AGE WAS ONE thing thing that sets Team Secret apart from other VALORANT teams.
When the team exploded onto the scene back in 2020, they were known as the Titos of Manila fielding a team with an average age of 30 (if my math is right) years old.
The team was on top of SEA after qualifying for the first Valorant Champions in 2021, while they would bow out of in the quarter-finals in the loss against eventual champs Acend. Unfortunately, the team has yet to qualify for another Masters or Champions since then.
Fast forward to 2024 and the team is looking to regain their dominant form this year by fielding a younger team composed of young guns Jeremy “Jremy” Cabrera, Adrian Jiggs “invy” Reyes, and VCT rookie Noel “NDG” De Guia. Also joining the young guns are the OG Titos of Tondo IGL Jessie “JessieVash” Cuyco, and Jim Albert “BORKUM” Timbreza.
The roster move also came as a bit of a shock with the team bidding farewell to long-time duelist Jayvee “DubsteP” Paguirigan during the offseason. But for JessieVash, NDG was what the team needed.
“Siya yung specific role na hinahanap namin which is sentinels. Gusto kasi namin magfocus sa mga roles namin, kasi before tatlo yung nagdu-duelist sa team namin so very confusing siya."
"Tapos si Jremy minsan duelist siya, minsan sentinel siya so yung gamestyle niya yung duelist niya nagiging passive kasi nasanay siya minsan maging defensive player (as sentinel) so,” JessieVash told media during Riot Philippines’ Outlaw showmatch.
A promising outlook
It was also De Guia’s work ethic and competitive mindset that landed him the VCT spot explained JessieVash.
“And nakita namin paano siya (NDG) mag-grind and mag-effort parang good addition din siya para mas maging active lahat and maging mas competitive pa mangyari sa loob ng team.”
Now consisting of mostly young talents the team also joked about how it changed their dynamics.
“Siguro mas naging active kami. Gen Z na galawan namin” JessieVash joked.
For him the younger squad was more active, sharing that they had been working out and grinding more in preparing for the VCT.
Having younger players also changed the team’s mindset with the team more open with one another.
“Mas open din yung discussion namin sa isa’t isa. Pag-discussion wala kaming sama ng loob” added BORKUM.
“Mas maganda na bata yung mga pumapasok kasi kami yung nagdi-dictate kung ano yung culture namin, anong samahan yung gusto namin mabuo.” JessieVash finishing.
What's next for Team Secret?
The changes seemed to spark a resurgence in Team Secret who finished first at the recently concluded APAC-Predator League Finals. According to JessieVash winning Predator League was a confidence boost to the team, especially to NDG. It was also an affirmation to them that NDG was indeed the right choice.
As for what else needed to be done, the team explained that they were now focusing on their respective roles. According to JessieVash, the changes gave the team stability and allowed them to focus on role and agent mastery instead of taking it game by game.
“Ayun nga lahat nakapag-focus sa role and Agent and Role mastery na yung ini-improve namin. Parang siya (pointing to NDG) kailangan na lang mas maging sentinel sa ibang teams ako initiator, so parang pagalingan na lang nung role,” he explained.
VCT Pacific Kickoff starts on Saturday, February 17. Team Secret faces a revamped Talon Esports for their first game on Sunday, February 18.
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