ONCE A RENEGADE, ALWAYS A RENEGADE

Goodbye Noah It is with the heaviest of hearts that the Renegades today announce the departure of in-game leader and AWPer Noah “Nifty” Francis. Since his debut for the Renegades in April 2017 Nifty played 362 maps for RNG, including 6252 kills (3680 with the AWP) for a 1.03 HLTV average rating.  From day one Noah was hungry to learn and develop with the team. He made his mark very quickly with outstanding AWP performances and a rounded rifle game to see the Renegades qualify for the most offline LANs in the organisation’s history across 2017. His PGL Krakow Asia Minor performance included some incredible highlights including an unforgettable one-versus-five ace against TyLoo in the upper bracket final and a bonkers 3k in the final to nab RNG’s first offline title.  But it was his decision to take upon the in-game leadership role following Nexa’s departure that would showcase the lengths that Nifty would go to see the Renegades lift another trophy. They wouldn’t have to wait long - Nifty & NAF led the Renegades to their second Asia Minor win in October 2017 as well as a memorable 2-0 victory over Virtus Pro at the StarLadder i-League Invitational in Shanghai shortly after.  His legacy would come in early 2018’s visit to IEM Sydney, where a 2-1 nail-biting win over giants FaZe Clan saw the boys hit the home stage for the first time. With everything on the line and in front of his “home away from home” crowd, Nifty earned an honorary Australian citizenship with an absurd 50-kill effort against Mousesports. While RNG would go on to lose the series, Nifty had won the hearts of the Australian crowd once more - this time in front of their very eyes.  His sacrifice to the team, his dedication to victory and his light-hearted nature will never be forgotten, and he shall remain as much of a member of the Renegades family as his successor regardless of where he ends up.  Best of luck Nifty - once a Renegade, always a Renegade.  - - - Written by Nicholas “Taffy” Taifalos @TaffyAU on Twitter