2003 NPPL Commander's Cup
The 2003 NPPL Commander's Cup was a seven-player paintball tournament held in November 2003 at Tamiami Park in Miami, Florida, United States. It was the season finale of the inaugural National Professional Paintball League Super 7 World Series and attracted 138 teams across four competitive divisions. Dynasty won the professional division, with Static, Diesel and Derange winning the amateur, novice and rookie divisions respectively.[1][2]
The tournament was named in memory of musician and paintball player Maurice Gibb, who was known within paintball as "Commander Mo".[1][2]
Background
[edit]In 2002, Gibb worked on plans for a Commander's Cup tournament intended to take place in the Bahamas. Restrictions affecting paintball markers made the proposed Bahamian venue impractical, and the concept was moved to Miami. During planning for the 2003 NPPL season, Gibb discussed making the tournament the finale of the new Super 7 World Series.[1][2]
Following Gibb's death in January 2003, NPPL, Inc. and Pure Promotions continued developing the tournament as a memorial event. Charity auctions and other fundraising activities benefiting Gibb family charities were incorporated into the programme.[1][2]
The organisers initially intended to stage the tournament on Miami Beach. The city was unable to provide sufficient playing space during the planned period, resulting in a change of date and a move inland to Tamiami Park. The revised scheduling also placed the tournament outside Florida's principal hurricane season.[1][2]
Tournament
[edit]The Commander's Cup was the largest event of the inaugural NPPL Super 7 season, with 138 teams competing in the professional, amateur, novice and rookie divisions. Seven playing fields were constructed at Tamiami Park: the NPPL, Angel, Chronic, Evil, JT, Raven and Dracula fields.[1][2]
Teams inspected the fields on Thursday before preliminary competition began on Friday. Preliminary rounds continued through Saturday, followed by the quarter-finals, semi-finals and finals on Sunday. Almost 700 games were completed during the tournament.[1][2]
A revised advancement system introduced during the season affected the professional quarter-finals. Joy Division, which completed the preliminary round undefeated with 774 points, lost its first quarter-final game to Jax Warriors and did not advance. Dynasty, Brass Eagle All Stars, Strange and Bad Company reached the professional semi-finals.[1][2]
Dynasty defeated Bad Company in its semi-final, while Brass Eagle All Stars defeated Strange. Dynasty then won two consecutive games against Brass Eagle All Stars in the championship round. Strange defeated Bad Company over three games to take third place.[1][2]
Results
[edit]The first four finishers in each division were:[1][2]
| Place | Professional | Amateur | Novice | Rookie |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | Dynasty | Static | Diesel | Derange |
| 2nd | Brass Eagle All Stars | Nemesis | Momma's Boys | Panic |
| 3rd | Strange | Boston Paintball | 3J Paintball | Untouchables |
| 4th | Bad Company | Under Rage | Aggression | United |
Static defeated Nemesis over three games in the amateur final. Diesel defeated Momma's Boys in the novice final, while Derange finished ahead of Panic in the rookie championship round.[1][2]
The players' party and awards ceremony were held at Bongo's Cuban Café in Miami Beach following the completion of the finals.[1]
Legacy
[edit]The Commander's Cup name was retained for the final tournament of the 2004 NPPL Super 7 season. That event was held at Qualcomm Stadium in San Diego, California, and continued the tournament's association with the memory of Maurice Gibb.[3]
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- Bill Mills and Dawn Mills, “NPPL Commander's Cup: Super Seven 2003 Final in Miami”, Action Pursuit Games, March 2004, pp. 139–147.
- WARPIG – NPPL Super Seven Commander's Cup 2003, November 2003.
- WARPIG – NPPL Commander's Cup 2004.