Australian X-Ball League

The Australian X-Ball League (AXL) was an Australian tournament paintball series using the X-Ball format. Its first season was held in 2005, with four franchise teams and a separate Open X division. The 2006 competition used Pro and Division 1 categories.[1][7]

Sydney X-Fighters won the 2005 franchise championship. X-Fighter$ Red won the 2006 Pro championship, while X-Fighter$ Black won that season's final round.[1][7]

History

2005 season

A contemporary Facefull report identifies 2005 as the AXL's first season and credits MacDev with developing the competition. Four franchise teams contested the full X-Ball format: Sydney X-Fighters, Wellington Hybrid, CQ Carnivores and Perth Assault. A second division, Open X, offered a reduced version of the format.[7]

The opening round took place in Rockhampton, Queensland. Wellington Hybrid finished second.[8] Hybrid then won Round 2 at Fox Studios in Sydney and took the series lead.[9]

At the final round at Mount White, Hybrid defeated X-Fighters 9–8 before the teams met again in the deciding final. X-Fighters won that match 11–7 and secured the franchise championship.[7]

A contemporary DVD titled Project AXL also documented the league during this period.[2]

Final franchise standings

Position	Team	Series points
1	Sydney X-Fighters	25
2	Wellington Hybrid	23
3	CQ Carnivores	13
4	Perth Assault	10

These are season standings, rather than placings at an individual round.[7]

Tsunami won the Open X season championship. Mount White Boys won the final Open X round, ahead of Tsunami, Blade and Syndicate.[7]

2006 season

The AXL expanded between 2005 and 2006, reaching a maximum of 18 participating teams during the 2006 season.[1]

Four rounds were scheduled, although Round 3 was cancelled following a change in firearms law. The contemporary report states that the change was subsequently reversed following work by MacDev representative Diane King, but does not identify the particular legislation or jurisdiction involved. Round 4 was consequently brought forward and became the season finale.[1]

The league's principal sponsor in 2006 was MacDev. Other named sponsors were Tomahawk, Sup'Air, Hot Shots and ZAP.[1]

Competition format

The AXL used a timed, multi-point X-Ball format. The 2005 competition comprised franchise and Open X divisions; contemporary coverage of 2006 identifies Pro and Division 1 categories.[1][7]

At the fourth round in 2006:

• matches were scheduled for 15 minutes;
• two-minute intervals were used between points;
• teams were scheduled to play ten preliminary matches across the weekend; and
• the four highest-placed teams in each division advanced to the finals, with first playing fourth and second playing third.[1]

Saturday's programme was shortened from six preliminary matches per team to four because temperatures approached 40°C. The remaining six matches were played on Sunday.[1]

The tournament was officiated by Reffs Inc, the refereeing organisation associated with Pete Russell and Jill Henry.[1][3]

2006 Round 4

The fourth and final round of the 2006 season was held on 14–15 October at Paintball Pete's field at Mount White, New South Wales, approximately one hour from Sydney. Twelve teams entered the event.[1]

Two teams associated with the Australian Super 7s, SWAT and Empire, entered the round. Contemporary coverage noted that both teams initially had difficulty adapting from seven-player competition to the X-Ball format.[1]

After the preliminary stage, the Pro finalists were X-Fighter$ Black, SWAT, Empire and X-Fighter$ Red. The Division 1 finalists were Straight Edge, Sinister, Gravity and Victorious.[1]

Pro finals

In the Pro semi-finals, X-Fighter$ Black defeated X-Fighter$ Red 2–1, while SWAT defeated Empire 3–1.[1]

Empire and X-Fighter$ Red were tied 2–2 in the third-place match before Empire won the deciding sudden-death point. X-Fighter$ Black then defeated SWAT 4–0 in the final.[1]

2006 AXL Round 4 – Pro

Place	Team
1	X-Fighter$ Black
2	SWAT
3	Empire
4	X-Fighter$ Red

Division 1 finals

Straight Edge, a team based at Mount White, defeated Sinister in the Division 1 final. The contemporary report does not provide the final score.[1]

2006 AXL Round 4 – Division 1

Place	Team
1	Straight Edge
2	Sinister
3	Gravity
4	Victorious

2006 series standings

Although X-Fighter$ Black won the final round, X-Fighter$ Red finished first in the overall Pro standings. The result gave the X-Fighter$ organisation consecutive championships in 2005 and 2006.[1][7]

2006 AXL overall standings

Division	Place	Team
Pro	1	X-Fighter$ Red
	2	X-Fighter$ Black
	3	Jetts
	4	Carnivores
Division 1	1	Straight Edge
	2	Sinister
	3	Gravity

The published standings list only three Division 1 teams and print a question mark after Gravity's name. No fourth-place Division 1 team is given in the source.[1]

Relationship with the Australian Super 7s

The AXL operated alongside the Australian Super 7s, which used a seven-player tournament format. Players and teams participated across both series.[1][3]

SWAT and Empire crossed from the Super 7s to compete at the 2006 AXL finale. X-Fighter$ players also competed in Super 7s events, and contemporary coverage described the Sydney X-Fighters as the reigning AXL champions.[1][3]

An editorial published in Australian Paintball Magazine in 2006 identified the AXL and Super 7s as the two Australian tournament series then extending beyond individual state competition. It raised, without resolving, the possibility of one format forming the basis of a unified national league.[4]

Planned 2007 season

A contemporary advertisement announced that the opening round of the 2007 AXL season was planned for 3–4 March at Extreme Skirmish in Karangi, New South Wales, near Coffs Harbour. The advertised prize pool exceeded A$6,500 in cash and prizes.[5]

The advertisement documents the planned event, rather than confirming that it took place.

Later documentation

On 14 July 2008, Michael Whybrew filed Australian trade mark application number 1251407 for the name A.X.L., Australian X-Ball League. The application covered services including the organisation of sporting events and competitions, sports facilities, sporting results and paintball-related publishing.[6]

The filing documents continued commercial interest in the league's name in 2008, but does not establish its complete competition schedule or final operating season.

See also

• Australian Super 7s
• Sydney SWAT
• MacDev
• X-Ball
• Paintball in Australia

References

1. Holger Hummel, “The Finals: AXL Mt White, Round 04 2006”, Australian Paintball Magazine, 2006, pp. 34–40. Photographs by Ahmed Abbas.
2. Australian Paintball Magazine, “Competition Giveaway: Project AXL DVD”, 2006.
3. Australian Paintball Magazine, Australian Super 7s event report, 2006, pp. 18–23.
4. Australian Paintball Magazine, “A National League of Our Own”, 2006.
5. Australian Paintball Magazine, “National Tournament: 2007 AXL Series”, 2006 advertisement.
6. IP Australia, Australian Official Journal of Trade Marks, vol. 22, no. 45, 13 November 2008, application no. 1251407, pp. 16554–16555.
7. The Final Showdown, Facefull, pp. 176–177. Scanned report uploaded by Martin Dannefaerd on 27 March 2006; covers the first AXL season, its fourth round and final championship standings.
8. BF8G5463, photograph credited to Jannick Clausen, Wellington Hybrid photographic archive, Flickr. Taken 6 February 2005; uploaded 10 May 2005. Caption records Hybrid's second-place finish at the opening round; the accompanying album identifies Rockhampton, Queensland.
9. Winning slowly sinks in., photograph credited to Matt Wong, Wellington Hybrid photographic archive, Flickr. Taken 8 May 2005; uploaded 18 May 2005. Caption identifies the second round at Fox Studios, Hybrid's win and its resulting series lead.