Into the Breach made history at the EU RMR for the upcoming Paris Major, becoming the first UK majority team to make it to the prestigious Valve-sanctioned event.
The UK scene has churned out several talents who have gone on to compete at the top level, but now they have finally broken through with a fully British core.
For many years, most would have assumed that if the UK were to produce a top team capable of qualifying for Majors, it would be under the illustrious Endpoint banner.
With the Paris Major being the last hurrah for CS:GO and having all the teams locked in, we will never see the UK organization's stickers in Global Offensive.
Even if Endpoint had made it to Copenhagen, they no longer field a British core, with Max "MiGHTYMAX" Heath and Kia "Surreal" Man being joined by a Dane, a Pole, and an Israeli.
Regardless of Endpoint's departure from UK-led lineups, we here at BLAST.tv have decided to pay homage to the org that paved the way for the UK scene by looking at the seven players across five teams that donned the black and blue of Endpoint who will be making their presence known in Paris!
Into the Breach - Thomas, CRUC1AL
Photo: Michal KonkolIt comes as no surprise that two of the five members of the first-ever UK team to qualify for a Major were both mainstays in Endpoint previously.
Thomas "Thomas" Utting and Joey "CRUC1AL" Steusel both spent several years with Endpoint, with the British entry fragger joining for the first of three stints back in February 2018, while the Dutchman spent nearly two years with the org starting in January 2020.
During his first run with Endpoint, Thomas primarily found success at the domestic level by helping the team to win iSeries 63 while also competing around ESEA Advanced/Premier level.
Spending a brief time with Martin “STYKO” Styk on NoChance, Thomas returned to Endpoint for his second run in January 2020 when Endpoint signed the Phoenix roster that CRUC1AL was also a part of.
Photo: Michal KonkolLeaving for an ill-fated run with TeamEnvy in September 2020, Thomas would run it back one more time, rejoining in April 2021 for a 7-month run that would ultimately be his last with the team.
While Thomas was in and out of Endpoint, CRUC1AL was a mainstay in the team from the moment the organization signed Phoenix.
Both CRUC1AL and Thomas were a part of the team that finished as runners-up to Spirit at Pinnacle Cup 2 in July 2021, however, CRUC1AL managed to represent Endpoint on the international stage on more than one occasion.
Competing at both ESL Pro League Season 13 and 16, the Dutch AWPer also played a part in Endpoint’s unsuccessful RMR run for the PGL Antwerp Major.
The former Endpoint duo secured their spot as the first UK side to make a Major in astonishing fashion. Taking on NAVI in their opener, ITB took the CIS juggernaut to the limit, ultimately losing in double overtime. From that point, the UK contingent were a serious contender, taking down Sprout, Virtus.pro and B8 to lock in a Legends stage berth.
fnatic - Mezii, FASHR
Photo: Michal KonkolWhen it comes to British players in tier one Counter-Strike, William "mezii" Merriman has made quite an impact since bursting onto the scene with Cloud9 in 2020.
The now-turned IGL fnatic was brought into the “Colossus” project by Henry "HenryG" Greer as a relatively unknown entity internationally, but back in the UK scene he had thrived under organizations such as Vexed Gaming and London Esports, winning iSeries 64 with the latter.
Unlike Thomas who came through Endpoint before making the jump to household names such as Envy, mezii linked up with the British organization after the Cloud9 project fell apart in mid 2021.
Partnering up with Thomas and CRUC1AL in April 2021, mezii competed with Endpoint for around four months and put up a whopping 1.22 rating during his tenure. Departing for fnatic in August 2021, mezii would go on to lead the legendary British organization to IEM Rio following a three Major hiatus for the org.
As for mezii’s teammate Dion "FASHR" Derksen, it might come as a surprise to some that the Dutchman donned the Endpoint jersey in his earlier years.
Joining in September 2017 and playing alongside the ever-present MiGHTYMAX, FASHR would play out the rest of the year with Endpoint by competing in ESL Premiership and ESEA Premier. Endpoint and FASHR also interestingly played Gfinity Elite Series UK - Season 2, a tournament which was won by EnvyUs Academy who fielded a young Audric "JACKZ" Jug.
FASHR and mezii will both be joining the ITB boys in the Legends stage following fnatic’s flawless run in EU RMR A. Opening up against UK/Irish team Viperio, it looked to be a shaky start as fnatic were forced to double overtime, winning in unconvincing fashion. A victory over 1win set up a date against B8, where the legendary organization claimed their spot in the Legends stage.
OG - flameZ
Photo: Michal KonkolEndpoint’s eye for young players with raw talent that go on to successful tier one careers is unparralleled, with Shahar "flameZ" Shushan being a prime example.
Joining in September 2020 after only turning 17 a couple of months prior, flameZ would go on to be Endpoint’s star player for the next seven months, leading the way in their ESEA MDL win in Season 34 with a 1.25 rating for the tournament and topping the server in both of Endpoint’s series wins at EPL Season 13 against fnatic and Evil Geniuses.
Moving on to OG in April 2021, the Israeli rifler has been an integral contributor to the team for two years now.
Enduring some turbulent times having missed out on both PGL Stockholm and Antwerp, flameZ finally made his Major debut at IEM Rio and following their performance at EU RMR A, he will take to the server in Paris for the final CS:GO Major.
Monte - Boros
Photo: Michal KonkolAnother teenage prodigy plucked out of obscurity by Endpoint, Mohammad "BOROS" Malhas replaced mezii at the tender age of 17 in August 2021 and would go on to spend 9 months on the active roster.
During his time as one of the focal points in the roster, BOROS held a solid 1.13 rating while competing in the likes of online Pinnacle cups, but struggled when it came to LAN. Competing at the the PGL Antwerp RMR, BOROS struggled to find his form with a 0.84 rating.
Coming into EU RMR B with Monte, the Jordanian rifler was determined to put on a better showing than he had with Endpoint, and what a showing it was. Posting the fifth highest rating at the RMR with a 1.31, the now 18-year-old dominated for Monte as they took down ENCE, Cloud9 and Forze to book their their tickets to Paris.
ENCE - NertZ
Photo: Michal KonkolAnother diamond in the rough that came through Endpoint is ENCE’s Guy "NertZ" Iluz. Following a similar career path to his fellow countryman flameZ, NertZ was Endpoint’s star man following his arrival in November 2021.
Going on to spend over a year with the organization, NertZ helped Endpoint to reach the semifinals of CCT Europe series 2 and 3, and also dropped an astonishing 1.19 rating at EPL Season 16 despite his teams’ last place finish.
Moving on to ENCE in February 2023, NertZ has set the world a light in his very short tenure thus far. Reaching the semifinals of EPL Season 17, the 23-year-old was indispensable in ENCE’s run at EU RMR B, posting the second highest rating for the event at 1.40, cementing himself in CS:GO by making it to the final Major for the game.