Fusion (New Zealand Paintball Team)

Fusion was a New Zealand tournament paintball team documented in national and regional competition from 2000 to 2007. The team competed in the Second Division final at the 2000 New Zealand Paintball Nationals, finished third in Division Two at the 2001 Nationals, won the 2004 Hawke's Bay Triples and finished third at the 2007 National Championships.[1][2][5][7]

Contemporary reports associate Fusion with players from Gisborne and Auckland. These descriptions record the composition of particular squads rather than establishing a single permanent home base.[5][7]

History

2000 season

Fusion competed at the 2000 New Zealand Paintball Nationals, held at Actions Paintball in Swanson on 21–22 October. The contemporary report described Fusion as a newcomer, but did not provide a formation date.[1]

Fusion recorded 545 preliminary points in Division Two and advanced to the divisional final. It finished fourth in Division Two, behind Tag n' Release, Phoenix and Solidaire. The published report does not provide final-round scores.[1]

A separate contemporary Phoenix account describes its own preliminary and final games against Fusion. That account confirms Fusion's participation in the Division Two final but does not establish a different final placing.[8]

2001 season

Fusion reached the Division Two final at the 2001 New Zealand Paintball Nationals. It finished third with 120 final-round points, behind Tag and Training on 180 and Damn Natives on 130, and three points ahead of Damage on 117.[2]

Bob Andrews of Fusion received the first day's player award at the event.[2]

A captain-contact discussion preserved in January 2002 named Carl, without a surname, as Fusion's contact. The discussion does not establish whether he was formally the team's captain.[3]

2002 Hawke's Bay Triples

Fusion competed at the Hawke's Bay Triples at Stoney Creek Ranch, Hastings, on 2–3 February 2002. Seventeen teams entered the three-player centre-flag competition.[4]

Fusion finished ninth in the preliminary standings with 900 points. The surviving report does not record Fusion advancing to the final.[4]

2004 Hawke's Bay Triples

Fusion won the 2004 Hawke's Bay Triples. The contemporary report described the squad as including players from Gisborne and Auckland.[5]

Fusion finished second in the preliminary standings with 830 points, behind Phantom Blue on 1,050. It subsequently won the final.[5]

The report contains an internal naming conflict. Its narrative calls Fusion's final opponent Menace Blue, while the formal results section identifies Phantom Blue as the runner-up. The results table is followed for the published placing, while both source labels are preserved. Menace Blue was associated with the Phantom Menace team and was not a Fusion entry.

The same event included separate entries named Phantom Red and Phantom Menace, so the conflicting opponent label should not be silently corrected without an original score sheet or further contemporary evidence.[5]

2007 National Championships

Fusion competed at the National Championships held at Actions Paintball in Swanson on 20–21 October 2007. A contemporary participant described Fusion as returning from Gisborne.[6][7]

Fusion completed the preliminary stage in second place and advanced to the semifinals. Muppets Inc defeated Fusion by two games to one in the semifinal. Fusion then defeated Intense two games to one in the third-place match.[7]

The published participant report recorded the final leading order as Menace first, Muppets Inc second, Fusion third and Intense fourth. A subsequent post used the name KillaMuppets for the runner-up; this naming variation does not affect Fusion's recorded third place.[7]

The discussion identifies Tim as a Fusion member and refers to Maria in connection with Fusion, but supplies no surnames or complete roster.[7]

Team identity

The Fusion entries documented in New Zealand between 2000 and 2007 are treated as the same team. The sources show the team competing at national events in Auckland and regional events in Hawke's Bay, with later reports associating players with Gisborne and Auckland.[1][2][4][5][7]

The available sources do not establish a precise founding date, uninterrupted annual competition, a formal relocation or a dissolution date. The description of Fusion as a newcomer at the 2000 Nationals establishes only how the contemporary report characterised the team at that event.[1]

Documented people

Person	Documented involvement	Evidence limit
Bob Andrews	Fusion player who received the first day's player award at the 2001 Nationals	The event report does not provide a complete Fusion roster.[2]
Carl	Listed as Fusion's contact in a 2001 captain-contact discussion	Surname and formal team role were not supplied.[3]
Tim	Signed a 2007 National Championships forum post as “Tim (Fusion)”	Surname and complete period of membership were not supplied.[7]
Maria	Addressed in a participant's post congratulating Fusion after the 2007 National Championships	Surname and exact team role were not supplied.[7]

These references do not constitute a complete roster for any season.

Recorded tournament results

Date	Competition	Classification	Recorded result
21–22 October 2000	New Zealand Paintball Nationals	Division Two	4th in Division Two; 545 preliminary points.[1]
2001	New Zealand Paintball Nationals	Division Two	3rd; 120 final-round points.[2]
2–3 February 2002	Hawke's Bay Triples	Preliminary competition	9th; 900 points.[4]
February 2004	Hawke's Bay Triples	Overall	1st; 830 preliminary points.[5]
20–21 October 2007	National Championships	Overall	3rd; defeated Intense 2–1 in the third-place match.[7]

Preliminary points and final-round points are identified separately and should not be compared as equivalent tournament totals.

References