Navarone

Navarone, also known as Team Navarone and originally The Guns of Navarone, was an American tournament paintball team established in Southern California during the mid-1980s. Led by Andy Greenwell, Navarone became a prominent team in the early competitive era and developed an unusually structured approach to training and tactics.[1][2]

Navarone operated two squads, Armageddon and Apocalypse. Armageddon won the 1987 International Air Pistol Open, while Apocalypse finished second at the 1987 Survival Game North American Championship.[4][6] The original organisation's other successes included the 1990 Masters and its associated tournament series.[2] Later teams using the Navarone name competed throughout the 1990s and won the five-player competition at the 2000 NPPL Pittsburgh Open.[7][10]

History

Formation and early competition

Navarone was established by Andy Greenwell with Lucas Foster and Ricky Thom. A Paintball.Media retrospective dates the formation of The Guns of Navarone to 1985.[1] Greenwell recalled that an initial attempt to assemble a team had failed, after which he recruited players individually. The team began entering tournaments in 1986.[2]

Originally called The Guns of Navarone, the team subsequently adopted the shorter Navarone name and was also known as Team Navarone.[1][3] Its principal objective was to win the National Survival Game championship. The organisation developed written plans covering training, tactics and player responsibilities.[1][3]

In 1986, Navarone progressed through the National Survival Game regional qualification system to reach the NSG National Championships. Greenwell recalled that the team had been together only since October and finished ninth among eleven teams, winning three games and losing one.[2]

Team organisation

Navarone was divided into two principal squads. Armageddon was the first team and Apocalypse the second.[2] Contemporary reporting from 1987 identified Greenwell as Navarone's founder and captain and Jim Daniels as the captain of Apocalypse.[4]

Greenwell recalled that Navarone eventually included approximately 35 players. The leading group had an average age of approximately 30 to 32, while the second group averaged approximately 24.[2] Player pairings and field assignments were selected partly according to personality and compatibility, and much of the principal roster remained together for approximately four years.[2]

1987 season

Navarone entered both Armageddon and Apocalypse in the 1987 International Air Pistol Open, held at National Survival Game of New York in Newburgh on 18–19 July 1987.[4]

Apocalypse scored 296 of a possible 300 points in its opening game but missed qualification for the final round by four points. Daniels reported that the squad finished fifth overall.[4]

Armageddon recorded a perfect 300-point preliminary game and advanced to the finals. It won the tournament ahead of Land Sharks II, the Boonie Rats and the Unknown Rebels. Its decisive flag return was completed with approximately two seconds remaining.[4] A separate contemporary account reported that Armageddon won all but one of its games by capturing and returning the opposing flag.[5]

Apocalypse subsequently finished second at the fifth annual Survival Game North American Championship, held near Pittsburgh from 9 to 12 October 1987. The Wild Geese of New Hampshire won the championship, with Apocalypse receiving the US$10,000 second-place prize.[6]

The championship involved 33 fifteen-player teams using stock-class .68-calibre pistols and 12-gram carbon-dioxide cartridges. Games were limited to 45 minutes.[6]

Masters victory and departure of the original team

Navarone continued competing with pump-action markers as semi-automatic equipment became increasingly common. Greenwell stated that the team won the Masters and its associated tournament series in 1990 while still using pump markers.[2]

Following the 1990 season, Greenwell and approximately sixteen other members left the organisation. The Navarone name continued in competition, although Greenwell distinguished the subsequent roster from the original team.[2]

Later competition

The Navarone name continued to appear in American tournament paintball during the 1990s.

At the 1996 National Professional Paintball League World Cup in Orlando, Florida, Navarone reached the semi-finals of the amateur ten-player division but did not advance to the final.[7]

In 1997, Navarone finished second behind Marine Team Gold in the amateur five-player division at the Great Western Tournament Series event in Portland.[8] The team again placed second to Marine Team Gold at the series event held alongside the NPPL tournament in Las Vegas.[9]

On 5–6 May 2000, Navarone won the five-player competition at the NPPL Pittsburgh Open.[10] Available sources do not establish the extent of the organisational or personnel continuity between these later entries and Greenwell's original team.

Playing style and training

Navarone developed a systematic approach to competitive paintball at a time when organised team tactics were still evolving. Paintball.Media's retrospective credits the team with using designated positions, regular practice, physical conditioning, organised scrimmages and a system recognising strong performances in training and competition.[1]

Greenwell described the team's principal offensive system as a lazy W. It used coordinated fire to direct opposing players into areas covered from several positions. The system included point players, guards, wingmen, squad leaders and rovers.[2]

In its original fifteen-player configuration, Navarone deployed groups of players on each side of the field, with additional players controlling the centre. Greenwell described the team's approach as “orchestrated fire power”, with an emphasis on coordinated movement, overlapping fields of fire and familiarity between players.[2]

Equipment and sponsorship

Navarone was closely associated with JT Racing, later known as JT USA. Paintball.Media credits the team with securing a major sponsorship agreement with Marty Tripes of JT Racing in 1986.[1] Contemporary reporting from the 1987 International Air Pistol Open identified JT Racing as Navarone's official sponsor and described Tripes as travelling with and actively supporting the team.[4][5]

Greenwell also identified Line SI and Tiger Stripe camouflage among the team's sponsors.[2]

Navarone initially used modified Nelspot 007 markers before adopting markers produced by Skirmish, the company that became Line SI. This equipment developed into the Line SI Bushmaster. Greenwell recalled that team members transferred components from their modified Nelspots into the early Bushmasters and used the resulting pump markers for most of the period from 1987 until late 1990.[2]

The team remained associated with pump-action markers and 12-gram carbon-dioxide cartridges during much of its original competitive period.[2][3]

Documented members

Documented members of the original Navarone organisation include:

Andy Greenwell – founder, captain and tactical organiser
Lucas Foster – founding member
Ricky Thom – founding member
Jim Daniels – captain of Apocalypse in 1987
Steve Pilcher – Armageddon player documented in 1987
Rod Plunket – Apocalypse player documented in 1987
John McLeod – player involved in the development of the experimental Equalizer paintball marker
Adam “The Flash” Hall – player documented in 1987

This is not a complete roster.[1][4][5][11]

Selected tournament results

Year	Competition	Squad	Result
1986	NSG National Championships	Navarone	9th [2]
1987	1987 International Air Pistol Open	Armageddon	1st [4]
1987	1987 International Air Pistol Open	Apocalypse	5th [4]
1987	Survival Game North American Championship	Apocalypse	2nd [6]
1990	Masters	Navarone	1st [2]
1990	Masters tournament series	Navarone	Series champions [2]
1996	NPPL World Cup, amateur ten-player	Navarone	Semi-finalists [7]
1997	Great Western Tournament Series, Portland, amateur five-player	Navarone	2nd [8]
1997	Great Western Tournament Series, Las Vegas, amateur five-player	Navarone	2nd [9]
2000	NPPL Pittsburgh Open, five-player	Navarone	1st [10]

Legacy

Navarone was one of the prominent American tournament teams of the late 1980s. Its documented use of designated positions, regular training, written plans and coordinated fields of fire illustrates the increasing organisation of competitive paintball during the period.[1][2]

The team's sponsorship relationships with JT Racing and Line SI also demonstrate the developing connection between equipment manufacturers and tournament teams.[1][2][4] Navarone's 1990 results were achieved during the transition from pump-action to semi-automatic tournament equipment.[2]

References

Paintball.Media – Navarone, Iconic Paintball Team Series.
Australian Paintballer – Andy Greenwell interview, 1994.
“The Guns of Navarone: Tournament Paintball's First Dynasty”, historical account archived on Automags.org.
Front Line, September 1987, “The First International Air Pistol Open”, pp. 5–7. Front Line magazine archive.
Front Line, September 1987, “On the Road with Navarone”, pp. 23 and 25. Paintball.Media archive.
Front Line, November 1987, “5th Annual Survival Game North American Championship”, p. 25. Front Line magazine archive.
WARPIG – 1996 NPPL World Cup ten-player amateur semi-final results.
WARPIG – 1997 Great Western Tournament Series Portland five-player results.
WARPIG – 1997 Great Western Tournament Series Las Vegas results.
WARPIG – Smart Parts NPPL Pittsburgh Open, 5–6 May 2000.
WARPIG – Steve Patrella, “Curious Paintguns”, originally published in Action Pursuit Games.

External links