Dane Henry and Tayla Green Win 2024 Skullcandy Pro Junior at Lennox Head

Dane Henry (AUS) and Tayla Green (NZL) have claimed victory at the Skullcandy Pro Junior in the picturesque surf town of Lennox Head. The pair overcame huge fields in the WSL Pro Junior division to take the biggest wins of their young careers in super clean, two-to-three-foot surf.

2024 ISA World Junior Champion Dane Henry (Fingal Head, NSW) achieved a major milestone he set for himself earlier this year, nailing a backflip in a heat of an event. Already holding a solid single score in the Final, Henry put it all on the line when he nailed a lofty backflip on a three-foot righthander. As a result, Dane was rewarded with a perfect 10-point ride – the only perfect score of the event – which left fellow finalist Ben Lorentson (Noosa, Qld) needing a combination of two scores in excess of 18.43 (out of a possible 20).

“It was a goal for me to make a backflip in competition,” said Henry. “I was talking with my coach, Pete Duncan, about wanting to attempt one if the section was right, and thankfully, the perfect section to do one turned up in the final. I knew I had to do something solid as Ben is such a good surfer and he’d been on fire all event. I am pretty stoked with the results I’ve managed to get this year and I hope I can continue them in the next few events and make the WSL World Juniors.”

Sisters Tayla and Stella Green (AUS) fought what seemed to be the first of many Finals when they met each other in the Final of the Pro Junior. After a nerve-filled morning for the sisters, both siblings exchanged a variety of solid turns over the course of the heat in an attempt to gain the upper hand. However, it was the elder sister, Tayla, who got the nod thanks to an 11.90 two-wave total.

“I had a bit of a sleepless night last night thinking that I had to get the win over my little sister,” said Tayla. “I’m so stoked to get the win, as I’m sure this final will be one that we will laugh about in the years to come. I knew we had a bit of a sprint back out the back for priority at one point, and they gave it to Stella, and when I said something to her out there, she just looked at me and gave me the bird (laughs).”