Clubbie Confidential: All the movers, shakers and rumours from the surf lifesaving off-season
Clubbie Confidential: All the movers, shakers and rumours from the surf lifesaving off-season.
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CALLING all Clubbies! It’s been one heck of an off-season. While COVID-19 robbed the surf lifesaving community of the State and Aussie titles, all things are in motion for a ripping summer. In this edition of Clubbie Confidential, we look at the big moves, a stack of rumours and all the gossip floating around the cans in preparation for season 2020/21.
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Young guns under new caps
A number of the Gold Coast’s best and brightest have taken the chance to find a new home for the upcoming surf lifesaving season.
Currumbin superstar Ava Usher was being chased by up to five clubs and was recieving messages daily from club presidents and coaches chasing her services.
While all involved were respectful, it has been a stressful few weks for the emerging ironwoman to the point where she couldn’t even visit the shops without being canvassed about her next move.
Usher has officially decided on a move to Burleigh Heads where she will continue to work under Michael King as well as former ironwoman Kristyl Smith.
Milly Derbyshire, Milla Jansen, Eli Richards, Noah Middleton, Lilly Findlay, Kaan Karadag, Fynn Basalo and Sam Perry have joined Northcliffe so far while Currumbin guns Charlotte Cross and siblings Ruby and Beau Meehan have followed Michael King to Burleigh Heads.
The Nutri-Grain series
THE Nutri-Grain series is back baby.
After an exciting first season back under the guidance of Surf Life Saving Australia, the professional series is set to be back bigger and better.
Our mail is that we will get a six-round series, starting in December and ending in February.
A new location is also in the works but above all, we hear that Surf Life Saving Australia has listened to athletes and even held a two hour conference call with key stakeholders earlier this month to table the changes.
Expect the series to feature again on live television, a massive win for the sport.
Iron X
IT was the event which single-handedly sparked an all out war within the surf lifesaving community but from early indications, Iron X will be back.
Athletes were left aggrieved when $100,000 in prize money (not to add set-up and advertising costs) were handed out at an event which strayed so far from the origins and traditions of surf lifesaving.
All the athletes who participated in the event seemed to enjoy the challenge and Surf Life Saving Australia CEO Adam Weir labelled it a success, prompting the governing body to persevere with the format.
Early mail suggests Iron X will expand to three exhibition events, possibly in winter as not to clash with the Nutri-Grain series.
As long as $100,000 isn’t handed out at each round, expect athletes to be content with the new offering.
OPINION: NOW IS NOT THE TIME FOR LOYALTY
Clubs stripped of stars
THERE hasn’t really been a silly season like the events of 2020.
Propelled in part by the COVID-19 pandemic which saw two high profile coaches in Barry Newman and Michael King move on from Kurrawa and Currumbin respectively, several Gold Coast athletes have packed their bags and sought greener pastures.
The two aforementioned clubs have been hardest hit, waving farewell to a number of certified and rising stars.
Unfortunately, at least on the surface, it appears that money has run dry and athletes have taken the chance to move on, perhaps even a little disgruntled by the treatment of their mentors.
The move nobody saw coming
LET’S rattle off some stats, shall we?
Two Nutri-Grain series titles between them.
First and second in the 2019 Coolangatta Gold.
Second and third in the 2019/20 Nutri-Grain series.
Matt Poole and Matt Bevilacqua were at the peak of their craft last summer and seemed like two blokes Kurrawa would be desperate to hold onto.
But nobody saw a global pandemic coming either, and now they’re at Northcliffe.
Neither thought they’d be on the lookout for a new club for the following summer, but a chain reaction at Kurrawa, including the departure of head coach Barry Newman, forced their hand.
A new power club emerges
BURLEIGH HEADS Mowbray Park have always performed strongly for their size but they’ve been on one heck of a recruiting drive in the off-season.
The first domino to fall was signing Michael King as coach and it’s fair to say his disciples have followed in force.
Currumbin athletes like Jy Timperley, Corey Fletcher, Sam Frost, Zach King, Hayley Cox, Jayde Hardstaff and Tom Gallagher have reportedly committed to making the switch with some pundits expecting up to 90 per cent of Vikings to follow King.
Hayden White and Ben Carberry are still undecided as is Ky Kinsela.
Watch this space, but a top 10 Nutri-Grain series finisher from another club is also rumoured to be weighing up a switch to the gold, green and black.
Rumour mill goes into overdrive
IT’S fair to say Michael King’s arrival at Burleigh Heads sent the surf lifesaving rumour mill into overdrive.
Among the pricklier rumours were allegations that King interviewed for the position behind former coach Phill Clayton’s back.
Was Clayton pushed? Did he walk out? Pundits had a field day at the expense of the two friends.
But the truth was far from explosive.
King made a pact not to take anyone else’s job and the Burleigh role just happened to be vacant.
Clayton and King even took to social media to quash the rumours, posting a picture of them drinking beers captioned “Just enjoying a beer with my good mate, having a laugh about the 589 different rumours we’ve heard in the past week. Welcome to Burleigh mate!”
False declaration
THE case of Zane Holmes is a curious one.
Last week, the Burleigh Heads Mowbray Park Surf Club announced to members on social media that the former ironman would be supporting Michael King as ski coach.
But the claim was quickly refuted by the Currumbin Vikings who said they had hired Holmes in a small part-time role.
Either way, someone has missed a memo somewhere down the line but we dare say one club will be making some retractions soon enough.
BEHIND THE SCENES OF STUNNING CLUB SWITCH
Boaties bonus
SURF Life Saving Queensland is set to announce dates for the IRB Ocean Roar and State Championships this week.
It’s looking like all events will be staged in August and September with two, one day carnivals for Gold Coast clubs and the same for Sunshine Coast clubs.
SLSQ is set to offer reduced fees to encourage clubs to attend after the COVID-19 pandemic forced surf clubs to close, denying them a crucial source of revenue.
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