ANZPL Split 1 2023 Playoffs Week 1

Originally published on GameOnAus.com in May 2023

The round robin is over. Results are in for ANZPL Split 1 2023 Playoffs Week 1! Who will be joining the Skorpions at LAN? Who are we saying goodbye to? Keep reading to find out!

ANZPL Split 1 2023 Playoffs Week 1 Upper Semi Final
Adelaide Action X Vs Perth Panthers

Action X’s surprise loss to the Wolverines last week bumped them down into 2^nd, missing out on the week off. The Panthers were coming off a win and were looking to extend their streak. Who would make it through to face the Skorpions in Upper Final?

Himmelsdorf

The Panthers kicked of the playoffs on attack of their map pick. They pushed the hill with Twit at G7. He was spotted and was lucky not to take any damage. Their opponents, Action X, had set up hard for a 1 flag push. They had gambled and lost as the Panthers started the 2 flag cap. Action X scrambled to rotate and get reset shots in. Rowendy was able to find the reset shot. It looked dire for him, but he survived long enough for his teammates to came in. As a result, the Panthers’ JS went down first. Action X’s Trax quickly followed as the rest of the Panthers arrived. They punished Action X. Dognerlord was their sole remaining tank, and he ran. All Panthers had to do was jump on the cap. That drew in Dongerlord. The shots came in and Panthers found the opening win.

Action X looked to the south on the return leg. For their defence, the Panthers were a lot more sedate, happy to spread in the northwest and wait for Action X to come to them. After a slow build up, Action X grouped at the foot of the banana. The Panthers had the vision and were able to rotate towards the 2 flag. Action X started the cap, but resets shots came in. They pushed off the cap but with Bailes and MadHouse at D5, the Panthers farmed a storm. The Panthers found a 5v4 overmatch which they took without loss. They found Rowendy and were able to remove him without issue to take both matches on their map pick.

Tundra

Action X opened their map pick on defence. They spread in a standard defensive formation as the Panthers looked towards the 1 flag. JS from the Panthers in the Minotauro found a cheeky shot onto Trax early. Not seeing a way in, the Panthers rotated through the river unposted. They hit the go button and LightningMan died. Action X traded back by removing MadHouse. Multiple battles broke out, with the game moving to a 3v3. When Trax won his battle against Bailes, the scales tipped in Action X’s favour. Js took out Trax and the Panthers started the 1 flag cap. Dongerlord found the reset, putting the cap out of the picture. With CJ hiding, the timer ran out to give Action X a win.

Moving to attack on the return leg, Action X were keen to level the series. They prodded both north and south, looking for a way in. Pushing quickly into the town they found MadHouse and Bailes. They both survived as the rest of the Panthers came in. JS went down first, traded for LightningMan. The numbers ended up in Action X’s favour as Twit found himself against 4 Action X tanks. Action X closed the net and levelled the series 2-2.

Ghost Town

The battle moved to Ghost Town with Panthers on defence. They took a heavy line up into the match, moving towards the south-east of the town. Action X were spotted at F4 by KritaKil at K5, lighting up the nearby CJ as well. Panthers took an overmatch in the town. They quickly found themselves with a 5v2 tank advantage. Action X were able to find three kills, but it was the Panthers that took the win.

Now only one win away from advancing, the Panthers were keen for a defensive win. They took positions to the north of the town. Action X moved through the south of the town looking towards the 2 flag. Trax and Rowendy drove the 3 line looking for an angle but were spotted. While that was happening Dongerlord was able to sneak to A1. He found the 1v1 against Bailes at A4 as a brawl broke out in the town. Action X were trading more effectively as JS went down. The Panthers traded back by taking down LightningMan, but it was Action X that were making the most of their shots. A 2v1 in favour of Action X resulted. CJ and Dongerlord worked well together to remove MadHouse and force the game to a tie breaker.

Prokhorovka

Action X had the fastest attacking win and chose to defend Prokhorovka. They moved to the east, finding Bailes in the CS-63. This game the Panthers information about Action X’s location. They grouped and pushed down the 2 line towards the 1 flag. Action X found some bleed damage onto the Panthers. Twit and JS found their way onto the 1 flag and started the cap. It was now up to Action X to act. The reset shot came in, but Rowendy was left on 270 HP. The clock continued to count down. Dongerlord found the reset again but paid for it with most of his health. With Action X unable to find any more resets, the Panthers take the tie breaker win.

The Perth Panthers defeat Adelaide Action X 4-3.

ANZPL Split 1 2023 Playoffs Week 1 Lower Round 1
Melbourne Matildas Vs North Sydney Sentinels

The Matildas had slipped a bit after beating both the Skorpions and the Sentinels in the first two weeks of Split 1 2023. For their part the Sentinels have had their worst season on record, only just qualifying for playoffs. Who would progress further in finals? Whose season would end tonight?

Himmelsdorf

The Matildas started on attack of their opponents map pick, pushing aggressively through the courtyard and trying to corral the Sentinels in the south. The Matilads’ RavioliAldente found himself being farmed by  TheReturned on the hill. Three Matildas tanks running the K line had to retreat as they found themselves in a Sentinels’ crossfire. The Sentinels found significant bleed onto the Matildas. Kills were traded but the HP was massively in the Sentinels’ favour. The Matildas exchanged some good shots as the Matildas found themselves with a 3v4 tank advantage but it was that HP advantage that saw the Sentinels take the early lead.

The Sentinels moved to defence on the return leg. They settled into a 2 flag setup with Rainbow in the IS-4 watching the G line. The Matildas grouped at the base of the banana waiting for the signal to start their push. Eventually the push started as Del was revealed at E8. He was removed and the Matildas pushed forwarded with the tank advantage and took the brawl. They traded effectively as Rainbow joined the fight but it was too late. The Matildas equalise the series 1-1.

Murovanka

The Matildas opened their map pick on defence. They took positions guarding the 1 flag. The Sentinels took a lot of map control early, spreading along the D line. After seeing all they could see, the Sentinels rotated towards the 1 flag. Rainbow and Syndy found their way onto the cap, putting the pressure onto the Matildas. With he clock ticking down Rainbow drove off the cap. He found shots onto Bolagnaise in the town. The Sentinels found the first kill as the Matildas’ defence fell apart. Displaying great focus fire the Sentinels took the Matildas apart and took the win.

The Sentinels were looking to wrap this up quickly. They moved to the east on the defence. The Matildas quickly drove three tanks onto the 1 flag. Forced to rotate, TheReturned found last second reset shots and Rainbow was punished for it. Syndy and TheReturned followed but the Sentinels struck back by removing Joeattora. When the Sentinels’ Saffe went down it was all up to Del. The Matildas jumped on the cap trying to flush Del out. When he reared his head it was shot off, with the Matildas taking the win and once again equalising the series.

Sand River

Matildas started on the attack of Sand River. They sent two tanks through the river with another two heading south driving the K line. For the Sentinels’ defence they mainly kept to the northeast with TheReturned near the 1 cap to spot that push. He rotated back towards the 2 flag, giving the Matildas a massive amount of map control. Del was in trouble playing the ridge at C6, losing half his health. The Matildas used their control to start the three tank cap of the 1 flag. The Sentinels were able to find the resets, killing one of the tanks. They turned the tables on the Matildas, taking a 3v2 tank advantage. Rainbow went down as the game settled into a 2v2 with health equal. Del survived longer than he should have against Magic_Shells. A one-for-one trade resulted before Syndy won his battle against Joeattora, going up 3-2 in the series.

The Sentinels were looking to close out the game on the return leg. They found Whippet early and removed most of his health. He had to pull back as the Matildas sent two tanks along the K line, a very aggressive defensive move. The Sentinels pushed along the A line, positioning for the 2 flag attack. The cap started with the Matildas out of position. With the two Matildas’ tanks running the 2 line, the Sentinels pushed the overmatch at the ridge. The Matildas were able to isolate and remove TheReturned as he was traded for RavioliAldente. When Bolagnaise went down the Sentinels had the advantage. The Matildas brought it back to a 3v3, but with the health in their favour the Sentinels pushed forward and found the win.

The North Sydney Sentinels defeat the Melbourne Matildas 4-2.

Fantasy League

RavioliAldente (417.3) and Joeattora (286.4) starred for the Matildas in this week’s Fantasy Team Of The Week. They were joined by Bailes (397.5) and MadHouse (384.3) from the Panthers and Dongerlord (413.3) from Action X.

CJ (361.8) from Action X, Kritakil (344.4), Twit (330.8) and JS (320.1) from the Panthers, Bolangaise (340.9) and Whippet (288.4) from the Matildas and Del (305.0) and Syndy (303.2) from the Sentinels all scored more fantasy points than some of the members of the Fantasy Team Of The Week but were excluded due to star or player per team limits.

Next Week

I hope the Skorpions are rested as they come up against the Panthers in the Upper Final for the first game of the night.

The night is closed out by Action X and the Sentinels in the Lower Semi Final, fighting for a place in the Lower Final.

Tune in for more ANZPL action from 7pm AEST Fridays at https://twitch.tv/worldoftanksanz!