii in particular, showed up big time with clutch plays on both sides of the pitch. To top it off, their playoff losses to the Chiefs were closer than Dark Sided’s.
Looking forward to the future, their RLCS journey is no easier than last time, as the Season 4 grand finalists from EU, compLexity Gaming await them in the first round. While their opponents are out-of-form they’re still a force to be reckoned with. Tainted Minds may be up against it once more, but with two international veterans on board, they’ll be better prepared than last time. Can they produce the greatest upset in RLCS history? - DMonkey
3 - Dark Sided
Shadey, Express, Dumbo | Nil movement
Dumbo’s long-awaited RLCS debut has been postponed yet again. Dark Sided sat at 3-1 after week 3, with a fresh loss to Retirement Home slowing their momentum. Afterwards, they performed admirably against their closest rivals, dropping close matches to Tainted Minds and Chiefs and shutting down Legacy to secure 3rd by season’s end. They even avenged their loss to Tainted Minds in the Top 6 playoffs, sending them to the lower bracket in a hard-fought 4-3 victory. Unfortunately, Tainted Minds had the last laugh on finals day, where Dark Sided’s 3-1 lead in the lower bracket qualification match was blown away in a rampaging comeback. Call it the curse of Sand Castle and Scylla, if you will.
Nevertheless, their agonisingly close finish should not detract from the positives of Dark Sided’s season overall. The top 4 in OCE is closer than ever and they were in the running until the very end. This roster may have what it takes to break the deadlock at 2nd behind the Chiefs, but only time will tell. It will be interesting to see what adaptations they make for next season. - DMonkey
4 - Legacy Esports
Cyrix, Siki, Delusion, Helio | - 2
Thrice cursed.
Having spent the off season as a definitive top 2 team, this season was meant to be the season for Cyrix and the Legacy bois. After picking up Delusion, a statistical powerhouse, the success of the off-season continued into the qualifiers. They were 3-0 after week 2 and secured a comfortable 2nd place by seasons end - only dropping matches to Dark Dided and Chiefs. Come finals day Dark Sided and Legacy rematched in the upper bracket. Despite four incredibly close games, Legacy crumpled under the pressure each OT and ultimately lost the match 4-2. The downward spiral continued as they versed a Tainted Minds possessed and were obliterated 4-0 with their golden boy Delusion scoring no goals across the series. Despite the rough seasons end, we have now seen the massive potential of this Legacy roster. It will be exciting to see where they will end up with more time to refine their teamwork and mental game. - Courier
5 - Retirement Home
Daze, Ellusive, Kia, Aza | + 1
For a team that formed on a whim of inactive and retired players they have done exceedingly well. I suppose it makes sense, the more they played the better it worked. In the lead up to the final weeks of the Throwdown Championship they were actively scrimming and generally playing more than they were during the Open Series. It worked out great for them, over the past four weeks their only losses were to the RLCS-bound Chiefs and Tainted Minds. That means they were able to best Dark Sided, Love Decks and JAM Gaming twice. It’s easy to forget these guys are veterans of the OCE scene, not to mention Kia with RLCS experience. I don’t think their success came down to luck or boisterous quick chat spam. It’s because they’re still capable of playing at this high level and perhaps with more time, even higher. Whether they stick together after the season’s end is unknown, but I’m hopeful these guys at least stick around. - n0lsk1
6 - JAM Gaming
Bango, Walcott, Decka | + 1
It’s been a roller coaster month for JAM Gaming, after dribbling their way into the top 6 they found the silverbacks (Retirement Home) a little too sharp for the butter knives that JAM are accustomed to. They settled for 6th place in Throwdown in what they would probably feel was a mediocre season. The wholesome duo of Bango and Walcott are now exploring their options for a new third to push themselves further against the top 4 teams, which may well be the right recipe. But can Bango and Walcott be the Gordon Ramsay that is needed to cook up such a strong team? We’ll have to wait and see. - CJCJ
7 - Avant Gaming
Plitz, ZeN, Sammy | + 1
The ex-Legs Are Silly squad have been picked up by Avant Gaming, who previously had Cyrix, Ellusive & Siki under their banner. Coming off the back of a devastating few weeks of RLCS League play, only picking up a win against Retirement Home and a few games against Legacy, Dark Sided & Tainted Minds they managed to prove they can show up when needed and give these top teams a run for their money under high intensity situations.
It will be interesting to see whether they grow and improve with Avant’s backing. While they get their first LAN experience with the Gfinity Elite Series will they be able to put through the results they want and possibly break the current top 4? - Paz
8 - Love Decks
Addzey, MontyConnor, CJM, Curto | - 3
Last month we were wondering if the ‘Decks’ could penetrate the top 4, oh what a fall from grace it has been. Consecutive losses to Retirement Home and Legs are Silly proved costly for the Decks, as they finished the Throwdown season in last position and missed out on a finals berth. After such a promising series against Chiefs, it was all downhill from there as they could only string one win together for the season. What’s next for our NZ faithful? Perhaps a roster change could be in store to really get the Decks pumping again. - CJCJ
9 - Pneumonoultra
Tulendeena, Change, Frenzyy | New
The group of players that look like a team but aren’t a team is finally now a team on the Power Rankings under executive order. This team that isn’t a team but is actually a team have been playing together for over 10 weeks now and they have been consistently dominating the bubble teams. The only team that have been fit to challenge this team that isn’t a team but is a team is Team :) who have been playing on and off throughout the season. Because of the couple recent losses to Team :) I valued the team that isn’t a team but is a team just below the rest of the panel despite their usual brilliance against bubble teams. Nonetheless I have high hopes for this team that looks like a team but isn’t a team however is actually a team as they make their mark moving from a team that looks like a team into a team that is a team. Team. - n0lsk1
10 - Rise Esports
Luis, Viraelia, Snowy | + 1
Off the back of Weasel Mafia dropping to 13th Rise Esports find themselves sitting at 10th position after an interesting few weeks. Picking up a solid few wins in ESL against Weasel Mafia, Bandit Esports and similar teams getting them a 1st place and 3rd place finish could these be Oceania’s next generation of upcoming players?
Luis coming into this PR with Snowy & Viraelia is their first, although Luis has previously made a top 10 ranking under Square One during Season 3 and then shortly disbanding afterwards. It will be interesting to see where these guys sit these coming weeks as we could be on the verge of another OCE shuffle. - Paz
Teams to watch:
CJCJ: Chiefs ESC
Paz: Tainted Minds
Bbouy: Tainted Minds
DMonkey: Chiefs ESC
Courier: Tainted Minds
n0lsk1: Chrome eating his words :^]
Here's how the committee ranked the teams:
On the bubble:
