Key battles loom as Surf League teams named

 

Individual performances are crucial but it’s the team component that will take precedence in next week’s Lion Foundation Surf League.

The seven competing provinces named their teams today for the annual surf lifesaving carnival at Mount Maunganui’s Main Beach on February 13 and 14, with the race for world championship spots casting an intriguing shadow over proceedings.

New Zealand coach Scott Bartlett and his team of selectors are using the Surf League to help narrow down the search for a 12-strong squad to take to Egypt in October, hoping to improve on the second-placing two years ago.

“In a lot of ways, the Surf League is an ideal format to help select a team because it has intense, short and sharp races over a series of rounds,” Bartlett said.  “It’s the best of the best in New Zealand and we’re looking for athletes to really dominate their rivals and demand to be picked in this high-end racing.”

The women’s line-up is shaping as one of the most competitive yet, with Bartlett admitting up to a dozen female athletes could still be in contention for the six spots on the national team, which will be named in April.

Gisborne have named 19-year-old Australian-based star Maddie Boon as one of their ironwoman contenders, where she’ll go up against the likes of current national champion Rachael Clarke (Auckland) and Hawke’s Bay champion Nikki Cox.

Queensland-raised Kiwi Aimee Berridge joins the Bay of Plenty team for the first time, while the Taranaki pair of Ayla Dunlop-Barrett and Jamie-Lee Reynolds should also figure.

Taranaki are the defending champions, having broken through for their first win in the inter-provincial league last year with a 31.5 point margin over second-placed Canterbury.

Taranaki will again feature New Zealand captain Glenn Anderson, who will also coach the side for the first time, along with sprint star Paul Cracroft-Wilson and the gun IRB crew of Jaron Mumby and Chris Scott.

Anderson is also bidding for an extraordinary four-peat, having won the last three titles with Gisborne (2007), Bay of Plenty (2008) and Taranaki.

He’ll provide stiff competition in the ironman race as well, against young stars Daniel Moodie (Hawke’s Bay), Mike Janes (Gisborne) and Perth-based Bay of Plenty teenager David Graham.

While Taranaki will be looking for their second title, Gisborne and Auckland will be searching for their fourth and fifth Surf League crowns respectively.

Wellington have also been given a major boost by the presence of Olympic swimmer Dean Kent, who returns from a year out of all sport, having joined the Titahi Bay club.

Four-time champions Canterbury will be looking to evergreen 33-year-old sprinter Morgan Foster, who managed to beat Cracroft-Wilson in the flags at the Northern Regional championships last weekend, while hosts Bay of Plenty will lean on the likes of Johanna O’Connor, Chelsea Maples and Andrew Newton to ensure they improve on last year’s fifth.

The fast-paced, two-day event will feature 17 events a day, with under-19 athletes competing on Mount Maunganui's Main Beach in the morning and senior athletes doing battle in the afternoon.

Auckland are the defending under-19 champions, having beaten Bay of Plenty last year, with Wellington third.

 

Lion Foundation Surf League teams:

 

Open

Auckland: Travis Mitchell, Kevin Morrison, Mike Buck, Chris Moors, Ash Matuschka, Andrew Lancaster, Vaughan Roberts, Russell Scones, Mike Lee, Jess Parr, Rachel Clarke, Bailey Elliott, Naomi Young.

Gisborne: Matt Sutton, Justin Martin, Nathan Teutenberg, Mike Janes, Mike King, Daniel Harris, Maddie Boon, Leesa Barton, Kendall Elliott, Jack Gavin, Mike Morrissey, Daniel Williams, Maia Gibbs.

Bay of Plenty: Kurt Wilson, Brad Wilson, Andrew Newton, Quentin Cribb, David Graham, Daniel Peacock, Chelsea Maples, Johanna O’Connor, Katrina Madill, Aimee Berridge, Holly Moczydlowski, Sam Newlands, Joe Kemp.

Taranaki: Kent Fraser, Mark Woodward, Steve Harris, Chris Scott, Jaron Mumby, Paul Cracoft-Wilson, Katie Watts, Jamie-Lee Reynolds, Ayla Dunlop-Barrett, Danni Melody, Dylan Dunlop-Barrett, Glenn Anderson, Daniel Nelson.

Hawke's Bay: Shane Bennett, Nick Anderson, Nikki Cox, Claire Benson, Lydia Diver, Effie Milne, Ryan Welch, Jared Phelps, John O’Malley, Daniel Moodie, Chris Benson, Ashton Tuck, Adam Moffitt.

Wellington: Marty McDowell, Dean Kent, Danny McDowell, Richard Winham, Brent Harvey, Ben Willis, Sam Blyde, Tim Marsden, Tyler Maxwell, Chantelle Cowirick, Alyssa Blyde, Georgina Hind, Megan Blair.

Canterbury: Morgan Foster, Chanel Hickman, Ben Ryan, Haydn Lockie, Tim Johns, Blair Quane, Simon Williams, Carl Righton, Steve Armstrong, Peter Rattray, Ben Phillips, Viv Bickley, Lucy Johnson.

 

Under-19:

Auckland: Bjorn Battaerd, AJ Maney, Dylan French, Matt Johnston, Kirsty Wannan, Caitlyn Ryan, Danielle McKenzie, Amy Sisson, Leif Neilson, Miles Regal.

Bay of Plenty: Katrina Madill, Aimee Berridge, Katrina Radley , Dan Hooker, Blake Williamson, Richard Murray, Sam Shergold, Jordan Hills, Troy Walsh, Jamie Banhidi.

Gisborne: Toby Harris, Oliver Puddick, Cory Taylor, Laura Quilter, Jemma Torrie, Chris Dawson, Lucy Gavin, Dylan Pahina, Pera Gibbs, Jamie Gibson Park.

Hawke’s Bay: Hamish Beattie, Ben Gillies, William Wilkins, Tim Cox, Jason Harman, Claire Benson, Katie Moodie, Brad Weber, Megan Beattie, Sophie Pert.

Taranaki: Casey Stevens, Nikaela Gilmer, Isaac Owen, Joel Meuli, Mitchell Greg, Scott Busing, Isaac Robinson, Thomas McCarthy, Cara Ryan, Siobahn Wright.

Wellington: Tyler Maxwell, Ryan Cox, Jake Allen, Tyler Mills, Mitchell Logan, Dylan McKay, Kayla Imrie, Sam Lee, Kelsey Moffatt, Holly Janssen.

Canterbury: Ryan Quickenden, Pania Watson, Jack Nash, Finn Brown, Alex Fort, Clair Everts, Steven Drabble, Sinead Lomax, James Brown, George Thomas.

Otago: Ben Davidson, Ryan Shanks, Joe Kemp, Ben Pickles, Ant Jackson, Sophie Robb, Carina Doyle, Adam Simpson, Briar Merrett, Brooklyn Reardon-Nikara.