Bulli teen Lucas Ottaway seals win at NSW Interbranch Championships

And in front of his home crowd, Bulli teenager Lucas Ottaway delivered.

Ottaway, 15, overcame a difficult start to dash away and seal victory in the under-17s surf race at the NSW Interbranch Championships on Saturday.

"I'm pretty stoked to win, I wasn't expecting it at all. It felt special being on my home beach," he said.

"I was up against some good guys from Sydney, they were pretty decent. I was probably fourth or fifth on my way out and then I swam around the cans, got a cheeky wave and cut in front of everyone.

"It was my last competition before I take a break - I just thought I'd be a kid for a year instead."

The competition involved athletes contesting both individual and team events, on Saturday and Sunday respectively, in a bid to earn points for their branch.

Competitors ranged from the under-12s to open ages in each squad.

Sydney Northern Beaches athletes continued their dominating form at the championships by winning for the third successive year.

SNB nudged out rival Sydney by just a handful of points while Hunter finished in third spot.

Ottaway's win was the highlight of a mixed championships for Illawarra athletes as the local branch finished sixth overall.

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Illawarra's team coach Matt Freeman admitted that result was a bit disappointing, but the region had a had a "bunch of kids" who performed well.

"In the under-13s, we had Grace Crittenden in the under-13s who finished third in the surf race and third in the ironwoman. Chelsea Jones got third in the ironwoman and her sister Maddie got second in the ironwoman," he said.

"We were a little disappointed considering we went into Sunday's team events in fifth. I kept watching Far North Coast because they were the team directly behind us and they went past us. We didn't have the greatest of days."

It's been a huge fortnight for the Bulli Surf Life Saving Club, after hosting a round of the Ironman and Ironwoman series on December 1.

Freeman said interbranch competitors were greeted by difficult surf conditions on the weekend.

"The surf wasn't huge, but it was a really solid four-foot with a lot of water moving. When you have 11-year old boys and girls [competing], it was tricky conditions for a lot of kids," he said.

"For me, this was my first time in the Illawarra team not as an athlete but as a coach. I've gone away and had a family, but I've always remained involved with my club, Bulli. It definitely got my heart pumping, especially on Saturday watching those great individual results that we got."

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