RIPtIDE AGE IS NO BARRIER FOR EX-OLYMPIAN YANDA MORRISON Mona Vale s Jordon Hunt has been learning the surf ski ropes under former Olympian Yanda Morison (Nossiter) for over a year now and the pair got to paddle for the first time as a double ski combination at the Bill Buckle Branch Open at Palm Beach. Despite the gap in age, Yanda, 42, and Jordon, 19,were too good for the field in the open female event last Saturday week. Yanda looked to have the single race at her mercy but Newport s Sascha Taurins was fortunate enough to pick up a wave and get her on the line. I knew at the end that someone was going to come though on a wave, Yanda said. Yeah, I thought maybe I could have got it. It was a bit disappointing. Still, it was a good feeling getting back into it. Last year I turned up to Branch and literally hadn t even been on a spec ski, whereas the last couple of weeks I jumped onto a spec ski and just did a few starts off the beach and it helped. Jordon was amazed at just how good Yanda is at her age. Jordon, who won the under 19 female ski and is one of the top kayak paddlers in her age group, said: It was actually really good. She is still strong for her age. She s a great paddler. You can see that she knows what she is doing technically. She knows when to go hard and when not to go. Basically the whole way I felt I wasn t doing much. She might have been taking all the power. I love paddling with her. Jordon said when Yanda became her surf ski coach, she didn t know she had competed at two Olympics. I knew her husband Jim because I did paddling with him and, as I started to realise who she was through one of my kayaking coaches, I began training with Yanda.. Jordon just missed selection in the Australian under18 team for worlds in The Netherlands last year. I missed out by one making the team. I got in originally but then they decided to take seven and not eight, Jordon said. Jordon said she never lost heart. I love my sport. I do like the balance between kayaking and surf life saving. I find that if I do one too much then I get really bored, she said. Pictures: Top: Yanda Morison (front) and Jordon Hunt are too hot in the open double ski; Middle: Yanda with her two boys Toby and Alexander. Bottom: Jordon Hunt.
CHARLI GOES INTO RECORD BOOKS Charli Brown turned up to Palm Beach last Saturday for the Bill Buckle Branch Open hoping the timetable would allow her to swim in the open surf race. When she emerged from the water after winning the under 17 female surf race, the 16-year-old North Curl Curl SLSC member heard starters being called to the line for the open event. Charli doesn t do a lot of surf swimming because of her pool commitments. I have not really had much of a chance to train in the surf this season but I was lucky enough to be able to swim at the Manly and Freshwater carnivals, she said, Charli came second in the open surf race at the Freshwater carnival. She said she got smashed halfway out in the race race at Palmy. Emily (Doyle) and Maddie (Spencer) were in front of me. I was on their feet and coming in I just put my head down and swam for it. I think it came down to a run up the beach, Charli said. Little did Charli know that she had become the first female or male to take out a Branch open surf race for North Curl Curl SLSC. The club s surf sports director Glenn Slater was busy looking up the records. No, it has never happened before, he said. I know she is an amazing pool swimmer but she really believes in herself in the surf now, Slater said. Manly Naomi Scott only did the team events for her club at the Branch. I have had a lot on lately but I watched Charli s race, Naomi said. She could be anything in the surf but her focus, I am sure, is pool swimming, Naomi said.brown is preparing for the age nationals in Adelaide where she is concentrating on the 400 and 200 IM and 200m freestyle. Pictures: Top: Naomi Scott (back) and Tess Dubberley win the open female board rescue at the Branch ; The smiling face of Charli Brown; winner of the open surf race.
QUEENSCLIFF SEND AN SOS TO FIND NEW BOWMAN No, it wasn t a surprise. It was all part of our master plan, came the words from the mouth of Queenscliff sweep Matt Sheridan after his crew took out the men s open final at the Bill Buckle Branch Open at Palm Beach. We are building, Sheridan added. The Queensie boys saved their best until last. Queensie didn t have a win in the preliminary rounds. It s all very close racing in the A s, Sheridan said. We got the dream run out and managed to set ourselves up for a nice wave coming in. We were challenged by North Steyne and Collaroy the whole race and South Curly were there. There was one boat length in the whole thing, very tight racing. The Queensie crew are looking for a replacement in the bow going forward. Sam(Cornwall) filled in for us today after Reece Carroll broke his foot. He s out for the season, Vaughan Hay said. Sam Cornell is in Queensie s other A crew. We ll have to find a replacement. We have a few people in mind but haven t worked that out yet, Hay said. South Curly found themselves disqualified after going through the wrong can which left Collaroy to take second place, with Newport Hellfish third. It was the first row by the Collaroy Garricks this season. They were the Ocean Thunder champions last season. Picture: Sam Cornwell, Daniel Wagers, Luke Moore, Vaughan Hay and Matt Sheridan. 2019 Open Branch NO PARTIES FOR ROCKETS YET It was a double celebration for Queenscliff SLSC when the Rockets (female under 19 crew) blitzed the field in the final at the Branch at Palm Beach. We had four races and we were consistent, sweep Damien Daley said. We finished on top of the point score and were pretty happy. In the final we got hit at the start a little bit and we got a bit of a lead behind the break. Then we just motored away from everyone and probably won by six boat lengths. Daley said the girls have been rowing two divisions, juniors and reserves. We ve been getting places in reserves as wel, he said.. We ve put together 26 consistent races. We have been racing 13 or 14 times at each carnival. The girls are training hard and we are happy where we are at. A liitle bit of sacrificing their party life at the moment. Picture: Julia Altenburger, Willow Doyle, Lucy McIntyre, Sophie Berry and Damien Daley.
2019 Open Branch ZAC SURPRISED WITH GOLD Freshwater s Zac George has only been competing in the surf for two years and wasn t even expecting to medal in the under 17 surf race at the Branch Open at Palm Beach last Saturday week. But as luck would have it a wave bobbed up at the right time, Zac rode it to the beach and ended up taking the gold medal. I really came here to have some fun and wasn t expecting anything, Zac said after he finished ahead of Newport pair Joel Piper and Zach Morris. I was here last year and didn t go so good, the Freshie teenager said. Zac actually finished fifth last year, the event was won by Morris. Manly s Nutri Grain ironman Kendrick Louis (pictured blue cap) should have won the open board race. He was leading all the way but three paddlers came from behind on a wave, one of them winner Charlie Brooks (Newport) and Louis didn t medal. That s surfing. But Louis did win the single ski in very convincing fashion. It s not all that often the Morris twins are beaten in a surf race but at the Branch open, their clubmate Bailey Clues (about to shake hands) took out the under 15 surf race. Sascha Taurins and Madi Louw (top right) had a little bit of luck go their way to take out the under 19 board rescue.
MONA VALE GIRLS GOLDEN PERFORMANCE With Jordon Hunt in their ski relay team the other two paddlers Jesse Ingram and Roxy Beuzeville feel pretty confident about themselves. The trio went to the Branch Open at Palm Beach last Saturday week with some good form under their belt. They finished second at the Manly carnival and third at the Freshwater carnival in the under 19 ski relay. This time they went even better when they won gold. And to think both Jesse and Roxy are still under 17s. They paddled up on the day. The three girls are now looking forward to the State in Newcastle. Picture: Jordon Hunt (left), Roxy Beuzeville and Jesse Ingram. 2019 Open Branch FRESHIE TRIO BIG IMPROVERS Freshwater s Jess Douglas, Tamsyn Curley and Lauren Bourgeois are putting in the hard yards on the board and the rewards are starting to show. They pushed the strong Newport paddlers all the way in the under 19 board relay at the Bill Buckle Branch Open at Palm Beach last Saturday. In the end, the Freshie girls had to settle for the silver medal. But they were more than happy with their performance. They are now training hard for the State titles. Picture: Jess Douglas, Tamsyn Curley and Lauren Bourgeois; One of Branch Open sponsor Bill Buckle s cars on display at the championships at Palm Beach. BRANCH SURFBOAT RESULTS Open Male: Queenscliff Wolves, Collaroy Garricks, Newport Hellfish, North Steyne Nomads, Palm Beach Pidgens, South Curl Curl Death Riders (DQ). Open Female: Palm Beach Patriots, Mona Vale Snow White, Avalon Beach Bandits, Collaroy Giants, Avalon Open Women, Dee Why Double Bleck Reserve Male: Long Reef Apples, South Curl Curl Sneans, Palm Beacah Project, Newport Sheldon Office Fitouts, Palm Beach Pesto, Bilgola Bends. Reserve Female: Palm Beach Piccolos, Newport Nudibranchs, North Narrabeen Lean Beans, North Steyne Tiger Lillies, Under 23 Male: South Curl Curl Lamp, Palm Beach Pty Ltd, Palm Beach Peppers, Palm Beach Protractors, Mona Vale Black Mambas, Long Reef Lords. Under 23 Female: Bilgola Rippers (28), Newport Thunder (26),Palm Beach Peaches ((24), North Narrabeen Chickpeas (21), Palm Peach Phantoms (21), Mona Vala la la ladies (15). Under 19 Male: Palm Beach Plumbers, South Curl Curl Sneaky Nuts, South Curl Curl Underdogs, Avalon Beach Hueys, Collaroy Stitches, Mona Vale Fluffy Ducks Under 19 Female: Queenscliff Rockets, South Curl Curl Bumps and Humps, Avalon Beach Chanels, Collaroy Silly Salmon, Mona Vale Beastmode (DQ).
NEWPORT CREATE HISTORY IN ALL-AGE BOARD RELAY 2019 Junior Branch SADIE RECEIVES LATE BIRTHDAY PRESENT Sadie Maggs enjoyed a belated birthday gift at Palm Beach last Sunday week She was a member of the Newport All-Age Board relay team that took out the event at the Westfield Junior Branch water championships Sadie celebrated her ninth birthday on the Saturday. The next day she was at Palmy with her brothers Noah and Conner for the championships. It was the first time the Maggs trio have competed together In the All Age Board Relay, the two brothers having previously competed for Manly. Coach Aaron Morris was stoked with the victory, which meant automatic qualification for the State titles at Blacksmiths Beach. This is a first for our club and Joey (Warren) and Zannah (Dixon) are newcomers. Sadie led the team off, followed by Joey, Noah, Zannah, Conner and big Mitch Morris. Sadie said she enjoyed competing with her brothers. They can be annoying sometimes but this was exciting, she said. Sadie came in with a group of other paddlers but ran up the beach first. It was hard when the sets came though, she said. Zannah Dixon only joined Newport in the summer holidays. I was originally from Avalon Beach.. We didn t have any teams at Avalon, Zannah said.. We were winning from the start and I was able to maintain our lead, Zannah said. Zannah certainly had a busy day of competition. She just missed out on medalling in both the under 12 iron and individual board, she also did the board relay, board rescue, swim and swim teams. Her Newport team finished third in the swim teams. It s a good feeling being able to represent the club in the All-Age Board Relay at State, Zannah said. I think I have definitely improved on the board since I moved to Newport. By finishing second, Manly also qualified for the State titles. Picture: Top: Zannah Dixon, Sadie Maggs, Mitch Morris, Conner Maggs, Noah Maggs at Palm Beach on Sunday. Right: Joey Warren.
JUNIORS SHOW SKILLS IN TOUGH SURF AT PALMY As these pictures show, it was certainly very testing conditions for our junior water competitors at the Westfield Junior Branch at Palm Beach.
THESE NORTH CURL CURL GIRLS ARE A SPECIAL GROUP North Curl Curl SLSC have certainly got a very special group of young female athletes coming through the system. When it comes to the under 12 surf teams Ashton Reimer, Olivia Clues, Ruby Lovell and Dom Melbourn are in a class of their own. They won the Branch title again at Palm Beach last Sunday week and will now head to Blacksmith Beach in Newcastle for the State titles (March 1-3) and will surely be favourites for the event. They did win it last year on the same beach. It was a big day as usual for Dom and Olivia at Palm Beach. The pair combined to take out the board rescue, they won the board relay with Ruby, Dom won the swim from Manly s Phoebe Lechner with Olivia third, she also won the board from Olivia but Olivia turned the tables in the iron, winning from Dom. It was the last carnival for the girls before State. Olivia thought the conditions were awesome. I 2019 Junior Branch NOW TO PUT ON A SHOW AT STATE TITLES loved it, she said. Dom said: The only bad thing about it was if you were in front then people could come from behind. Collaroy s Charli Barbour was proud as punch after winning the girls under 10 surf swim. Since under 6s I have always loved nippers, Charli said. This is the second time I have competed at the Branch. I didn t do any good in the swim last year but I came third on the board. This is the best I have even done in the swim. I really liked the conditions. There were very good waves. It was a bit dumpy but one area was really good. Charli says she loves swimming. Yes, I am a swimmer, she said. Pictures: North Curl Curl s Ashton Reimer, Olivia Clues, Ruby Lovell and Dom Melbourn; Right: Collaroy s Charli Barbour after her victory at Palm Beach..
LITTLE PIPI HAS NO FEAR OF WAVES Everyone at Palm Beach watching the under 11 girls board final at the Branch Junior water championships marvelled at the skills of Manly s Pipi Te Pania. As Pipi said after winning the race: It was really hard. All the sets just kept coming in. You just had to keep attacking it and then you ll get through. By the time Pipi got to the cans it was her race, provided she didn t make any mistakes on the way back. I just had to make sure I took the right wave I didn t want to nosedive in case someone was behind me and could catch a wave, she said. Her two Manly clubmates Arki Harrison and Elisha Cuthbert mastered the conditions, too, and finished second and third respectively. I am really happy for us all. It was really nice to get first, second and third, Pipi said. Pipi said her board skills had improved a lot. We have Rachel (Crerar) as our coach but Harry (Harrison Stone) and Lachie (Bruce) take us out the back, Pipi said. Liam Jordan finally put one over his mate Luka Gordon in the under 10 surf race at the Branch Junior. Liam was in the lead and nearing the end of the race, he said he had a look to see where the other competitors where. I saw them chasing me down. I saw Luka and knew I had to go for it, Liam said. Yeah, I was happy. Last season I used to beat him. This season he has been beating me. Both boys are off to the State titles. Luka was also a member of Manly s All-Age Board Relay team that finished second to Newport at Branch which means he will compete in that event at State. Pictures: Top: The colourful Westfield beach umbrellas proved very popular at the Branch Junior water championships; Middle: Pipi Te Pania (left), Alisha Cuthbert and Arki Harrison; Bottom: Luka Gordon (left) and Liam Jordan.
FRESHIE BEACH KIDS HAVE JUST A SUPER SEASON Michelle Nunura casts her mind back when she used to be a beach sprinter for Freshwater SLSC. There was a time when I was the only beach sprinter, Michelle says. I never thought I would see the day when Freshwater became a powerhouse on the beach. I have coached the beach team (juniors) for two seasons now and words simply can s express how proud I am of the effort by the entire squad at the Branch. We certainly have a few strong individual competitors but what has made me beam for joy is the success of the relay teams. To me, Freshwater is about team spirit and friendship as all I ever wanted through by lifesaving career was to be part of a team. My goal this season was to create a close knit team where the kids main motivation for the sport is fun and friendship. I can certainly say this goal has been achieved and with fun and friendship came success. Not only did the Freshwater beach team win the overall (beach) point score at the Branch but they did so alongside their best mates. The next part of a wonderful journey for the Freshie kids is the NSW Age at Blacksmiths Beach in Newcastle on March 1-2. Picture: Some of the Fresh beach competitors. North Curl Curl have emerged the new giantkillers in the Juniors Championship point score. Who would have thought the Manly, who have dominated for such a long time, would have been displaced at the top? But the one-time little North Curly are no more. 2019 Junior Branch NORTH CURLY NOW TOP GUNS North Curly finished on 485 points 24 points ahead of Manly, with Newport third. It is a huge result for North Curly considering they have lost some of their stars to rival clubs. North Curly are hoping for some excellent results at the NSW in Newcastle. North Curl Curl 485 Manly 461 Newport 338 Freshwater 270 Mona Vale 253 Dee Why 164 Collaroy 148 North Narrabeen 102 Queenscliff 73 Avalon Beach 53 North Steyne 26 Narrabeen Beach 21 Long Reef 20 Bilgola 6 Warriewood 6
2019 Junior Branch Some of our medal winners at the Westfield Branch Junior water championships at Palm Beach. Top left: North Curl Curl s Georgie Prowse (middle); Top right: Mona Vale s Jordi Tocquer (left) and Zach Wasley (centre); Dom Melbourn (North Curl Curl) and Manly s Phoebe Lachner after the under 12 girls surf race. Dee Why s under 9 surf teams members Nikita Rongonui, Chloe Hagon, Amber Stevenson and Lisa Derz. It was the first time the Dee Why girls had competed in a surf teams race. What a mighty effort. Newport girls Emily Ryan and Kimberly Doyle (middle) on the podium.
Well, these smiling faces at least have one more season in juniors. Top:These are the boys under 13 iron finalists. Below: The girls under 13 iron finals at the Branch Junior at Palm Beach.. Pictures: KEMBLE COWAN
The Manly girls in the under 12 board relay teams jump for joy; Below: It was a Mona Vale victory in the under 12 boys board relay final. Pictures: KEMBLE COWAN