George "HudzG" Hoskins was one of the players left behind in the Championship Gaming Series inaugural season. Despite being seen, at the time, as one of the best talents in the United Kingdom, at only 17 years of age, he would see his teammates and friends desert him for their chance to join the elite ranks of professional gamers. Coming of age in time for season two, Hoskins can now once again call them his teammates, and occasionally his rivals.

He was the second pick of the 2008 UK Draft as Ben Woodward selected him as his most important new player for the season, and an integral part of the London Mint's Counter-Strike: Source team.

HudzG prepares for his next CS:Source match during the Qualifier.

What were you feeling in the minutes before the draft?

Just minutes before the draft I felt extremely nervous and insecure, nothing could have really prepared me for this feeling, despite having been through this moment a thousand times in the past month with it all planned out in my head. That sure went out the window when we were called up for the UK draft, made worse by the EU draft being first -- seeing how rough everyone else looked who was eligible for the EU draft, that only made my situation worse. With the look of disappointment on people's faces and heartbreak almost sending me crazy. I was scared.

When Paul "ReDeYe" Chaloner read out your name to make you the first London Mint player drafted, what emotions did you go through?

I finally felt that I had realized my dream, an extreme emotion of joy and like something I had never felt before. It was almost as if a massive weight had been taken off my shoulders and that now I could really just focus on my game. I just didn't know how to react, my body wanted to jump across that stage and scream as loud as I could but nothing came out. Even my family told me how shocked they were at me just walking up to shake Ben's hand. All in all it was a massive sigh of relief that I had proved all my doubters wrong and that felt extremely good. The best way I can describe it is that it was like an emotion bomb that had just been let off -- just so many feelings of good, bad, and "what happens next?"

Who was the first person you contacted to tell them the news that you were drafted?

The first person I made contact with was my mother. It was extremely emotional, as she has been through a lot supporting me in the past through both hard times and good. She was extremely proud. The conversation only lasted about a minute, so next I contacted my girlfriend who I'm surprised I've still got after all those hours on the PC. I actually played a little joke on my mum saying "I didn't get it" and acted really upset . She didn't find it funny.

Richard "ritch" Gibbs was the final player to fill your Counter-Strike: Source team; was there anyone you would have rather had on your team?

I think for this team, ritch was the perfect addition. We had all been playing together for around a month before the combine and in the past Richard had played with url [and] HenryG on and off for a long time. All the past team work is in place, making our job easier one month before the UK Championship in Los Angeles. The personalities gel well together, which makes it a good team.

However, I do believe it has helped that ritch has changed a lot in the past couple of months, making it easier to play alongside him.

Was there anyone else I would have rather had? Or was there anyone else we could have had? I don't know. I think if the circumstances were different and different players were in different places, then there were [other] players at the combine Ben could have chosen.

Last year you were too young (17) for CGS. How did it feel to watch the whole thing passing you by, and now that you've been chosen, has the wait been worth it?

Last year was an extreme rollercoaster ride. It had some massive highs and some massive lows. Being too young for CGS was the latter and an extreme blow to me as a person, making it feel as if the whole world was against me.

Watching the season go by was difficult, which is the reason why I chose not to watch. It sounds daft, but every time I watched it I just wanted to compete. This made me somewhat bitter because essentially it was everything I wanted, and at the same time, the reason I had no team at the time.

Everyone wanted to compete at the CGS and I don't blame them now that I'm truly experiencing what it is about.

Another reason I chose not to watch a lot of (CGS) games is because I found it easier to carry on with my gaming career away from it. However, I always knew I wanted to return towards the end of 2007 when I knew I was going to be old enough for CGS.

Was it worth the wait? Yes, I wouldn't change last year for the world, as in a way it was a blessing in disguise. I was able to travel Europe with my girlfriend, and towards the end of 2007 make Reason Gaming along with ritch, and attend two big events, and make some extremely good friends -- all of which helped raise my game and it changed me as a person, making me more prepared for the 2008 combine.

Being drafted was certainly a night to remember for HudzG.

Was the offer to join London Mint for the qualifiers a surprise to you? Do you think it greatly increased your chances before the combine?

Being offered to join Mint was always going to be surprising to me, after having such a rivalry in the past with all of them, be it when playing in Reason or guns4hire, I never really thought I would get asked. I thought there was a small possibility but having made some silly decisions in the past, I thought someone else would have been asked to step up to the plate, so it was a great surprise and a big relief. I think it had a positive impact on my chances at the combine, as it gave me the personal confidence boost I needed to brush off a few in-game issues at the time and it changed my perception on my play. I don't think it swayed Ben either way, we all had to work hard to get drafted/protected and even though we suffered a disappointing loss to fnatic, I felt we all played strong leading up to and at the combine. We showed great character as a team battling back.

What do you bring to London Mint's team dynamic?

I think I bring a positive impact into the game, especially at LAN. I won't let people's heads go down, so if we lose a round or a map I'm constantly shouting to the others, "come on get the next one," or if someone makes a good shot I like to make a big deal out of it to bring the other team down, something Sam "RattlesnK" Gawn likes to do also. This will make for an insane UK final. I also think at LAN I provide a solid base for the guys to work off; I'm always there annoying someone at a position, which lets the guys make the important pick. I bring some extra knowledge to the table to improve different areas of our game, which has been great. Most of all I'm a good friend to all of them, which made the combine fun and easy. In the hotel room watching Arnold in Commando was the highlight of the event.

What are London Mint doing practice-wise in the run up to LA?

In the run up to LA we've been practicing as much as we can. Not many teams in the EU scene play CGS rules, and playing MR15 to us wouldn't benefit our game, as CGS is a lot faster paced. We have played some MR15 for the pistol rounds (overtime). At the moment, though, there are only two teams in Region 3 we can play and after playing them for two days straight, we just start anti-stratting each other. More recently we are going to start playing the Americans, which will be a lot of fun on the ping disadvantage. Add to that the usual stuff really, we've all been practicing our own game on deathmatch, on Counter-Strike: Source, and Quake 3, to make sure we're on top form and playing as many mixes as possible. Aside from that, the demo watch and tactical sessions as usual, and we are hoping to do a mini-LAN boot camp somewhere before LA, which should be good.

How will you handle the pressure of the crowd and camera?

I think pressure is what you make of it. Before a big game or match I just think to myself, "it's another game with another five people," and that really helps me zone out anything else. I think in the fnatic game at the Qualifier we had some cameras, but really you just don't notice these things. It's a weird feeling. It's almost as though when you sit down, you step into your monitor and you're in the game yourself. You really can't hear anything else apart from yourself and the calls. I like to listen to a little music and go through the strategies in my head before the game, making sure I know and everyone else knows what they're doing. Around five minutes before the game I like to get my team mentally prepared and make sure everyone is ready for it and is up for it.