BLAST Premier Fall Groups Predictions by CS:GO caster Jacky

BLAST Premier Fall Groups 2022 is due to start today, and we have talked with a professional in the esports industry to get some insight. Jacky kindly answered our questions about the latest tournament of BLAST Premier and helped us understand what we should expect from these 12 teams fighting for glory.

We asked Jacky some questions about his expectations from Fall Groups 2022, to get you as much information as possible from someone who breathes in and out CS:GO. As all esports professionals, Jacky loves to engage with his community, so if you have any further questions, make sure to check out his social media accounts. Let’s move on to his answers now!

Jacky’s answers

Who are you and what’s kept you interested in Counter-Strike for so long?

I’m Jack, but everyone knows me as Jacky. I've been involved in Counter-Strike & Gaming for as long as I can remember. I started playing CS:S back in around 2007 and have been invested ever since. The easy to learn yet hard to master DNA of CS has kept me hooked for years!

I was originally a bricklayer that would cast CS at home in my bedroom during college, somehow I was lucky enough to be given opportunities and found myself becoming more and more involved with the game as a commentator and host as the years went on. Now, 8 years later, CSGO has changed my life and given me a career, a home, and life long friends.

Do you have any favourites at BLAST Premier Fall Groups?

Favourites for the event would have to be FaZe; it goes without saying that Karrigan’s heroes will be hoping to add another notch to the long line of recent wins they’ve been securing as of the past few months. Pound for pound they’re looking like the most stable roster going into the event, especially with all the recent roster moves & substitutes that are being fielded at Fall Groups.

Can any team upset the strong teams at BLAST Premier Showdown to attend the main event, for example TYLOO, who won 5E Arena Asia Cup?

Things will only get more competitive once we get to the showdown. With the blend of T1 rosters and volatile domestic teams, teams like TYLOO have got the firepower for upsets. The talent on the team is there in droves, a lot of aim stars, with the confidence of a thousand men when they swing into fire fights. For TYLOO they’ll need to make sure they're utilising Dank1ng as he’ll be a real key to victory - he’s an explosive AWPer that has a very unique flair in the server.

How do you think Team Vitality will be affected by their new addition, Spinx?

Vitality always felt like an organisation trying to keep the French legends of the game on the forefront of the game, but as the times have changed we’ve seen the international influence bleed in more and more. I couldn’t be more excited and I hope Spinx finds his place in the heart of the team, he quickly became one of my favourite players to watch over the last major cycle and I think he’ll thrive in the new roster. Honestly, I’d say it’s one of the better roster moves of the player break.

G2 has been disappointing for some time now, can they turn it around at BLAST Premier Fall Groups?

The G2 debate is an interesting one, I don’t really know how much stronger they’ll be with the new lineup… JKS has always been a true super sub and a player that lives up his last name by being a savage in the server. However I find it hard to see the new blend of flavours instantly becoming a powerhouse with Hooxi & JKS joining the G2 core. They’ll need to show signs of life during this rosters honeymoon period to really grab my attention.

Do you have a dark horse? All the BLAST partner teams are strong but is there any team that isn’t a favourite but could actually surprise with their performance?

Dark horse favourites for me would be the revitalised-Vitality roster, the injection of skill that Spinx brings into the roster should add an entire new lawyer of firepower.

With OG, NIP and Astralis being their competition in group A, I could absolutely see upsets occurring as well.