Action from day three of the 2024 NSW Country Surf Life Saving Championships at Warilla Beach on Sunday. Video - SLSNSW
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00:00 We've just finished the Under 17 ski race.
00:08 Who am I here with?
00:09 Christian Ireland.
00:10 Okay, Christian, can you talk us through your race?
00:13 You just got second place.
00:14 How amazing is that?
00:15 Yeah, it was pretty good.
00:18 The site was clean.
00:19 There was no waves.
00:21 And I led the whole way and just fell off the back of a wave and three guys came up
00:27 on the next one.
00:28 So I was very lucky to hold it and snag second.
00:33 Yeah, amazing.
00:34 Thank you.
00:35 Yeah, amazing.
00:36 Thank you.
00:36 Yeah, I knew this one was my focus.
01:03 So I just kind of, I just had to give it everything I got, what's left over from the other events.
01:09 But yeah, there's not much you can really do when you've got such a big program like
01:14 I've got today.
01:15 Just keep going and never give up.
01:17 Yeah, exactly.
01:18 Is that something that you sort of trained for at Blackhead?
01:21 And obviously, are you working under Marty now?
01:24 Yeah, I am under Marty.
01:25 I've done a lot of work just trying to deal with lactic acid and just keep backing up
01:32 after races after races.
01:34 Yeah, it's been good.
01:35 How is it representing the Lower North Coast?
01:36 Obviously not a huge number of clubs and not a huge participation rate across some of those
01:42 clubs, but it must be good to bring home a gold medal.
01:45 Yeah, it's good.
01:46 We've got such a small area and it's pretty tough.
01:49 Not many teammates around you, but we just kept building and we're here now.
01:54 We're doing really well.
01:55 So it's really good.
01:56 Tell me about the atmosphere around the club.
01:58 What is it about Blackhead that makes it such a good community?
02:01 I just think because we're so remote and there's not many of us there, but we give a good race
02:08 to some of the bigger clubs and it's just so much fun when we do it as a team.
02:13 How does the team feel like this?
02:14 You've had a good weekend so far.
02:16 Yeah, we're really proud of where we are on the leaderboard.
02:19 We're improving every year and that's what we're here for.
02:25 Tell me about Country Champs.
02:27 Is it a flagship event on your calendar?
02:30 Yeah, it's one of my favourites.
02:32 We get to come here and do really well individually and as a club.
02:37 It's always one that we're focusing on.
02:41 Fantastic.
02:42 Make us proud.
02:43 Thank you.
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03:10 Yeah, so the conditions are pretty windy out here today.
03:14 Got a nice southerly come through.
03:16 Yeah, and in that iron race, I didn't have the best start that I wanted in the swim.
03:20 Usually my strongest leg, but I fell a bit behind off the start.
03:24 Went out straight out.
03:25 My other boys fell out straight through the north.
03:29 And yeah, still caught up to the first.
03:32 Board, got out cleanly.
03:35 Did a couple of power strokes on the lane.
03:36 Got a wave for myself, so that was pretty sweet.
03:39 And then the ski pretty much happened again.
03:41 Got out cleanly and then pretty much got a runner from the apex all the way in
03:44 and couldn't ask for anything more.
03:46 So it's a pretty sweet race.
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03:52 I knew Ollie was going to be a big competitor.
03:55 I saw him--I've raced against him for the past couple of years now in the '19s and '17s.
04:01 He's a year younger than me, but yeah, I always knew he was going to be tough.
04:05 Coming off a win in the '19s, so yeah, he's probably the main competitor.
04:08 Then I got boys, like older boys like Jack Carvery and stuff like that at Rural A2
04:12 that are always going to put up a tough fight.
04:14 So yeah, it's great.
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04:20 Yeah, the club's been great.
04:21 It's a really special team that we have here.
04:24 You know, got pretty much medals in every team event that we did.
04:27 And yeah, it's really special to be on home turf
04:31 and try to defend our title from last year.
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04:38 Yeah, looking good for the team.
04:40 Definitely got some good teams going up there, especially in the younger ages,
04:43 like the seven teams where my brother's in.
04:45 Yeah, they'll have some good teams up there competing for medals.
04:48 And then the Open guys should have some good teams too.
04:50 They'll always be up there competing, and, you know, it'll be good to race.
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05:00 So the training over the next-- will pretty much be the same.
05:03 We finally get a couple weeks off going into North Bondi in a couple weeks.
05:07 So, you know, we'll probably go back to the usual training schedule
05:10 for a couple weeks, and then we'll go back into easing into North Bondi
05:13 and preparing around that.
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05:51 I guess just the thought of having country championships at our home beach
06:05 really brought us together as a team and made the atmosphere of training really,
06:09 positive and exciting because we had not only a big carnival to look forward to,
06:13 but a big carnival at our home beach, which was something we've never experienced
06:17 before, so it was really, yeah, great motivated when we're training.
06:20 >> Sure, and the race itself told me about each,
06:23 took me through each leg, how you sort of approached it.
06:26 >> So yeah, I went off first.
06:27 I went down towards the rip that was ripping out in the irons and
06:33 the swims and I had a good start.
06:35 Got out around the Cairns first and came back in and
06:38 just couldn't get away, but yeah, and the second ruler team caught up to us and
06:42 they're in first for a bit, but the other boys caught up nicely, so.
06:46 >> I'll hand it to Jayden.
06:48 >> Yeah, I'm looking on into the board, our teammate Jayden Beaumont,
06:51 he's an absolute little gun on the board and he could just paddle all day.
06:54 So seeing him go in first, I knew that my tactic was just to get him onto his watch
06:59 as quick as I could and get him to tow me around the Cairns because I knew that was
07:03 gonna make life so much easier and then, yeah, we managed to pull in a wave
07:07 together and handed over the big dunk for the ski leg.
07:10 >> Yeah, the boys done a great job.
07:14 Jayden pulled it away very nicely.
07:18 Super nervous but comforting at the same time knowing Ruler B were right next to us.
07:22 Got out of the Cairns, just trying to stay composed, hit the Cairns and
07:26 then turned the last one and got a little runner and it brought me home, which was good.
07:29 Just made sure I didn't mess it up on the way to the beach.
07:33 Yeah, it was good finishing on the home beach.
07:36 Yeah, just glad we got the job done.
07:38 Full credit to the boys.
07:39 You rock up to race day, wanted to win everything.
07:43 I think it was a bit more comforting going into,
07:45 especially day one and then into day two in front.
07:48 But yeah, we wanted to win everything.
07:52 Everyone put in the best foot on the line and went for it.
07:57 Yeah, winning it just tops it off, I guess.
07:59 >> Last one, just community,
08:02 how do you feel about how everyone comes together and
08:07 helps with this community?
08:10 >> Yeah, well, to put in a big event like this, there were countless hours where
08:14 families that had never been in the surf club for years, they've left and
08:17 they've come back to support the community to put together this country champs.
08:21 And the work party, they've just put in an unbelievable amount of effort.
08:24 Like, across the three days, a lot of the work party is the parents of our
08:28 competitors and they've spent more time doing stuff around the beach than
08:33 watching their own children, as bad as that sounds.
08:35 But that just shows the community that's within this surf club.
08:38 Everyone wants to put in all together and yeah,
08:43 this carnival that we just had was a prime example of many hands make easy work.
08:50 Is that the saying?
08:50 >> [LAUGH]
08:52 >> Boys go up a beer, congrats.
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09:43 >> I think we were very close the year before that,
09:58 we missed out by about five points.
10:00 And winning it last year, we came away as a team, me and him and
10:04 the other coaches, we got all together.
10:06 And the kids themselves drove to see how much excited we were to win that first one,
10:09 and what it meant to the club, what it meant to the older people, our life members.
10:14 And yeah, it was just from that day on, it was just dig in, put in for each other.
10:19 It's all about us, it's all about the team, it's all about team,
10:22 it's all about Barry Point.
10:23 >> We've had the support from the committee to do what we needed to do and
10:28 build a club from the ground up.
10:30 It's not something that just happened overnight,
10:32 it's been probably 10, 12 years in the making.
10:36 We've both been coaches here and come through with the ranks.
10:40 >> And in saying that, all the seniors we've got now, we had them as juniors,
10:44 we brought them through to the senior ranks.
10:45 So yeah, it's a great feeling in the club.
10:49 >> I suppose walking through, maybe for the people that may be still there,
10:52 how much work does go into perfecting and getting your training regime right and
10:57 making sure that your kids are mentally prepared, physically prepared,
10:59 getting them in the right place to be?
11:01 >> A lot of the kids, a lot of the kids, they swim their own,
11:03 they swim at all different swim schools.
11:05 They do, some of them do five, six, seven, eight sessions a week.
11:08 They come to us and we do board training on a Monday, we do skis Tuesdays.
11:13 >> On Wednesdays, boards again, or skis again on Thursday,
11:17 Fridays off, then do a sprint iron session Saturday morning before the carnival kickoff.
11:23 >> And then we go again.
11:24 >> And we go again, work on it like that.
11:27 Every now and then we'll throw a team's day in where we do a bit of board rescue or
11:31 double skis, just to keep the kids on their toes.
11:35 >> But having a good group too, we'll often have a barbecue for breakfast.
11:38 We'll get everyone involved in that.
11:39 We go out and have dinner down there, one of the local sponsors,
11:42 one of the Rilla Bowls or Windang Bowling Club or one of our hotel like you.
11:46 The sponsors take the whole crew down there and all the parents.
11:49 We've got a really good base of parents now.
11:51 Five or six years ago, we had four kids, five kids in our senior ranks.
11:55 Now we could have 45 in one session, couldn't we?
11:57 >> Yeah, 45.
11:58 >> At a senior session.
11:59 >> And it's getting stronger all the time.
12:01 >> It's great. Talk to me about your commitment to it.
12:03 What brings you back every year?
12:06 >> I come down here, I think it was about 25 years ago,
12:09 I was a football coach with one of the like members here.
12:11 And I turned up to a nipper, so I went to the wrong beach actually.
12:14 I was supposed to go to another beach, but I turned up here.
12:16 And from that day onwards, I've been here ever since.
12:18 I just fell in love with the place.
12:19 And I've never been in the water myself, a bit of pool swimming,
12:23 but never ever been a surf person.
12:24 But Damien's now, so his knowledge is the stuff that gets all these kids where they are.
12:28 I just drive them off, I drive them for their hardness, for their fitness.
12:32 But it's Damien's water skills and surf skills that really tells a lot of these kids.
12:37 >> It's just community.
12:39 Our life members, most of our young kids are learning our life members now
12:43 and the older people that have been here before us.
12:46 So it builds a base that everyone's in on.
12:50 It's part of everyone knows everyone.
12:52 It's good.
12:53 That's what we want, it's family.
12:54 >> When we turn up, we turn up there every morning to do a warm up.
12:57 You look around and every one of those work party have either done for the surf club,
13:01 they've competed for the surf club, and now they're putting back into the surf club.
13:05 And the kids love it, they look up and they love the kids.
13:07 It's a really tight, really tight club, really, really is.
13:10 >> Yeah.
13:11 >> We usually only lose a lot of kids.
13:13 Some of the kids are good ones, they head up to the coast like Ali, Day and Ben.
13:16 Hayden White, they go up and go into the Graves series.
13:19 They're coming back, they'll come back.
13:21 Hayden White's already committed here next year.
13:23 Benny Carver, if you can, he'll do country here next year.
13:25 Ali Day, he'll do country.
13:27 They'll always come back, mate.
13:28 And the kids are looking forward to that.
13:29 >> They're always welcome.
13:30 >> And give us a rest.
13:31 >> Yeah, exactly.
13:34 The community of Barilla, you've very, very touched on it there.
13:36 Talk to me about this club and pulling together an event like this.
13:38 Obviously, you're not just winners, you're also hosts.
13:41 It's an impressive deal and we touched on it before.
13:43 You had a fantastic work relationship.
13:45 >> Yeah, the older life members, Skin and Mick and Whitey,
13:53 touched base with a couple of the old guys that are all around in the community.
13:57 And they all said, yeah, we'll come down, where do you need us, what do we do?
14:01 They brought their families in and it's just a snowball effect.
14:04 Everyone's here.
14:05 And they say they'll all come and have a beer with us tonight and
14:09 we'll have a couple, but that's what it's all about.
14:12 It's community based.
14:13 It's everyone's here to help one another.
14:15 And even when the kids are training, the older guys that surf here,
14:19 we'll keep an eye on the younger ones that are out in the water for us.
14:22 And they'll talk to them and give them the encouragement to keep going.
14:26 >> I think the biggest thing that drives, if you had a look at that color party
14:30 down there today in the march past, that whole color party were our life members.
14:33 They're the ones that are here every morning at five o'clock driving this work
14:36 party, and it's that kind of thing that describes us.
14:39 And they do anything for us, you know what I mean?
14:42 Nothing's ever, and we don't spend big money.
14:44 None of us get, no one gets money in the club.
14:47 We have a couple of, like I said, we have a couple of barbecues.
14:49 We'll just throw in $5 each.
14:51 Beautiful. Get a couple of beer tickets off the preso every now and then.
14:55 >> I'm gonna drink his crannies tonight.
14:57 >> Only because he can't fill a bit, but he'll give them to us.
15:00 >> [LAUGH]
15:02 >> But yeah, they're definitely a great
15:03 team, like the whole lot.
15:04 But mums and dads are in the car park doing the attendance,
15:07 set us more on the whole three days.
15:09 It's been the mothers in here doing all the cooking and whatnot.
15:11 It's just been, yeah, it's been a really great-
15:13 >> Everyone, even if they weren't a part
15:15 of the club but knew one, stepped in and done something for us.
15:18 >> Yeah. >> To make it what it is today.
15:19 >> Yeah.
15:21 >> And contribute.
15:22 >> Yeah.
15:22 Last one, then I can let you go.
15:24 I realized in all those questions I didn't actually ask about the event.
15:27 Tell it to me how good it is to win back to back.
15:29 >> To win back to back was just, yeah, it was something we, like I said,
15:32 we wanted it, we wanted it three year ago.
15:35 It's finally come to us now.
15:36 And to what we got there this year, to see some of these kids,
15:40 some of these 17 year old kids, they were going around in their teens, 17, 18, 19.
15:43 That's how much it meant.
15:44 And to finish it off with that one, two in there, the taplin was, and
15:48 to win the iron was something, yeah, something else.
15:52 >> And all the juniors, all the junior kids, they all come down and watch it.
15:57 They're all here now, and as you saw on the dives, they all got up.
16:00 But they were all here to support the older kids, and
16:03 they all know the older kids, which is what you want.
16:05 It's a club that's won.
16:07 >> When that taplin, I won't lie, I had tears rolling down my eyes.
16:10 It meant that much.
16:11 And I didn't know we'd won.
16:12 I had gone on yesterday's point score, and the results,
16:15 I didn't think we had a chance.
16:17 But yeah, just to get the relief from being here.
16:20 It's just good to be able to sit back now and think, now we'll go to state,
16:23 we'll do Aussies, we'll get the crew.
16:24 >> We're the big ones to go.
16:25 >> Celebrate now, we're gonna celebrate now.
16:27 But what that meant to me and him, yeah, it's massive.
16:30 And also his sister, Nicole, like Nicole does a lot of work.
16:32 Nicole seems to have been around the trap for years and years.
16:35 >> Worked with the girls.
16:36 >> Hell of a lot of experience too,
16:37 like another one that's got all the experience in the water.
16:39 A lot of our life members, the old blokes that come in, if we can't make it,
16:42 they'll jump in and help us with the training session, the skis.
16:45 It's just been, like those blokes here,
16:47 I see grown men with a couple of little tears down there today.
16:50 Knowing that we got back to back.
16:51 How much it meant to us.
16:52 >> Yeah, we're gonna back it up and do it again next year.
16:54 >> Yeah.
16:55 >> That's it, guys.
16:56 >> Going up again.
16:57 >> No worries.
16:58 >> We've just finished the Under 17 ski race.
17:01 Who am I here with?
17:02 >> Daniela Birdie.
17:03 >> So Daniela, the ski race is already a pretty tough race.
17:06 Did the wind have any effect on it?
17:09 >> Yeah, it was definitely pretty hard to keep it straight to the cans.
17:13 Yeah, you had to really make sure you knew where you were going.
17:17 Pretty hard to see the cans as well, but.
17:20 >> Yeah, you did a really good job and had a nice wave to finish off.
17:23 Do you have any more events today?
17:24 >> I've just got the iron left for today and then back home.
17:29 >> Good luck with that.
17:30 >> Thank you.
17:31 >> We're here with the team War Hope Bonnie Hills.
17:36 Talk us through this race.
17:38 >> Well, we haven't really practiced board rescue together before.
17:44 And Dale is in an older age group, so
17:47 she came down into this age group to help make a team.
17:52 So we didn't have any great expectations of doing very good.
17:57 But we were just so excited that we got a good wave,
18:00 because yeah, it was just really, really special.
18:04 So we're really happy.
18:05 >> Yeah, I know what it feels like to get second.
18:08 It's an amazing feeling, isn't it?
18:10 >> Yeah, it was so good, really good, yeah.
18:12 >> Good job, ladies.
18:13 >> Thank you very much.
18:14 >> Thank you.
18:15 >> When you're ready.
18:16 >> We've just finished under 15s iron.
18:18 Who am I here with today?
18:19 >> Rosie from Browlea.
18:21 >> Yeah, Browlea, you have gone pretty good this weekend.
18:24 Do you know how your club's gone?
18:27 >> Yeah, we've done pretty well compared to last year.
18:29 We've just started to pick up our training a lot more before country, so
18:33 it's really good.
18:34 >> Amazing, can you talk us through the race you've just been?
18:36 >> Yeah, I tried to just trail on frays on the back of the swim, and
18:41 I was lucky enough to get a little wave at the end.
18:44 And the board, I was pretty tired, but
18:46 it was good I got a little wave at the end as well, so yeah.
18:48 >> Pretty happy with it.
18:49 >> Yeah, that's so good.
18:50 Winning, coming second in the country title, that must feel amazing.
18:53 >> Yeah, it's really good, cuz I came fourth last year, and
18:56 I really wanted to get on the podium, so it's really good, yeah.
18:59 >> Amazing, good job.
19:00 >> Thank you.
19:00 >> [LAUGH]
19:02 >> Sulking.
19:03 >> Okay, Chloe, talk me through the race.
19:06 >> Well, it was a bit tough, I just kind of stayed on Wally McSpeak,
19:11 she gave me a great race the whole time.
19:13 I was a bit nervous when she caught a wave on me and the board, but
19:17 we both ended up getting smashed, and I guess, better one won.
19:21 >> And talk us through the wind, how does that affect an iron race?
19:25 >> Not so much for the swim, but definitely when you're trying to get up on your knees
19:28 on the board and the ski, it just blows you around so much.
19:32 This week was mad, you had to come right back across to get in there.
19:37 >> Well done, any more races today?
19:39 >> Yeah, we got taplings later on.
19:41 >> Epic, well done.
19:42 >> Yeah.
19:43 [LAUGH]
19:45 >> What a huge win, this is the Open Iron Champion, who do we have here?
19:49 >> I'm Claire Spicknall from Arula Barrier Point.
19:51 >> Well done, Claire, how has the race took us through it?
19:54 >> My gosh, it's so hard.
19:56 I'm an under 17, so I normally don't do the ski in my race, and
19:59 that last leg just killed.
20:01 >> It's amazing, under 17s winning Opens, how does it feel?
20:05 >> It feels fantastic, I didn't do too well on my own iron, but
20:08 to come and do this one is just so much more special.
20:11 >> It's amazing, good job.
20:13 >> Thank you.
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21:22 >> We've just watched a huge rivalry between Rula and
21:25 Cujin in the Open Women's Tapling, can you tell us about that rivalry?
21:29 >> Yeah, sure, so between the two clubs,
21:31 we're the biggest in the country competition.
21:34 So there's always been this really big rivalry between the two clubs for
21:37 that overall point score.
21:39 The last two years, we've kind of struggled with that,
21:42 because we don't quite have the numbers that we really do.
21:44 But we've come down here, our goal this championship was to get those one,
21:49 two positions rather than winning that overall point score.
21:51 Because we knew we just didn't have the numbers.
21:53 And I think especially in that taple,
21:56 it's just proved that Cujin coming in first and second.
21:58 So I think we've done what we came here to do, so yeah.
22:02 >> You guys did an amazing job, I'm so proud of all of you.
22:05 >> Thank you.
22:06 >> Thank you.
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