Billabong Pro Junior - Sunshine Coast

ASP Grade 1 Mens and Womens Pro Junior
Sunshine Coast Queensland Australia
6 - 11 February 2007

Billabong Pro Junior Sunshine Coast - Shock Loss For Top Seed Julian Wilson at Billabong Pro Junior Series

Surfersvillage Global Surf News, 9 February, 2007 : - - Top seeded surfers at the Billabong Pro Junior Series on the Sunshine Coast have slugged it out on day three of the prestigious $13,000 six day event at Coolum Beach. Despite another day of lacklustre 1m conditions, the nations future talent blazed through the third round to set up round four clashes.

Current Australasian Junior Series leader Julian Wilson (Coolum) was a shock casualty, bowing out in his opening heat of competition. It was a dark day at the office for the events top seed, who could do no right at his home beach, falling on two of his best scoring rides. The white-hot favourite started well with a 6.27 but was shortly bumped into third place by opponents Vincent Duvignac (France) and Curtis Ewing (Pt Lookout).

Wilson, 18, only needed a 4.56 score to progress through to round four at the dying stages of the 20-minute heat but couldn’t find a ride in the tricky Coolum line-up. “I blew it, it was really tricky conditions on that shore break and I was in two minds before I even paddled out,” said Wilson. “It just didn’t go my way, I slipped off on one where it probably should have been a good score.”

“I hate the first heat of the morning and it was a hard heat for the third round,” said Wilson. “It’s weird you know, these guys have never even surfed this beach before and I surf it pretty much every day of my life and they whipped me.” “It’s not too bad, at least it’s not one of the biggest rated juniors, it’s all good and I’ll be over it tomorrow anyway.”

Dane Atcheson : photo Surfing Australia

Capitalising on Wilson’s departure was Sydney surfer Nick Riley (Fairlight) who currently sits in fifth position on the series ratings. The lanky natural played a patient game in his round three match-up, waiting until the final moments to post a 7.90 and an 8.67, securing the highest heat score of the day.

Riley, 18, unleashed on the small onshore conditions to progress ahead of Brazilian Alejo Muniz and cause the elimination of South Coast NSW youngster Dean Bowen along with Kiwi surfer Keiren VanDerHelder.

“I was sitting out there for a while and everyone was catching a lot of waves around me, but I like to be patient in my heats,” said Riley. “You only need two good ones, just because you catch 10 waves in a heat it doesn’t mean you are going to get the best ones.”

“I snared two or three toward the end, so I’m stoked,” said Riley. “With Julian bowing out, some one is obviously going to overtake him on the ratings and I’m hoping that it is me.” The lightening fast backhand of Heath Joske (Nambucca) made his opponents pay in round three, a well surfed left hander rewarding him with an 8.67 early in the exchange.

Joske, 18, finds himself perched in the top ten for the first time in his junior career and has been stepping it up on the junior series in 07, today’s demolition of Michael Levitt (Palm Beach, QLD), Gus MacGregor (Maroubra) and Wes Bainbridge (Newcastle) a testament to the cause.

“At the start of the heat I was a bit worried, I wasn’t sure if there was even any good waves out there but after I got that good score I settled down a bit,” said Joske. “It’s a big weight off your shoulders when you get a high score like that in conditions like today.” “Down at the first event of the year I was feeling really good, I finished third and was happy with that.

“At Burleigh I got knocked in my first heat which definitely made me more hungry to do well here. “I’m really exited about surfing close to home next week at the Coffs event so a good result here on the Sunshine Coast will set me up for that.” Newcastle’s Jesse Adam, 17, moved through to round four in a close heat against Sunshine Coaster Dean Iezzi (Sunshine Beach), Jackson Richards (Merewether) and Oscar Scanes (Old Bar).

Adam struggled to find a score early in the 20-minute heat before shifting to the inside bank and locking in a pair of mid range 5.00 rides. “It was tough, I couldn’t hear the announcers from where I was sitting and I know I didn’t have many good scores so I moved into the inside and grabbed a couple,” said Adam. “That tide made it a bit tricky, it wasn’t breaking out the back or on the inside properly.”

Adam is out for a result after an entry mix-up in the first event of the year robbed him of his guaranteed third round seed. Starting his Sunshine Coast campaign with a win today has him on tracks for a round four clash against Dane Bird (Wurtulla), Dale Lovelock (Warana) and Mitchell Coleborn (Maroochydore). “It’s great having the third round seed, just not having to battle through the early rounds in such a bonus.

“In these conditions anything can happen,” said Adam. “Proof of that was the top seed Julian Wilson who is leading the series bowed out in his first heat this morning and then you have guys like Mitch Coleborn who is posting 9.50 rides, so really it’s anyone’s game.” Lennox Head local Stuart Kennedy made good on his goal to resurrect his Pro Junior Series ratings position with a solid win in round three.

It was one of the top combined scores of the morning for the 18-year-old, an 8.00 and a 6.40 enough to comfortably defeat Nick Vasicek (Coolangatta), Josh Johnson-Baxter (Ocean Grove) and Damien Chaudoy (France). “I was pretty nervous at the start of that heat, and started by catching some really average waves,” said Kennedy. “I told myself to look for some better waves and ended up finding a couple.”

“I saw Nick get a bomb and I wanted to get through more than him so I had to try a little bit harder and push my turns a bit more.” Kennedy is currently ranked 44th on the Australasian Junior Series and will face West Australian heavy hitter Jay Davies (Yallingup), Tweed surfer Dale Richards and Brazilian danger man Alejo Muniz in the fourth round.

“I’d like to get to the quarters at least here, it would make up for a pretty bad year so far,” said Kennedy. Gold Coaster Brendan Leckie was also a strong performer on day four, winning through his opening heat despite only riding three waves in the 20-minute heat.

Leckie made the most of a linking inside wave to score a 7.17 on his final ride, giving him a 12.50 combined total to eliminate Josh Bull (Bonny Hills) and Wylie Moyes (Randwich). Wurtulla’s Dane Bird moved through the heat in second position on a low score of 7.63.

“The conditions are pretty bad but the trick was to find one that links through the inside section and gives you the score,” said Leckie. “I knew I needed to pick the bigger ones because they were the only waves linking through so I just waited for a while and ended up getting a good one.”

“I definitely want to finish in the top ten again this year, hopefully even the top five so I can make the World Juniors at Narrabeen,” said Leckie. “I really want to have a more consistent year, I had a fifth at the last contest on the Gold Coast so it would be good to get a roll on for the next few events.”

Local Sunshine Coasters performed well on the third day of play despite the elimination of Wilson. Dane Bird (Wurtulla), Dale Lovelock (Warana), Chris Friend (Alexandra Headland), Dean Iezzi (Sunshine Beach) and Mitchell Coleborn (Maroochydore) have all made it to the fourth round.

When surfing gets underway tomorrow morning, the Pro Junior Girls event will be finalised. Currently, Rebecca Oakley (Sunshine Beach) will face Sally Fitzgibbons (Gerroa) in the first semi final while Laura Enever (Narrabeen) will take on Paige Hareb (NZ) in semi two.

About The Billabong Pro Junior Series
Developed in the early 1990’s as a platform for young surfers aiming to become professionals, the $75,000 Billabong Pro Junior Series is the country’s longest standing and richest domestic junior surfing circuit.  The five event series, open to aspiring male and female surfers aged 20-years and under, will comprise half of the overall ASP Australasian circuit, which culminates in the crowning of the ASP World Junior Champion at North Narrabeen each year.  

For the first time in its history, the Billabong Pro Junior Series will this year stop at the new locations of Maroochydore on the Sunshine Coast and Coffs Harbour on the NSW Mid North Coast.  

2007 Billabong Junior Series
$13,000 Billabong Pro Junior Sunshine Coast, February 6 to 11
$13,000 Billabong Pro Junior Coffs Harbour, February 14 to 18
$13,000 Billabong Pro Junior Raglan, March 29 to 31
$13,000 Billabong Pro Junior Wollongong, September 13 to 16
$23,000 Billabong Pro Junior Bells, September 26 to 30

Previous reports:
# 1 : Billabong Pro Jr series moving to Maroochydore & Coffs
# 2 : Billabong Pro Junior Sunshine Coast: clean surf on day 1
# 3 : Billabong Pro Junior - Sunshine Coasters fail at Coolum
# 4 : Rebecca Oakley on target for Billabong Pro Jnr. Series  

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www.surfingaustralia.com

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