Junior rides into form for champs

Piha surfer Tane Wallis overcame a slow start to the year to finish on a high  by winning his second Rip Curl GromSearch event in a row.
 His win alongside Raglan's Alexis Poulter in the Under-16 girls' event makes for a perfect practice run as the two New Zealand representatives prepare for glory at the World Junior Championships   at Piha in January.
The surf started out clean on the final day of competition but the sea breeze soon kicked in, making the small waves under 1m challenging, especially over the full tides.
Wallis - along with Sandy Bay's Paxti Scott-Arrieta - had already secured his place in the national Rip Curl GromSearch final.
 Second place went to double finalist Whangamata's Dune Kennings, who along with fellow double finalist and fourth placegetter Adam Grimson from Gisborne, looked to run out of steam after contesting their sixth heat of the day.
While Wallis posted 12.5 out of a possible 20, Kennings could  muster  only 8.45 in the final, with third-placed Todd Doyle scoring 7.50 and Grimson 7.15.
Kennings and Doyle  secured places in the national final of the Rip Curl GromSearch to be held as part of the Rip Curl Pro at Raglan in February.
The tightest battle of the day came in the U14 boys' division in a low-scoring affair. The four finalists struggled to achieve superiority  but as the clock ticked down, Josh Taylor  managed  a 4.55 point ride on his last wave to secure the victory.
It was Taylor's first win at a national event.
Kennings came close to winning on the last  wave but came up short by 0.15 points to finish in second position.
 Mimiwhangata's Paul Moretti led for much of the 20-minute final but ultimately finished in third place, with Grimson taking fourth spot.
Jayda Martin Fitzharris dominated the U14 girls' final with Gisborne pair Korbin Hutchings and Dayna Story winning the U12 title.
Northland surfers didn't fare so well in the competition, with Joe Moretti knocked out in the U16 quarterfinals and Manu Scott-Arrieta failing to progress past the heats in the U14 competition.