Amidst the pandemic, the League of Legends: Wild Rift esports scene continues to thrive with the top teams from all over the world racing to clutch a ticket to the prestigious Wild Rift Horizon Cup 2021. One such team is Team Secret, a team from the Philippines whose players have never even met each other in real life but have created an impenetrable bond allowing them to join the ranks of the best Wild Rift teams in the world.
Team Secret’s journey to the Wild Rift esports scene was filled with ups and downs. Last season, it only secured a 5th - 8th place finish in the Wild Rift SEA Icon Series 2021: Summer Super Cup. However, the team earned another chance at redemption in the Wild Rift SEA Championship 2021 by finishing 1st runner-up.
Team Secret’s Wild Rift roster is composed of Eleazar "Azar" Salle, Robert "Trebor" Mansilungan, Morris "Core" Raymundo, Heri "Tatsurii" Garcia, Caster "Chewy" Dela Cruz, James "Hamezz" Santos. Since its formation in February 2021, there have been no roster changes at all, allowing the members to form team chemistry that remains strong and unwavering.
The reason behind their impressive team chemistry (despite being so far apart) remains true to Team Secret’s name. The team’s boldness to execute unorthodox and experimental team compositions during esports tournaments mysteriously works in its favor. Despite the team finishing as the 1st runner-up in the Wild Rift SEA Championship 2021, fans are eagerly waiting for what surprises the team will unveil in future WR esports tournaments. Will the team’s long-distance communication be a hurdle to their journey to the championship title? Or will their bond as a team prevail against all odds?
Team Secret is brewing tactics that no other teams can copy
Instead of picking up an established Wild Rift squad, the European esports organization, Team Secret had something else in mind. The organization held the ‘Team Secret Wild Rift Scouting Grounds’, where they were able to handpick the players they found to be a fit.
The full roster was completed on 10th February 2021 and composed of players that have mostly little to no experience in professional esports. Despite this, the team went on to compete in Wild Rift esports events and became widely known for their unorthodox strategies, such as the Sona and Seraphine tandem in the bottom lane. They weren’t afraid to experiment, which is one of Team Secret’s unique factors.
Team Secret’s Wild Rift roster continued their esports journey until they met their match, Amihan Esports who demolished them in the finals of the PPGL 2021 Summer Split: Playoffs.
With its biggest competition, Amihan Esports having had to disband on 19th July 2021, Team Secret took the throne and dominated all challengers, crawling its way to the PPGL 2021 Fall Split, dropping only one game in the Grand Finals against Fennel Adversity.
Though it seemed like they cruised through the regional qualifiers with ease, this was not the case behind the scenes. In a conversation with AFK Gaming, the team’s captain James "Hamezz" Santos opened up about how the team struggled with internet issues which sometimes hindered them from performing to their full potential. The fact that the players compete separately via their respective homes, made it more difficult for the team to fully execute their plans. “Not living in the same gaming house kind of sucks. Sometimes, there are power interruptions and it happens during the tournament,” he said.
However, this did not stop the team from performing in tournaments. Since the team’s lackluster performance in the Wild Rift SEA Icon Series 2021: Summer Super Cup, Hamezz says that Team Secret has been polishing its consistency, drafting style, and the players’ mechanical skills in order to head to the playoffs with confidence.
“For us, Team Secret, we really have a bright future. We adapt really well with the meta and we also create our own strategies that other teams can’t copy,” he added.
Hamezz admits that the teams ONE Team, Flash Wolves, and EVOS Esports TH are quite the formidable foes in the SEA championship 2021. According to him, these three teams are “very consistent with their macros (A term used for the team's accuracy and consistency in securing objectives, map awareness, and planning.).” For the rest of the teams, the team captain confidently says that his team can handle them.
Wild Rift esports may need to open up for amateur teams
Team Secret’s captain Hamezz believes that the Wild Rift esports scene is quite healthy and is slowly expanding its reach globally. However, it still needs more local tournaments to give promising talents chances to be discovered.
“Next season, I think they (Riot Games) need to create more local tournaments for each country so that there will be more opportunities for growing amateurs. This will help the community expand even more,” stated Hamezz.
He went on to say that adding more local tournaments will result in the emergence of more competitive esports teams and pro players for various regions, further bolstering the Wild Rift esports ecosystem.
Hamezz then offered a piece of advice for those looking to follow the same path as him.
“If you’re not passionate about this, you won’t make it because it’s a risk that you need to think about. Pro gaming is a really hard career to have. Once you go for it and start failing, and it brings you down, you won’t be able to make it out alive in this industry. So you must be 100% all-in if you want to take this path,” said Hamezz.
Team Secret’s journey for a championship title is far from over
Moving to the Wild Rift SEA Championship 2021 Grand Finals, Team Secret made its way to the playoffs stage and was one step closer to the championship title. However, the team suffered defeat at the hands of the Vietnamese team SBTC Esports. Team Secret’s creative and innovative tactics were no match for the straightforward yet well-executed meta of SBTC Esports. Fans witnessed the Vietnamese WR team firmly sticking to its tried and tested tactics, while Team Secret desperately brewed various team compositions that could potentially counter them. Team Secret had to settle for 1st runner-up as the grand finals concluded with a match score of 4-1, convincingly in favor of SBTC Esports.
However, this is not the end for the Philippine’s Wild Rift esports pride. Team Secret has one more chance at redemption in the upcoming Horizon Cup 2021, the very first international esports event for Wild Rift.
With that said, Hamezz thanks the fans for their continued support and look forward to seeing Team Secret pursuing its esports journey and win championship titles along the way.
