Team Secret’s rookie admits feeling pressure in VCT Pacific Stage 1

MANILA, Philippines -- Team Secret’s newest member, Noel "NDG" De Guia, shared how he has been feeling the pressure as Team Secret competes in Stage 1 of the Valorant Champions Tour (VCT) Pacific Stage 1 offline in Seoul, South Korea.

“Nakaka-overwhelm kasi ang lakas ng sigaw for the other team and nakaka-affect rin yun sa gameplay namin,” said De Guia in an interview after their first match against home crowd favorite, DRX.

In an episode of VCT Pacific’s "Know Your Enemy" series, gathering members of different teams to discuss their Valorant journey, the 19-year-old De Guia was joined by other new members of other Pacific teams, talking about their experiences on being the new kid on the block.

“The newest thing that I experienced was the lighting and stage fright, probably? Because it was too big and I’m not used to it,” mentioned De Guia.

He went on to share how his teammates would sometimes scold him whenever he trolls during their scrims and practices, which he admittedly tends to do a lot, being both a follower and a rebel to his older and more experienced teammates.

But, being one of the younger players in the league, De Guia believes that his youth equates to being able to adapt easily to the ever changing Valorant scene.

“We are all young guns that can adapt to those type of changes,” said De Guia.

Looking to the future, De Guia takes inspiration from his team captain, Jessie "JessieVash" Cuyco and hopes to still be playing even ten years from now.

“As long as the passion is there, I’m still gonna be a player. I take inspiration from JessieVash. He actually motivates me to do better in the future,” said De Guia.

Team Secret finally scored a championship point last Sunday after surviving Japan’s ZETA Division, 2-1, and are currently ranked second in Group Alpha with a 1-2 win-loss ecord. They face a tough opponent on Sunday, April 21, in last year’s VCT Pacific champions Singapore’s Paper Rex.