The Legacy ploughed through the upper bracket all the way to round seven, where they were defeated 3-2 by the team now waiting in the championship final, Zero. Now in the lower bracket final, SilverBack sheds some light on his road to the cash prize stages of the tournament, his views on the Gears of War debate and much more.

Before we begin, would you like to introduce yourself to the CSL EU public?

Hey all, I'm Matt, I'm 17 & from Reading.

There’s no doubt you’ve improved as a player with the release of Gears of War 2, as you’re in the semi-finals of the biggest online tournament in European Gears history. How do you feel you and your team transitioned from the original title?

I think we've definitely improved as a team from Gears 1 but after TU4 (most recent title update) it has split the community into 2 sides so it's pretty hard to get practice on the game.

In your eyes, does Gears of War 2 encourage more teamwork than the original Gears of War?

Most definitely, it requires more strat-based gameplay along with great communication, individual skill is just a bonus, on Gears 1 some teams relied on a player to do everything pretty much, Gears 2 in my eyes exploits that.

The smokes vs no smokes fiasco has jeered on for months, and with all CSL EU games requiring teams to play with smokes on, do you feel it's the right way to play the game?

Definitely, I have even said this with the ragdoll smokes, smokes on = more aggressive gameplay, smokes off = camp/people afraid to rush.

Do you think Gears of War 2 is played better when you have four players on the same page or four players who despite possessing insane skill, have only recently started working together?

Four players on the same page, I for one cant go into a team with 3 random people and communicate/perform well, I need to know who I'm teaming with and get along with them, but it may be different for other people.

The debate over which game is to be featured at ESGN has been ravaging on for what seems like an eternity, what is your preferred title?

Hmmm, my preferred title has to be Gears 1 because it's alot more entertaining, fast pased & requires alot more skill than Gears 2, after this CSL tournament & after XG I will be supporting it fully.

Can you see a future for Gears of War 2?

Personally I do, everyone I think will go back onto Gears 1 only to discover the game will be dominated by dignitas and then everyone will migrate back onto Gears 2 thinking they will be the best, but lets just hope that doesnt happen (laughs).

What do you think about the number of European teams entering the CSL EU GOW2 4 v 4 cup?

I was surprised that 96 teams registered (although 70% of them were foreign) but I'm aware that consoles.net is hugely supported by foreign players. Regarding LAN attendance I'm sure teams like YYT Celsus & ourselves will be attending XG&XL this year. No team/player has impressed me so far in the CSL tournament.

Looking ahead to the match against Team Dignitas, who are the players we should be looking out for on both teams?

Everyone, it should be a great game.

Should you get to the final, what will you change up as you face off against Zero for the second time?

The communication needs to be stepped up, throughout the whole match against them last time RedShift & Kayzabel hardly spoke, teamwork & slowing down on the rushes.

Thanks a bunch for your time. Any final words and/or shoutouts?

Check out our scrim footage at the bottom of the page.

I (L) T3DD3H, TL, and Nero.

GL Dignitas.

Follow the pre-match chat via the link below and find out the result of The Legacy's encounter with Team Dignitas tomorrow from 19.00GMT. CSL EU wishes both teams the best of luck.