| 
Currumbin
surfing sensation Corey Ziems has bagged an early lead in the race for the 2007
Billabong Queensland Championship Circuit (QCC) title after taking out the Billabong
Alley Classic today. 
In diminishing surf, local lad Ziems registered his first
victory for the New Year, etching his name next to former Alley Champions and
WCT ranked surfers; Joel Parkinson (Coolangatta) and Luke Munro (Currumbin). 
Ziems, who lives across the road from the world-class point
break, smashed the status quo throughout the tournament, setting a new performance
bar for the state circuit. Making the most of his
local knowledge, the talented natural footer defeated Sunshine Coast surfer Trevor
Tripcony, Lennox Head ripper Stuart Kennedy and Gold Coast ripper Brendan Leckie
(Palm Beach) in the 25-minute final. 
“ Its my favourite event to compete in,” explained
Ziems. “Traveling the world for events really
makes you appreciate what you have at home. It’s great to finally have a
win at my home break.” Jumping out of the gates
with solid 6.5 and 6 rides, Ziems fought of a continual charge by Tripcony to
hold a slender lead coming into the business end of the final. 23-year-old Ziems
stitched up the win with a superb 8.5 ride in dying seconds to hand Tripcony a
runner-up placing. 
Capping off a great day, Ziems snapped up the Tooheys Extra
Dry ‘Wave of the Weekend’ for the event’s highest individual wave
score, a scintillating 9.55 in his quarterfinal. Fresh
from signing a sponsorship deal with an international surf wear company, Ziems
is determined to succeed on the world tour and will focus his energies of qualifying
through the World Qualifying Series (WQS) in ’07. Finishing
third today was Lennox Head’s Stuart Kennedy. The rising junior series surfer
utilised a procession of radical maneouvres to snare his maiden QCC finals berth.
Rounding out the final was local ripper Brendan Leckie
who finished in fourth place. Gold Coast’s rising
junior star Brent ‘Brenno’ Dorrington fell short in today’s event,
enduring a wave less heat in the round of 64. 18-year-old
Dorrington will compete in the richest-ever ASP Australasian Junior Series event
on the Gold Coast starting at Burleigh Heads tomorrow morning. Similarly,
veteran Mark Richardson had his campaign prematurely ended in today’s earlier
rounds. Although disappointed with his lose, the former
Alley champion appeared to be upbeat about the future of the timeless event.
“Its come along way since its inception,” he said.
“Its been building momentum the last couple
of years and its now a truly international event.” | 
