Superb comeback
THE Snapper Rocks Surfriders Club has demonstrated its depth of talent with a comefrom-behind win against LeBa (Lennox Ballina) to win the Sailor Jerry Surftag Queensland and Northern NSW qualifier at Cabarita Back Beach.
Trailing in fourth place behind LeBa, Snapper mounted a superb late comeback relying on their big guns to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat.
Snapper’s fourth and fifth surfers Mitch Parkinson and Jay Phillips both scored in the excellent range to take Snapper’s team total to 97.13, nine points clear of runners-up LeBa on 87.57.
Snapper Rocks’ new brigade of rippers Max Kearney, Dextar Muskens and Reef Doig kept Snapper in the hunt in the early stages of the final but when Parkinson, the younger cousin of world champion Joel Parkinson, posted a 7.83 and 9.00 point on his “Powerwave” (double points), Snapper Rocks had narrowed LeBa’s early lead despite big scores from former World Tour pros Adam Melling and Stu Kennedy.
Snapper president Phillips was their anchor man and fifth final surfer who put the result beyond question with an 8.00 and 6.37 to seal the final victory.
“I’m stoked to be part of such a great club and to be still representing the club alongside the younger guys who all surfed brilliantly,” said captain-coach Phillips.
“The LeBa team on paper looks unbeatable but we knew we just had to keep grinding away and Mitch really put us in a good position when he scored the ninepoint Powerwave.
“We are really looking forward now to the Australian Championships in a few weeks at DBah, which is a world-class wave.”
With the top six teams qualifying for the Sailor Jerry Surftag Australian Championships, Snapper Rocks, LeBa, Cabarita and Kirra will be joined by DBah and Kingscliff at Duranbah Beach on April 27-28, with the top 24 men’s and top 10 women’s teams competing.
In the women’s division, DBah Boardriders (65.27) peaked in the final to finish on top of North End Boardriders (51.50), who had beaten DBah in Round 1.
DBah’s Freya Prumm was a standout, scoring a 9.40 in the final, which was backed up by Audrey Styman-Lane’s two-wave total of 15.53.
DBah will now head into the Australian Championships aiming to secure their fourth straight Sailor Jerry Surftag Australian Title, a feat that has never been achieved in the 17-year history of Surftag.