CPPS ROUND 1. THE SKINNY.

UK Paintball is dying on its feet.

BULLSHIT!! Whoever spread that rumour is an asshole!!

Our opinion may be biased as we're only playing the CPPS this year but if that one event is anything to go by, UK Paintball is very much alive. Screaming, kicking and punching alive.

Which was actually a problem for us. We'd kinda expected to come barging back into the scene after 6 or so years out and smash fools up. Oh how wrong we were. We did a bit of smashing, played some pretty badass ball but overall...we kinda sucked!! And we aren't too proud to admit it. We've always wanted to play against the best and there was always a huge gap between the best and the rest. That gap, for whatever reason just got a whole lot smaller.

The guys at the CPPS have done a staggering job of building a series that consistently delivers a level of events that we haven't seen for a long time. You'd play your standard UK events that were good at best, then hit up the Millenniums for something 'proper'. Which is probably why the talent gap was so big. Now, the CPPS is gifting us with a series that has given teams without a ton of money or sponsorship something big to play regularly. And it shows. From Elite right down to Division 5, you get to watch and play against teams that all seem to know what the deal is. All teams worked together, all teams seemed to know how to hold and shoot a gat, all players were running and gunning, shooting both handed and moving quickly up the field. Everyone knows their shit, which is super good to be a part of. And it can only get better.

This progress at lower levels means the top boys really gotta shine to show the difference, and after catching a handful of Elite games they really do. London Tigers have a fresh squad of ballers including the 04 legend Kyle 'milk tooth' Milton who play solid, fast and controlled ball. London Nexus always a joy to watch especially with another of our 04 compadres, Clint Moore, being on the top of his game these days. Birmingham Disruption are a bunch of great guys having fun who can turn a game around with pace and aggression and the new all star GI Sportz team; London Defiance had some real talent there with the likes of 2012 PSP rookie of the year, Jason Wheeler, showing us how the Russians do things. Really top drawer paintball from the Elite boys and having a long stint out of the game helps you appreciate it all the more. And, if I'm honest, it gives you something to aspire to.

So, the SandBaggers, how did we do? Our Div4 team came 3rd whilst we played in Div2 and came...5th. Sounds bad but once we'd realised that zero field knowledge, zero tactics and zero trigger time meant it was a pretty fair result. We won 3 and lost 2 games in the Race to 2 format, which was fun. We smashed our win games 2-0 in all three and lost 2-1 in both lose games. I lost count of the times we were eliminated for false starts or running out of bounds so we could have easily been top 3, but for now it is what it is. The teams we played just played better together, tighter, more controlled and more aware of their surroundings which we need to sort out. The teams below Elite all played good solid paintball. Which is awesome to see.

On to the event itself.

Good points: Amazing set up, great fields, staging areas were fully sorted for each team with plenty space, great viewing areas especially the mound and the refs made sure the rules were followed.

Bad points: Not many really. Not enough toilets I suppose, some dudes weren't stoked about the food but we brought our own, but other than that...nothing wrong.

Verdict: The guys at CPPS have genuinely built a series that really gives UK paintball a boost and a stage to shine on all levels. Worth every penny. The guys are chatty, honest and welcome criticism, the only egos there are the ones being shot on field. It's also a great event for appreciating and watching some good paintball, at all levels, whatever the age.

Our event could have gone better but we expected that. We knew we were rusty, still full of confidence in our skills and game but we definitely need a bit of freshening up.

Special thanks to Ledz and Planet Eclipse for all the incredible gear. From pants, shirts, gloves to pads, packs and more importantly our GEO3s, we had everything we needed to bring it. Also thanks to GI Sportz for paint and VForce Grillz.

Playing with the SandBaggers was a ton of fun. The guys on the team are buddies old and new and can really play ball. Thanks to those guys for having us join in the fun an here's to some great ballin' action for the rest of the season Won't be long before we're tearing fools up. It was great to have the first of the K2Kids with us, Jack, who's Chris' first born and LOVES his paintball. Won't be long before he's tearing up the d-side with his dad.

Event 1 done. Lessons learned. Good times had. More to follow. Until round two, we out!!

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