NIPPER ACTIVITIES Nikki Brown | Manager Junior Development
The 2017/18 season has passed us by in the blink of an eye. Hopefully you are all enjoying some downtime, however, if your families are anything like mine, you will be fully into the swing of winter sports and whilst sitting in the cold and rain, dreaming of being back on the beach enjoying the hot weather once again.
GERALDTON COUNTRY CARNIVAL We had a fantastic turnout at Geraldton this year with 40 Little Nippers and Nippers competing. The conditions were extremely tough, with not only strong winds and currents but plentiful bluebottles as well. Despite all this, our Mullaloo Nippers rose above and beyond the call of duty and really did the club very proud, not only in their achievements but also in their behaviour and attitude.
This season we had 519 registered nippers from Under 7 through to Under 13 and we would never have been able to operate with these numbers if it were not for the incredible support and help of our Committee, Age Group Managers and Assistants, Coaches, Water Safety, support from our IRB Crew and Parents.
NIPPER CARNIVALS The Nippers had three carnivals this season at Coogee Beach, Leighton Beach, and Geraldton. We had good numbers at all competitions and the children again displayed great effort and tenacity.
Our club is run entirely by volunteers and seeing the amount of dedication and support that these volunteers give is phenomenal. I often ponder as to how strong our club could be if each and every member were as committed to helping out our children, our future.
LITTLE NIPPERS This season, Surf Life Saving WA introduced a new category, Little Nippers. These champions are from the Under 8 and Under 9 age group and they had the opportunity to compete in their very own Little Nipper Carnivals. The incentive for this was to encourage the children to experience surf club at other clubs and to extend their friendships and camaraderie amongst a broader community, rather than just those at their own club. It is also great for the Nippers to get used to competitions in a relaxed and positive environment so that when they move up to Under 10’s and compete in Nipper carnivals, they are not overwhelmed and put off. This new incentive proved to be very popular and was very well supported by Mullaloo. There was a development day at Alkimos, followed by carnivals at Sorrento, Coogee and Geraldton. We averaged 55 competitors in each carnival, including States and many new friendships were made with nippers from other clubs. These fledgling relationships will be developed in future years as the children grow from strength to strength in Surf Life Saving.
Our club is run entirely by volunteers and seeing the amount of dedication and support that these volunteers give is phenomenal.
Our State Qualifiers were at Trigg beach this year and we had 80 Nippers competing amongst a broad band of water and beach events. Again, conditions were testing but many of our prequalifiers managed to return home with qualifications into their desired events under their belts.
STATE CHAMPIONSHIPS This season, State Championships were held at the wonderful new and improved Scarborough Beach. The atmosphere was electric and the Nippers were so incredibly proud and excited to be representing their club. At the players tea prior to the event, the nippers were presented with tote bags which included amongst other goodies, a Mullaloo State Team cap. These were worn with well-deserved pride. Each age group achieved some fantastic results and many best personal results. The mateship and support amongst teams was outstanding. Conditions were very tough, especially in the water on the first day and many dreams were shattered and hearts broken. However, the children all still had smiles on their faces as they accepted the fact that surf lifesaving is such a tough and unpredictable sport.
MULLALOO SLSC 2017/18 ANNUAL REPORT
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