Orgless lineup Royals are looking for a new fifth after John “Dutchy” Holland announced his exit from the team on Thursday. The surprising move was announced in a TwitLonger describing the situation, Dutchy explained that despite the success of the UK-majority international lineup (currently sitting 11-1 in ESEA Main), “cultural differences” led him to want to find a new project.
The young Scot has previously held down spots on a number of teams, most notably the Feenix / EKO roster that qualified for ESEA Advanced and came second at EPIC35. He also has the distinction of making play-offs in every single one of his ESL Premiership appearances. Dutchy has said he is open to all roles, including a return to the in-game leader role he previously held on Havik.
Dutchy joined Royals last August when Kyle “swaggy” Wilson made the decision to return to a UK core following relegation from ESEA Advanced. The switch paid dividends as the lineup won the $5k Bybit World Series of Gaming event and qualified for the ESL Premiership Autumn 2022 play-offs and the UKIC Beyond Winter Invitational. Though they were unable to make it out of ESEA Main during their first attempt, they are currently on track for a strong playoff seed as swaggy and company aim for a return to ESEA Advanced.
Royals will play out the rest of ESEA Main Season 44 with Swede Kamyar “shateri” Shateri standing in. shateri’s name will be familiar to those who follow Royals, as he competed with swaggy in season 42 of ESEA Advanced and the Ace X Prague Open last year. It’s not clear yet whether Royals will keep a UK core or return to an international lineup in the long term.
Royals are now:
Kyle “swaggy” Wilson
Edgaras “entz” Luksas
Timothy “tvs” Sjöberg
Xavér “xavi” Hebők
Kamyar “shateri” Shateri (stand-in)
Andreas “addi” Wallenberg (Coach)
