The Sharkskin NSW IRB Premiership Series is back for season 2024, with a bumper crop of eager and enthusiastic teams ready to bring the unique blend of competitive speed and technical, lifesaving precision to Collaroy ahead of Round 1.
The name of the game is upskilling and improvement, as it has always been, but there’s a fire burning within many athletes who want to upset the apple cart and overturn more than a decade of dual-club dominance.
For more than 10 years it’s been Caves Beach SLSC and Kiama Downs SLSC duking it out at the top of the standings, with the South Coast club usually coming up trumps.
However, Caves Beach snapped an eight-year streak when they finished ahead of Kiama Downs at the IRB Championships at Ocean Beach in 2023, having two weeks earlier also claimed the IRB Premiership Series as well.
Both teams are back and ready to roll once again this year, as is most of the clubs that kicked off proceedings almost 12 months ago at Warilla-Barrack Point, while a host of new ones including Wanda SLSC, Forster SLSC and Fingal Beach SLSC will hit the water throughout the series.
Surf Life Saving NSW Director and Chair of Surf Sport, Don van Keimpema is looking forward to seeing the 2024 Premiership play out, which sees four surf clubs host rounds over the coming months before the State Championships at Cape Hawke in July.
“The Sharkskin NSW IRB Premiership is a feature event on the state surf sports calendar – it provides a great spectacle and showcases the skills of our membership in a competitive format,” he said.
“I’m really excited for the new season and to see which clubs will be in the mix to win the Premiership title.”
IRB PREMIERSHIP ROUNDS
Collaroy SLSC || 10-12 May
Fingal Beach SLSC || 25-26 May
North Avoca SLSC || 8-9 June
Ocean Beach SLSC || 22-23 June
IRB Championships – Cape Hawke SLSC || 5-7 July
Wednesday 8 May 2024