By: Jan Marcus Montevirgen
The upcoming MPL Philippines Season 14 promises to be one of the most competitive in recent history, as several notable imports have returned to showcase their talents, including former RRQ Hoshi star John “1rrad” Tuazon.
1rrad, who parted ways with the Indonesian organization after just one season, received offers from various international teams.
However, he ultimately chose to return to his former team, RSG PH, for one compelling reason – team chemistry.
“Actually marami dapat akong choices eh pero ayoko nang magbuo ng ibang chemistry. Gusto ko yung [meron na]. Kaya naman naming mag M6. Kaya bumalik ako dito sa team ko na may chemistry pa rin,” said 1rrad during the MPL PH Season 14 media day.
RSG PH head coach Brian “Panda” Lim shared that 1rrad’s return was mutually beneficial and particularly timely, especially after starting jungler Jonard “Demonkite” Caranto left the squad for Aurora.
“Yeah, it was actually both ways because he wants to come back and we also want to get him, lalo na after Kite (Demonkite) had ibang plano sa transfer. So, it’s good to see him back again,” Panda shared.
Panda stated that he didn’t implement any major adjustments within the team for the upcoming season, given that 1rrad has previously played with the core lineup in past MPL PH seasons.
He also noted that the 21-year-old jungler’s enhanced maturity will be a valuable asset to the team.
“Wala masyado eh because kunyare si 1rrad, yung bagong player namin, yung kulang kay 1rrad dati [ay] yung discipline tsaka yung maturity niya. Pero after his run sa RRQ Indonesia, he actually became more matured and he became coachable now, hindi tulad dati,” said the 32-year-old coach.
Panda also said that 1rrad’s ability to play the assassin and tank junglers will play a big role in the team’s upcoming campaign.
“Now, I am really happy to see it lalo na andito si 1rrad where we can start playing assassin again sa main meta. But at the same time, we also need to focus on tank jungle meta din because we don’t know when will the meta change again,” he shared.
1rrad started his professional career with RSG PH during the 10th season of MPL Philippines as a reserve player.
He then blossomed during the final week of Season 11 wherein he showed mastery and expertise in his lane. It turned out that one week was all he needed to secure the main roster spot, replacing John “H2wo” Salonga, for the playoffs and the succeeding seasons.
However, due to personal reasons, he decided to take his talents to RRQ Hoshi in Indonesia during MPL Indonesia Season 13.
The team fell short as they got beaten by Geek Fam in the first round of the playoffs, ultimately placing fifth in the final standings.
