Quiksilver Pro: Joel Parkinson admits he considered joining mate Mick Fanning on sidelines before falling back in love with surfing

JOEL Parkinson has revealed he considered joining close mate Mick Fanning on the sidelines after falling out of love with surfing during his worst year on tour.

Quicksilver Pro at Snapper Rocks. Photo of Joel Parkinson in the first round. Pic by Richard Gosling

JOEL Parkinson has revealed he considered joining close mate Mick Fanning on the sidelines after falling out of love with surfing during his worst year on tour.

Parkinson finished 14th in last year’s World Surf League championship tour, his worst result in more than a decade on the circuit.

And while Fanning will take a “personal year’’, competing in just three events on the 2016 tour, Parkinson admitted he even thought about retiring such was his battle last season.

“Last year was a really tough year, my head wasn’t in it from the start,’’ he said.

“Sometimes I was questioning whether I wanted to be on the tour any longer and take a year (off) or maybe even throw the towel in.

“I don’t know why but I just found the bug again and I’m itching (to do well) and I want to win.

“Now I can’t ever see myself throwing the towel in or retiring, I just want to keep going.’’

Meanwhile, Fanning revealed he had been exploring the option of a career break for two years before deciding on taking personal time in 2016.

Fanning is at ease with his decision to take what he described as “long service leave’’ and said it had been something he thought about long before a horror 2015 that included a shark attack, the death of his brother and break-up of his marriage.

“It was a long time coming, I probably had the first conversation back in 2013,’’ Fanning said when asked how he arrived at his decision.

“It’s just been one of those things that’s been building.

“It’s been a long career and I guess I’m lucky enough to be able to have that time off and I’m very thankful to the WSL for allowing that and then my sponsors as well are so supportive.

“It’s a hard one, sometimes I wake up and go, ‘do I go to them all or do I not?’

“But today it felt really good just being way more relaxed.’’

Parkinson rediscovered his love of the sport surfing the recent cyclone swell on the Superbank.

“It’s like in any career or anything you do, there’s ebbs and flows, there’s ups and downs,’’ he said.

“Last year was definitely a down and I’ve started this year when we got that really good run of waves for a couple of weeks and I was just so pumped on surfing.

“And when I’m pumped on surfing, it just shows in my results and my life.’’

Both Fanning and Parkinson won their opening heats yesterday to advance to Round 3 of the Quiksilver Pro.

Parkinson, in particular was impressive, beating Gold Coast rookie Jack Freestone and prodigious talent John John Florence in a Snapper superheat.

The 2012 world champion showed his intent from the outset, posting an 8.6, one of the highest scores of the day as he showed he was back as a title contender.

“It was as bit of a shot at everyone to say, I’m back, I’m not giving up either,’’ Parkinson said.

Fanning beat fellow Australians Wade Carmichael and Matt Banting and said his decision just to come out and have fun had erased the anxiety and nerves that normally accompany the first event of the season.

“It was really different just waking up this morning, it was like where are all those anxiety nerves and all the tenseness,’’ Fanning said.

“But it just wasn’t there and it just felt good.

“I guess my mindset is just to have fun and go out and enjoy the ocean and enjoy the time I get to hang out with my mates.’’