Raglan surfers made their mark at Whangamata over the weekend during the second of three events in the Billabong Grom Series presented by Oceanbridge. Despite forecasted swells failing to materialise, leaving competitors to battle it out in small 0.5m waves, Raglan’s young talent rose to the challenge.
Maya Mateja once again proved her dominance in the Under-18 Girls Division, securing back-to-back wins and demonstrating her skill even in the tricky conditions. Her victory, alongside strong performances from fellow Raglan surfers Alani Morse and Luca Thompson in the Under-16 divisions, as well as Jimmy Wernham in the Under-14 Boys, saw Point Boardriders of Raglan claim the overall top club honours for the event.
The Under-18 Girls final was a tight contest, with Mateja and Mount Maunganui’s Sage Fritchley splitting a peak in the closing moments. Both surfers attacked the wave on their backhand, but Mateja edged ahead with an 8.83-point ride, taking the win with a total score of 15.86 over Fritchley’s 13.74. The pair now sit first and second in the NZ Grom Series rankings heading into the next event. Chloe Groube (Pauanui) placed third, making a welcome return to the podium, while Poppy Entwisle (Taranaki) finished fourth for the third consecutive time.
In the Under-16 Boys Division, Raglan surfers went head-to-head in a thrilling final exchange, with Luca Thompson narrowly defeating Indica Corcoran. Thompson sealed the win with a 7.40-point ride, just edging out Corcoran’s 7.0. Piha’s Zeke Pragert placed third, while first-time finalist Ollie Tong (Gisborne) finished fourth.
Raglan’s Alani Morse continued her strong form, claiming victory in the Under-16 Girls Division for the second event running. Morse finished ahead of Indi-Lee Ruddell (Whangārei) in second, with Piha’s Poppy Arkle and Kyra Wallis rounding out the final in third and fourth, respectively.
Meanwhile, young Raglan talent Jimmy Wernham made a stunning debut at the national level, storming through the Under-14 Boys field to take out the division late on Saturday afternoon. Ahipara’s Jade Nias Phillips secured the win in the Under-14 Girls category.
While the conditions weren’t ideal, Raglan’s surfers proved their ability to adapt and excel, setting themselves up strongly for the final event in the series.
