UKIC Season 5: Division 1 Final Overview: The Last Dance Ends in Immortality

As this rivalry comes to a close, ALASKA defeated 8Sins in the UKIC Season 5 Division 1 trophy to go out in a blaze of glory.

ALASKA’s core of Tom “arTisT” Clarke, Matas “Extinct” Strumila, Callum “Girafffe” Jones, and coach Ciaran “biscu” King have been playing together for over six years, but ahead of this final, it was declared that they would be going their separate ways. Why? No money.

This team has been playing without an organisation for four months now and cannot sustain playing full-time Counter-Strike with no funding. In an interview arTisT did with UKCSGO after the finals, he spoke about how it is impossible to break into the top 50 of the world without being full-time, and they need money to play full-time.

However, pushing all of the outside factors to the side, this was not only the last dance for ALASKA, but the prime opportunity for 8Sins to lift their first domestic trophy.

arTisT: “If I am going to quit I will be happy with what I have done, 99% of people can’t say that.”

The last time these two teams met was in the Grand Finals of EPIC.LAN 44. Even though 8Sins did beat ALASKA in the Upper Bracket Finals, ALASKA stepped up when it mattered and lifted the trophy.

So, not only was this a last dance for ALASKA, but it was a game that had 8Sins chomping at the bit for revenge.

Before the game, UKCSGO spoke to one of the casters for the finals, index. He spoke upon this matter:

If 8Sins were ever going to beat ALASKA, today is the time to do it. You are in a studio which is less stressful than a stage. You also have the fact that ALASKA haven’t really been practising for a couple of weeks, they are a team on the way out.

arTisT confirmed this sentiment in an interview with UKCSGO after the final, saying that:

We haven’t been around each other much the last few weeks… it felt like a last dance to us.

An unexpected veto

The veto was a bit crazy this time around. In the last three encounters between these two teams, the veto has drastically changed each time. In the EPIC.LAN 44 finals, it was 8Sins trying to get an edge on ALASKA and catch them off guard, but funnily enough, this was expected by ASLASKA.

This time around, ALASKA threw the biggest curveball by not banning Mirage, their instant ban. Instead, they chose to remove Inferno, which has been the only map 8Sins has consistently been able to win against them.

Instead of removing Nuke first, 8Sins banned Dust 2, which came as a surprise to ALASKA. They didn’t expect 8Sins to allow Nuke to go through.

This could be down to 8Sins feeling confident on the map. After all, they did pick Nuke against Belfast Storm in the TLR Pre-Season Invitational and dominated.

“We did not expect those maps at all.”

arTisT

8Sins start strong

Heading onto Mirage, it is understandable to think ALASKA will struggle on this map. Mirage has been their instant ban for the last six years. They simply do not play this map. Sometimes they do change it up, but so far this year outside of UK CS, they have played Mirage twice on HLTV and lost both.

This showed as 8Sins had a strong start and ended up winning the first half 8-4. This lead was far from secure, though, as ALASKA won six rounds on the trot, propelling them into the lead.

Coming down to the wire, it felt like ALASKA would end up winning map one as, on 11-10, their confidence seemed to be brimming, so much so arTisT took a break to let Tree60 shout more.

Despite being very funny, this decision might come to haunt ALASKA as Tree60 was unable to convert a 1v2 in the next round. This then snowballed into 8Sins winning the map 13-11 after Michael “Prime” John Fury won a 1v1 against Tree60.

This wasn’t going to plan for ALASKA, and especially not for Tree60 who was extremely confident before the game started.

In an interview with UKCSGO, he said:

I think in those past games they got really lucky. Today will just be a quick 2-0. We have a lot of us really preparing and really practising for this, excited to show them. I think they will be shocked at how fast they lose this.

Evidently, after losing map one it was not going to be a fast game.

ALASKA flex their muscles on Nuke

Nuke is ALASKA’s crown jewel; the map they are always confident on against any team in the world.

And realistically, even though 8Sins won Mirage because Nuke is in the veto, it is going to a third map.

We are always going to win Nuke versus everyone [in the UK]

arTisT

This became very apparent after ALASKA went 7-2 up on the T side of Nuke. Despite 8Sins making it close at the half because of individual brilliance, it was all in vain.

Masterful 1v3 by @moz_cs pic.twitter.com/djsHk2b77g

— UKCSGO (@ukcsgo) April 12, 2025

ALASKA ended up securing map two 13-8 with no real trouble, leading the series to a third map, Anubis.

After map two ended, Tim “TIMMO” Musters interviewed arTisT on the broadcast to talk about the series so far. In a similar capacity to Tree60 earlier that day, arTisT came out of the gates swinging with some bold statements:

“I don’t think 8Sins are very smart in how they play. I don’t really comprehend what they are trying to think, because it is too stupid.”

It is good to understand that both teams are friends and a lot of them have played either together or against each other for a long time. These sorts of comments from Tree60 and arTisT are said in jest, but still build up the competition.

Classic ALASKA magic

As Anubis went underway, it became very apparent that 8Sins were leading and looking simply unstoppable.

Leading 7-5 at the half, they extended their lead into a position that seemed impossible for ALASKA to overcome after they won four in a row. Sitting very comfortably at 11-5, it really did seem like 8Sins would topple their demons and finally dethrone ALASKA, ruining their last dance.

However, when a team has as much experience as ALASKA, no matter the surrounding factors and the deficit in rounds, you can never count them out.

arTisT entered what can only be described as a ‘flow state’.

Started by winning a 1v2, this one round led to arTisT calling a perfect T side of Anubis to win eight rounds in a row. This was a monumental comeback that crushed the dreams of 8Sins, showing how important experience is in these moments.

It is just composure and we have the experience after playing with each other for so much time. Everyone says it as a cliche, but experience does help a lot

arTisT

The curtain falls on greatness

Winning three UKIC Division 1 finals and EPIC.LANs in a row, we close the curtain on ALASKA as they go their separate ways. They danced one last time together, and this core that has been together for over six years will leave behind a legacy that few will ever be able to mimic.

It is a hard pill for 8Sins to swallow, as they had this series in the palm of their hands and let it slip in the dying embers. This is accentuated by the fact that this result is reminiscent of the Grand Finals of EPIC.LAN 44.

“These last two finals, 8Sins should have won both.

arTisT

However, as discussed in the extensive interview with the IGL of ALASKA after the finals, you have to lose to win. This result can seem very disheartening for 8Sins, but even ALASKA – a core that has ruled UK CS over the last year – were no stranger to setbacks and difficulties on their way to the top.

“We have lost so many finals before this, and we learn from those loses.”

arTisT

So when the dust settles, 8Sins can take a step back with their valuable experience from the last two Grand Finals despite losing both. As a gap opens in the UK market for a top team, this creates an opportunity for 8Sins to capitalise on their experience and take advantage of this newfound space to claim the top spot in UK CS.

For ALASKA, there is a chance that we never see some of these players on the server again. arTisT hinted at the possibility of retiring if no paid project becomes available. Outside of speculation, who knows where these players will take themselves next? What is certain is that the legacy set by ALASKA will forever remain as one of – if not the – best core in UK CS history.

The post UKIC Season 5: Division 1 Final Overview: The Last Dance Ends in Immortality appeared first on UKCSGO.