Coming in as a relatively inexperienced choice to replace the long-time member of the Team Secret roster, Lacky, is the Finnish player of Fonkers, best known for his time on MnM Gaming. Fonkers played on MnM’s Benelux roster alongside players such as Craxan and Kabouter during Season 2 of the Benelux League. followed by an appearance at DreamHack Winter on a modified MnM roster with Doki and the rest of the current MnM lineup. Overall, this means that the entirety of his pro-level experience comes in his 5-7, 4-7 defeat to Team Empire and 5-7, 6-8 defeat to Mock-it Esports, both during DreamHack Winter.
He now joins what was a very promising Team Secret roster last season which currently sits in the last place so far in Season 9. They will likely be hoping Fonker’s sheer fragging ability will help them counter the aggressive meta that has developed in the Pro League and lead them to a better position in the second half of the season. We spoke with Fonkers to ask him what it is like to be joining Team Secret and debuting in the Pro League:
Fonkers via @FonkersR6
Firstly can you introduce yourself?
I'm Aku "Fonkers" Seppä from Kotka, Finland and I am a 21-year-old R6S player about to go pro. I've played the game competitively for the past year and almost a quarter, and my goal was always to play in the Pro League and it’s finally here.
Can you give us a rundown of your history in competitive R6?
I got to compete because a Finnish guy called Grande asked me in Ranked if I wanted to join his ESL team which was called Nfinite back then, and I said “yes”. After a few months of playing, I moved on to another Finnish team Dead Limit where I got a lot of help from Daisari and r0usty, special thanks to them! And my third and final team before joining Secret was MnM Gaming where I got to experience my first LAN event (DreamHack Winter) and I met Doki, who’s currently one of my best friends.
The statistics between Team Empire and MnM Gaming from DreamHack Winter 2018
What did you do during your trial to impress?
When I got approached by Secret I was pretty surprised, to be honest; I didn't think I was a worthy trial for a Pro League team, but I guess I was wrong! I got told when I asked why they wanted to trial me that I impressed them with my performance in scrims before and at DreamHack Winter. Also, I would like to mention that MnM as an organisation was fantastic.
We also spoke to the team’s coach, Louis "Helbee" Bureau, about the signing:
What made Fonkers stand out from other trialled players?
We see a lot of potential in Fonkers and with the proper training, we want to make him the next Leon. MeepeY had a great way to say it: other trials were 8/10, Fonkers is an 8/12.
How has he been fitting into the team since joining?
He's fitting well so far, the mood has been positive with other players and he shows clear motivation in learning how to "properly play".
What are your realistic expectations for the remainder of the Season?
Right now we are in the last position. Our short term goal will be to get out of the “hot spots”. If we look a little further, our goal will be to qualify to the next Major in the US and probably defend our DH title in Valencia!
This move now also means that Team Secret will no longer have a British-majority roster with two Brits, one Finn and two French players along with a Canadian coach. Despite this, Team Secret will still be able to play in the ESL Premiership British national tournament as Jack “Plebma” Bentley will be subbing in for that event to retain the three British players needed to compete.
For the Pro League, this means that four out of eight of the teams will be representing the European region as a whole, with no majority nation present.
The Team Secret roster lifting the first ever ESL Premiership PC Trophy last December via ESL.
--- Catch all the upcoming roster changes and more right here at SiegeGG!
Team Secret’s next game will be when the Pro League resumes with an initial matchup against mousesports (previously known as ENCE eSports) on March 14th with the following roster:
Matthew "meepeY" Sharples (Captain)
Leon "LeonGids" Giddens
David "sTiZze" de Castro
Bryan "Elemzje" Tebessi
Aku "Fonkers" Seppä
Louis "Helbee" Bureau (their coach)