(GotFrag) - 2009 is shaping up to be a very interesting year for Counter Strike. As an entirely new chapter in the evolution of CS takes place, new teams are being forged from the top players in the U.S. and speculation of the game's future is at a high not seen since pre-CGS. Arising from this "rebuilding process", if you will, is a well known and U.S. fan favorite, Jax Money Crew.

The organization has officially announced the new Jax Money Crew CS 1.6 team for 2009 and the lineup should have the CS community buzzing from the outset. Alex "Jax" Conroy, owner and manager of JMC, has recruited what most fans would consider an all-star team of fraggers. This veteran heavy lineup of players individually have won just about everything there is to win in Counter Strike competition and together represent years of experience at winning internationally, as well as the fire of the next generation of CS players represented in David "zid" Chin.

Jax Money Crew Roster
Michael "Method" So
Salvatore "Volcano" Garozzo
Erik "da bears" Stromberg
Justin "Sunman" Summy
David "zid" Chin

GotFrag spoke with Conroy about the announcement and he had this to say about how the new team came about, "The afternoon CGS died, I was on vent with David and Justin. Upon hearing the news, they obviously didn't want to wear the Venom tag anymore, so David was actually the first to change his name to JMC. We had no real plans at that point, but the guys wanted a team for the immediate future. After about a day of deliberation, we decided the organization would move back to 1.6, and I would build a team beginning with those two."

On the subject of in-game leader and strat caller, Conroy stated, "David (zid) will be calling strats, as he did for JMC and Venom. He is extremely experienced and can handle both awp'ing and calling very well. Erik will back him up at some points, much like the dynamic those two had in the Winter CPL 2005 3rd place JMC lineup. Everyone is extremely experienced and can handle their own roles very well. They also seem confident in David's abilities as a leader.

Two players in the lineup are very familiar as long time members of Team 3D. In discussing this situation, Conroy was very complimentary of those players former organization, "As far as 3D's future, it's really not my place to comment. They were a great organization that pushed esports forward in North America. At this point, Craig Levine is running ESEA and Dave is doing work in Austin, so I am not sure who would manage it."

So what's on the agenda for 2009? Conroy says, "JMC plans on attending every major LAN in North America (as well as qualifying for international events) in 2009. Not many have been announced at this point, but hopefully they will be soon as I am excited to start booking tickets! That is the environment that players of this caliber truly shine."

"At this point the practice schedule has been light due to the holidays. Once we get past new years, and teams start practicing again, we will gear up and begin real team practice, developing strategies, and figuring out who will fill what rolls [sic]. Once a LAN event is announced, the team will know the deadline they need to be ready by, and really kick it into high gear. With the amount of experience on this team, there will 5 great sources of input to consider", Conroy went on to state.

Conroy spoke a bit more about the organization as a whole and future plans for JMC, "In addition to our 1.6 squad, we will also be bringing an extremely talented FIFA division on board. FIFA is a game that really caught my interest while I was in CGS. The game is extremely fun to watch at a high level and is filled with some very solid players, both in and out of game."

"When I decided to bring the organization back, I decided FIFA would be a great addition. It's a community I really enjoy, and an extremely popular title around the world. I contacted both Eafra and Barmoa about joining JMC, and both were very excited at the prospect of playing under the organization. After a few more discussions, we made it happen. Barmoa played for me on Venom and is both a skilled player and a great guy.
Eafra proved to be one of the best FIFA players in the world this summer, as he won the CGS individual World Championships, taking out some of Europe's best talent."

"At this point there are a few games I am interested in, such as WoW, however I have always believed in fully supporting any division that played for us, and I do not want to expand too fast, possibly diluting the quality of JMC as a whole."

GotFrag also had a chance to speak briefly with JMC's strat caller and the "next gen" representative for JMC, David "zid" Chin, and he had this to say about the new lineup, "With all of the great experience and hard work ethic surrounding every single player on this roster, I definitely feel the chemistry will pan out nicely."

Conroy closed the conversation with a shoutout to fans and sponsors, "First and foremost I want to thank all our fans who have been pm'ing me over the past few weeks. Restarting JMC was not an easy task, and the fan support has been invaluable. I think North America needs a higher standard of excellence, and this is it. Get ready! Also thank you to our partners who make this happen, Electrify Servers, the best gaming servers out there, and Surreal, who has been a fantastic web design partner."

Stay tuned to GotFrag for more on this story with interviews from the players, what's next for this team and what's next for eSports in 2009. For more information on JMC and the official announcement, Go to www.jmcgaming.com