Dan · @AuxCasts
28th Nov 2017 from TwitLonger
Retiring
[TL;DR] Focusing on Uni over League
I've made the decision to retire from competitive league, I've thought about it a lot and spoken to a few people and I think it's the best thing for me. I made a decision when I returned from Overwatch that I wanted to get my degree and no longer wanted to pursue going pro. Competing in League was a hobby for me and I have enjoyed it and had some great benefits from it, both financial and otherwise. Coming from a victory in the UK Prem I was in a position where I left Excel because I couldn't commit and also turned down other offers as they wouldn't work with university. This was the first time where I'd really hit a limit where I turned down opportunities for my education and although I knew this time was coming where I would stop competing it felt a bit to soon so I pursued options for this next split. I've since decided that the best thing for me is to step down now.
With regards to balancing University and League, a lot of people can do it, especially in their first year, however I've struggled with motivation due to personal issues I'm dealing with and I felt like I was dedicating all the drive I had into playing League at a competitive level and keeping at a practised level via SoloQ, when I should be putting that same drive towards my degree. I think if I was to continue playing I wouldn't be able to go further with League as I've decided against pursuing any gaming house offers or offers outside the UK but it would still make my education suffer, which would be a complete waste as I know I'm capable of doing well with my degree.
With that being said I will probably continue to play the game casually, might turn up to events depending how I feel and of course keep in contact with the great friends I've made in my time playing. Shoutout to Excel, particularly Ryan who has put up with my shit all this time as well as my former teammates who helped me win the UK Prem and gave me a laugh the whole time. Thanks to ESL for giving me the chance to compete and earn money from playing. There's too many other people I'm grateful for to mention here but you know who you are <3
Reason I decided to do a twitlonger and explain my thought process is a lot of people were curious as to why I initially left Excel so I wanted to paint the full picture with my retirement, I also wanted to make my retirement very firm as this is my final decision and I want this as a reminder so I don't feel like going back on it. Probably a lot of people don't really care this much so cheers for reading if you do, I'll still remain semi active on twitter so see you all about and GL in esports.
P.S. If anyone wants advice or help with anything, I don't consider myself an expert but I'd be happy to share my experience and stuff whether with esports related things or otherwise, dms are open