Flashpoint (New Zealand Paintball Team)

Flashpoint was a New Zealand tournament paintball team based in Dunedin. A contemporary team directory dates its beginnings to 1994 and records members living in both the North and South Islands.[1]

The team regularly travelled to Auckland tournaments, won the 2001 Invercargill three-player tournament, and finished fourth in the First Division at the 2001 New Zealand Paintball Nationals. Brian “B2” Thornley is identified as its captain in the Nationals report.[6][7]

History

Beginnings

The New Zealand Paintball team directory states that Flashpoint began in 1994 and was based in Dunedin, with members in Tauranga, Christchurch, Dunedin and Tapanui. It describes the team as playing together only once or twice a year while regularly travelling to the Auckland Nationals.[1]

This is the directory's contemporary account; a separate formation record has not been recovered.

1997 Nationals

Flashpoint attended its first Auckland tournament at the 25–26 October 1997 Nationals at Actions Paintball in Te Atatū.[2]

The team finished eighth overall and fourth in Division Two, with 602 points. Its divisional classification was discussed during the weekend, but the report records a final ruling that Flashpoint would compete in Division Two.[2]

1998–2000

At the 24–25 October 1998 Nationals, Flashpoint finished tenth with 455 points. The contemporary report records the team's satisfaction with the tournament overall, alongside concerns about the balance of the fields.[3]

Flashpoint again finished tenth at the 23–24 October 1999 Nationals, scoring 475 points.[4]

At the 21–22 October 2000 Nationals, Flashpoint competed in the First Division and recorded 560 preliminary points, without reaching the divisional finals.[5]

2001 competition

Flashpoint won the 2001 Invercargill three-player tournament, defeating Damage Inc 49–4 in the final. Four teams competed over two days on the Hill and Moat fields.[6]

Mark Abbott's report describes Flashpoint as defending its previous year's title. That statement records the contemporary account of a 2000 victory, rather than supplying a separate 2000 result sheet.[6]

At the 2001 Nationals, Flashpoint finished fourth in the First Division, with 30 final-round points. The report explicitly identifies Brian Thornley as captain.[7]

Team organisation and travel

In On The Road Again, listed among the site's 2002 articles, Thornley describes organising Flashpoint's flights, accommodation and transport for North Island tournaments. He names Tofty, Mark, Alic and Tekky as North Island players arriving at the team's accommodation.[10]

The account documents the practical organisation of a geographically dispersed team, but does not provide a complete event roster or surnames for those four players.[10]

Later photographic record

In a retrospective Facebook post, Thornley identified footage of Flashpoint playing Blindboyz at Grenada Field in Wellington in 2007. He described Flashpoint as his former team.[12]

The post does not supply a complete squad, tournament title or final result.

Documented players and captaincy

Player	Documented association	Date or source context
Brian “B2” Thornley	Flashpoint captain	2001 Nationals report.[7]
Brian “B2” Thornley	Identifies Flashpoint among his paintball roles	Undated individual profile preserved in April 2002.[8]
James “Tekno” Archibald	Flashpoint player; describes his role as a designated runner	Undated individual profile preserved in April 2002.[9]
Tofty; Mark; Alic; Tekky	Named as North Island players in Thornley's travelling-team account	Article listed under 2002; no complete roster supplied.[10]

The capture dates of the individual profiles do not establish joining dates or membership throughout a particular season. The name Tekky in the travel account is not automatically expanded to James Archibald solely from its similarity to Tekno.

Separate K.S.B. playing record

Ken Ryder's report of the June 1998 Invercargill triples lists a Dunedin-based entry named K.S.B., comprising captain Kerry Brooks, Steve Sharpe and Bryan Thornley (B2). The report uses Bryan for Thornley's forename; his own profile uses Brian.[8][11]

K.S.B. finished third. This documents Thornley's participation with that particular entry, but does not establish that K.S.B. was another name for Flashpoint. Its result is therefore not included among Flashpoint's tournament results.[11]

Recorded tournament results

Year	Competition	Classification	Recorded result	Points	Source
1997	New Zealand Paintball Nationals	Overall / Division Two	8th overall; 4th in Division Two	602	[2]
1998	New Zealand Paintball Nationals	Overall	10th	455	[3]
1999	New Zealand Paintball Nationals	Overall	10th	475	[4]
2000	New Zealand Paintball Nationals	First Division preliminary round	Did not reach divisional finals	560	[5]
2001	Invercargill three-player tournament	Final	1st; defeated Damage Inc	49–4	[6]
2001	New Zealand Paintball Nationals	First Division final round	4th	30	[7]

Preliminary totals, final-round points and individual match scores are identified separately.

National rankings

Season	Ranking category	Position	Ranking score
1997	Combined	Equal 7th	55
1998	Combined	13th	35
1999	Combined	6th	74.5
2000	Combined	Equal 24th	46
2001	Seven-player	14th	77.9
2001	Five-player	13th	24

Sources: Mercenaries Star's Valhalla standings.[13][14][15][16][17]

The 2001 tables are dated October. Their accumulated ranking scores are not directly comparable with the averaged values used in earlier seasons. Valhalla positions are calculated national rankings, rather than placings at individual tournaments.[17][18]

References

External links

Flashpoint: On The Road Again — Brian Thornley's contemporary team account