First Stand 2026 Match Review: Gen.G Crushes Lyon to Qualify
Gen.G Esports asserted themselves on the international stage in their opening series. They dominated the First Stand series against JD Gaming a couple of days ago. They bested their time completion against Lyon, winning in a minute less than against JD Gaming. Will anyone take a game off of Gen.G at First Stand, or will they go flawless in the first international of the year?
First Stand 2026: Game One Review
Draft
Lyon – Blue Side
- K’Sante
- Xin Zhao
- Sylas
- Ashe
- Lulu
Gen.G Esports – First Pick
- Renekton
- Jarvan IV
- Orianna
- Miss Fortune
- Seraphine
Rough Early Game
Canyon burns both flashes of Lyon’s bot lane. Isles dies shortly after in the 2v2. After forcing Chovy’s flash, Inspired revisits mid-lane. Canyon counter-ganks and helps Chovy kill the Lyon jungler. Gen.G kills Isles again to further their lead. They have a 4k gold lead and two Drakes at 12 minutes.
Lyon Fight Back
Lyon gets their first victory of the game. Inspired leads the charge with Berserker kicking off the play. The Lyon AD Carry secures the kill on Ruler, earning a shutdown. The moment of respite does not last long. Isles, Saint, and Inspired die within minutes of each other. Inspired’s death comes while trying to contest the Hextech Soul point.
Hextech Soul And Baron for Gen.G
Gen.G kills five in the Hextech Soul fight, with only Duro dying. Gen.G splits their members to take Hextech Soul and Baron. Inspired dies top-side, shortly before Gen.G crushes the rest of the Lyon members. They charge down mid and end the game.
Total Apex Ratings
Gen.G Esports
- Kiin – 7
- Canyon – 9
- Chovy – 8
- Ruler – 7
- Duro – 8
Lyon
- Dhokla – 5
- Inspired – 4
- Saint – 4
- Berserker – 4
- Isles – 3
Player of the game – Canyon
First Stand 2026: Game Two Review
Draft
Gen.G Esports – Blue Side
- Ambessa
- Vi
- Galio
- Corki
- Rakan
Lyon – Second Pick
- Aurora
- Viego
- Ahri
- Yunara
- Nautilus
Early Bot Lane Action
Berserker and Isles get the early advantage in the 2v2. However, Isles oversteps once, and Gen.G’s bot lane punishes. Fortunately, Inspired is in the area to get a kill, but he eventually dies at the hands of Canyon. Dhokla dies twice in the space of two minutes. Once was a gank from Canyon, and the second was a solo kill by Kiin.
A Failed Top Gank
Kiin’s ward in the top brush spots Isles in his lane. He outplays the three-player dive to earn two kills. The only saving grace is that Inspired gets the kill and escapes before Chovy lands.
Lyon Recovers
Berserker and Isles win the 2v2 against Ruler and Duro. The Lyon AD Carry earns two kills, but Canyon kills both of them. Isles and Saint catch Duro and Canyon for two additional kills. All of a sudden, the gold is less than 1k. Kiin, Ruler, and Duro underestimate Inspired’s Viego. He gets two of the three kills in the bot lane. Lyon has a 2k gold lead at 18 minutes.
The Gold Lead Evaporates
Inspired and Saint try to kill Kiin on a face check. However, Chovy and Duro were ready to respond. Kiin does not die, and the gold is back to even. Inspired and Isles did in Lyon’s top-side jungle. Gen.G moves over to Baron. Kiin pulls the trigger after his teleport to the bot lane. He kills Berserker in a 1-vs-3. Gen.G pushes forward to clean up and win the game.
Total Apex Ratings
Gen.G Esports
- Kiin – 9
- Canyon – 8
- Chovy – 7
- Ruler – 6
- Duro – 7
Lyon
- Dhokla – 4
- Inspired – 6
- Saint – 6
- Berserker – 6
- Isles – 5
Player of the game – Kiin
First Stand 2026: Game Three Review
Draft
Gen.G Esports – Blue Side
- Jayce
- Pantheon
- Mel
- Caitlyn
- Neeko
Lyon – Second Pick
- Irelia
- Wukong
- LeBlanc
- Lucian
- Nami
Kills in Every Lane
Ruler and Duro put early pressure on Lyon’s bot lane. Inspired ganks, but Ruler outplays him. Berserker tries to kill Ruler but dies. Kiin earns a solo kill against Dhokla’s counter-pick, Irelia, while Chovy dismantles Saint. Dhokla dies two more times. Canyon assists Kiin on the first, and Duro gets the final blow on the second.
Lyon Find An Opening
Lyon’s bot lane rotates first to catch Canyon. Chovy dies while trying to help his jungler. Kiin teleports in to close the fight with four kills for Gen.G. Ruler dies twice in the mid-lane. Gen.G shut down the comeback with kills on Berserker and Isles.
One Final Desperate Play
Inspired and Dhokla look for a flank engagement on Gen.G’s Baron push. It is a Hail Mary play, but it does not work out. They win the game to qualify for the knockout stage.
Total Apex Ratings
Gen.G Esports
- Kiin – 9
- Canyon – 7
- Chovy – 8
- Ruler – 6
- Duro – 8
Lyon
- Dhokla – 2
- Inspired – 5
- Saint – 3
- Berserker – 6
- Isles – 5
Player of the game – Kiin
First Stand 2026: Player Summary
Gen.G Esports
Kiin – 8.3
Kiin had the better of Dhokla during the First Stand series. Kiin did not need to impact the first game. After that, he took over the lane and earned the Total Apex player of the series.
Canyon – 8.0
Canyon stamped his mark on the series in the first two games. His lanes won in isolation in game three, meaning he did not need to do anything drastic.
Chovy – 8.0
Chovy was Chovy once again in the series. He had another dominant display, falling behind Kiin in the ratings.
Ruler – 6.3
Ruler had good mechanical outplays during the series. However, his mistakes gave Lyon a chance to recover or build a lead in games two and three.
Duro – 7.7
Duro had a fun time in the third game of the series on Neeko. His teamfighting expertise is immense, helping Gen.G dominate teams.
Lyon
Dhokla – 3.7
Dhokla had a series to forget as he lost out to Kiin. He went for the Irelia counter-pick but failed to deliver in the laning phase.
Inspired – 5.0
Inspired tried to force plays in the series. Lyon was able to build a lead in game two because of Inspired’s plays. However, he had some moments where he cost his team.
Saint – 4.3
Saint had a rough time in the laning phase against Chovy’s Mel. He had a decent performance in game two, finding angles on Ahri.
Berserker – 5.3
Berserker was the best player on Lyon in the series. He held the team together in the final game on Lucian.
Isles – 4.3
Isles died numerous times on Lulu at unnecessary timings. He was better in the later games, but Lyon were second-best.
First Stand Impact
Gen.G has qualified for the Knockout Stage of First Stand. They will wait in the semi-final for the second seed from Group A. Lyon will have one more chance against JD Gaming to advance.
More First Stand Content
The articles below will provide more information on the First Stand event and the team’s participation. You can expect further preview and review coverage of all the matches taking place in the coming week.
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