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Sunday 18th February 2007 (Macauleys Headland): Sunshine Coast
surfing superstar Mitchell Coleborn (Maroochydore) has taken out the Billabong
Pro Junior Series at Coffs Harbour, signifying he will hands down be the man to
beat on the 2007 junior tour. 
The
powerful goofy footer defeated 16-year-old Brazilian dynamo Alejo Muniz (Florianopolis)
in ideal 1m beach breaks, an early lead setting up the emphatic win. Coleborn,
20, blasted an 8.75 ride on his opening wave to lead from the outset in the 25-minute
clash before backing up with a 6.10 late in the heat. 
His
young Brazilian opponent fired back with a 6.25 at the mid-way point to shoot
into contention and held priority for over eight minutes towards the final siren.
Requiring an 8.36 to snatch victory, Muniz grabbed a last
ditch attempt but fell short with a 5.40. 
“At
the start of last week I knew I needed to get some good results because I had
a shocker on the Gold Coast in the second event,” said Coleborn. “It’s
pretty sick, I’m just trying to get my head around it at the moment.”
“It was a stressful heat because at the start
I got that one good score but I feel like I blew a couple of good waves as well,”
said Coleborn. “I was just hoping he didn’t get that score on his last
ride and he didn’t.” 
The
victory signaled back to back wins for Coleborn, who secured his first breakthrough
of the season in his hometown last week. It also lifted the to the number one
spot on the ASP Australasian Junior Series ratings after leader Jayke Sharp bowed
out in round four. 
Coleborn
is at the helm on 6589 points, Beau Atchison (Copacabana) is in second on 6428
and Sharp was bounced back into third spot on 6287. “I
was really confident coming into this event, I feel like I have been surfing pretty
good lately,” said Coleborn. “I didn’t even get a chance to ride
my own board but I guess I went alright on the ones I had.” 
“It
happened to me all last year where I just needed to go one spot better or get
through one more heat to take the lead and I have always wanted to top the leaders
board.” 
It
was a roller coaster week for the 20-year-old who had his car stolen with all
his surfboards, clothes, wallet, phone and other possessions on the way to the
Coffs Harbour Pro Junior on Valentines Day. With just two
surfboards, a t-shirt and one pair of boardshorts to his name Coleborn competed
in the five-day event and came away in first position. 
“It’s
been an up and down well I had my car stolen from Duranbah on Wednesday so I just
put that out of the road, I knew I had a job to do down here so I just put my
head down and did it.” “I’ve still got the same
pair of shorts I have had on since Wednesday, they are getting pretty smelly.”
Coffs Coast local Heath Joske (Nambucca) fell devastatingly
short of his first Pro Junior final after losing out to Brazilian Muniz in the
Semi. 
Joske
was the lone remaining local hope in the event after Coffs Harbour resident Otis
Carey bowed out in round five to secure an equal 9th. The
18-year-old led the Semi and looked certain to face Coleborn in the decider before
the tenacity of Muniz came through, locking in two identical 7.50 rides in the
last six minutes and snatching finals glory away from Joske. 
Never
the less, the Nambucca local’s second equal third placed finish for the season
has bolstered his standing on the ASP Junior rankings, lifting him to fourth.
“I’m a little bit disappointed but still happy with
the result,” said Joske. “It’s starting to get a bit annoying finishing
in third, I think it has happened four or five times now but I had a good contest
and I’m still content.” 
“It’s
good to be the top local because there is so many of them at the moment with Jayke
Sharp, Otis Carey and Madison Williams all doing really well,” said Joske.
“There are a lot of good locals coming out of this region and it is good
to be one of them, we all push each other a lot.” South
Coast young gun Owen Wright (Culburra) went down to Coleborn in the Semi-Final
despite yet again being a standout competitor throughout the five-day event. Wright,
17, easily defeated Gold Coast surfer John Cummings (Coolangatta) in the Quarterfinals
on a two wave combined heat score of 17.00 to set up the penultimate clash against
the Sunshine Coaster. Put on the back foot from the word go
when Coleborn chalked up an 8.50 on his opening wave, Wright could not get back
in the game. The light-footed Goofy continues to reach the Semi-Final and Final
stages of Australasian Pro Junior Series events but is still yet to record a maiden
victory on the circuit. “He got one at the start and
I was looking for a right and as soon as we got out there it all changed,”
said Wright. “He got that 8.50 start and I thought I could still do it, I
just needed to find a good wave.” “I just couldn’t
find one of those waves that would keep lipping up for me.” “It’s
definitely my goal to get a win in one of these events,” said Wright. “Third
are still a good result but not the result I was after from this contest.”
Tweed Heads surfer Chris “Chipper” Wilson took out
the ever-exiting Panasonic Expression today for a huge frontside air to reverse.
Wilson has exploded onto the scene in the pro junior series as a leader of futuristic
surfing. Todays mind blowing Panasonic victory is his fourth to date. Current
ratings bridesmaid Atchison took out the best Kustomised Maneuver and was awarded
$1000 courtesy of Kustom Shoes. The explosive natural footer landed a huge frontside
air reverse in his Quarter Final loss to Joske and was rewarded with an 8.50 for
just the one single turn. | 
