Chu steps down as Cloud9 Blue head coach, replaced with assistant JamezIRL

Following an incredibly disappointing First Strike, where the team came in as one of the consensus best rosters in North America but failed to qualify for the main event on two separate occasions, Cloud9 have made some changes to their coaching staff, as head coach Ash “Chu” Long has stepped down and has been replaced with assistant coach James “JamezIRL” Macaulay.

Chu and JamezIRL joined Cloud9 on September 21st, 2020, as the final additions to the team. Their first event, the Renegades x NSG VALORANT Invitational, was a solid third place showing for the team, though they had come in as favourites to win. First Strike, though, has been something of a disaster, as they were upset by a sneakily strong Renegades roster in their first qualification attempt and were handily beaten by T1 in their second try. The latter match in particular was all over the place, with the team looking very uncomfortable when they tried to run a triple-duelist composition.

In a TwitLonger released by Chu, he clarified that he stepped down from the team “in hopes to streamline and unify their growth and success leading up to First Strike”, and wasn’t released. He also stated that he’ll be looking to pursue a career in League of Legends after some time off. In regards to the current roster, this may not be the only change coming, as speculation abounds that Cloud9 Blue might need a roster change or two to keep them fighting at the top of North America.

Cloud9 Blue are now:

Tyson “TenZ” Ngo Skyler “Relyks” Weaver Mitch “mitch” Semago Josh “shinobi” Abastado Daniel “vice” Kim

James “JamezIRL” Macaulay (Coach)