North Avalon Surfriders Association has successfully defended their Regional Title winning the Sailor Jerry Surftag Northern Beaches Qualifier at Dee Why Beach in small tricky conditions. North Avalon - 86.44 comfortably won the Men’s Final finishing 30 points clear of second place Long Reef - 55.73 with Queenscliff narrowly missing out on second position scoring 54.02.

North Avalon’s Chris “Critta” Salisbury was all class when it mattered most scoring the highest two-wave total of the event – 26.43 that included a near perfect 9.67 on his Powerwave in the Final. NASA started the Final strong with team captain Shane Carroll posting 12.77 followed by Darcy Crump with 19.70. Salisbury’s 26.43 midway thru the final put NASA in a commanding position that was solidified by Matt Thompson’s 15.84 and Sam Taylor’s 9.7.

Coming into the event under an injury cloud, Carroll surfed with a knee brace all day and was solid in surfing first for NASA, establishing an early lead in the Final.

“Stoked to go back-to-back in the Qualifier, it’s such a good feeling winning for the club with the boys”, Carroll said. “Special mention must be given to Critta Salisbury, he is an absolute animal and we can always count on him to come up with a big score in crucial moments. We can’t wait to try and go one better this year and bring home the Aussie Title”.

Critta Salisbury leading out for NASA (Photo Bernadette McAlinden)

Surfing on their home break Dee Why Surfing Fraternity proved to be the surprise packet of the event finishing fourth in the Final (51.43) and earlier in the day eliminating heavy weights North Narrabeen from the competition in Round One. With the top four men’s teams qualifying to the Sailor Jerry Surftag Australian Championships it’s the first time in 9 years that Dee Why has qualified.

“We were pretty stoked to make the Final on our home turf in front of a solid crew”, Danny Sheather said. “The boys put some big scores on the board all day but couldn’t find the best waves in the Final. It’s been 9 years since we had that fairytale podium finish at the Australian Championships and we are ready to put Dee Why back on the map, bring on the Gold Coast in April”.

In the Women’s Division Queenscliff “A” – 74.73, defeated arch rivals North Narrabeen – 55.46 to win their first Sailor Jerry Surftag Regional Title. Layne Beachley (15.17) set the tone for Queenscliff scoring an 8.5 on her opening ride, Beachley then tagged 18 year-old Alysse Cooper who posted the highest two-wave total of the Final – 25.03. The stylish goofy footer strung together a series of backhand snaps to score a 7.5 and an 8.77 on her Powerwave. Coopers big score was well backed up by Sophia Bernard’s – 19.1 with Kate Reeds scoring 5.53 and Hanna Jarvie 5.9 at the back end of the 60-minute Final.   

“Super stoked to get the win with the girls and for the club, I managed to find one of the better waves in the final and happy to score the best Powerwave”, Cooper said. “It feels really good to compete as a team and it’s good to share the win with the girls. It’s epic having Layne in the team, which definitely boosted team moral.

Layne Beachley surfing for Queenscliff (Photo Bernadette McAlinden)

Seven times World Champion Beachley was excited to surf with the next generation of Queenscliff girls, “These girls inspire me to lift my game, I’m twice their age”, Beachley said. “This is a team game, it’s all about giving your team mates enough time in the water to get the scores. Alysse smashed it and Sophia back it up and then Kate and Hanna surfed, it was a team effort”.

Laura Enever (13.13) and Jess Van Der Meer (10.53) were North Narrabeen’s best with both Queenscliff “A” and North Narrabeen qualifying to the Australian Championships, Queenscliff’s “B” team finishing third in the Final with 28.02.

Results - 2018 Sailor Jerry Surftag Northern Beaches – Men

• 1st North Avalon 86.44 Q
• 2nd Long Reef 55.73 Q
• 3rd Queenscliff “A” 54.02 Q
• 4th Dee Why 51.43 Q
• 5th Newport Plus
• 6th Queenscliff “B”
• 7th North Narrabeen
• 8th Bungan

Best Powerwave – Chris Salisbury – North Avalon – 9.67

Results - 2018 Sailor Jerry Surftag Northern Beaches – Women

• 1st Queenscliff “A” 74.73 Q
• 2nd North Narrabeen 55.46 Q
• 3rd Queenscliff “B” 28.02

Best Powerwave – Alysse Cooper – Queenscliff – 8.77

2018 Sailor Jerry Surftag Australian Series

• 13 January – Newcastle (Area - Umina to Port Macquarie)
• 20 January – Northern Beaches (Area – Northern Beaches, Sydney)
• 17 March – VIC & SA (Area – Victoria & South Australia)
• 24 & 25 March – Cronulla (Area – Bondi to Ulladulla)
• 14 & 15 April – QLD & Northern NSW (Area – Coffs Harbour to Noosa)
• 27 & 28 April – Australian Championships – Duranbah Beach, Tweed Heads (Includes Trials for TAS & WA Clubs)

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