TP52 Pallas Capital Gold Cup Act 3 - Hooligan Secures IRC NSW State Championship
by Nic Douglass for @sailorgirlhq 27 Apr 15:05 BST
25-27 April 2025
Katie Spithill on the helm of Hooligan during TP52 Pallas Capital Gold Cup Act 3 at the Sail Port Stephens Performance Series © Nic Douglass for @sailorgirlHQ
Act 3 of the Pallas Capital Gold Cup took place as part of Sail Port Stephens with four races sailed, following the abandonment of racing on the final day due to winds over 40 knots.
The varied conditions and tough tides tested the fleet over the event, but it was Marcus Blackmore's Hooligan who reigned supreme on IRC, also securing the IRC NSW State Championship. Seb Bohm's Smuggler finished in second and David Doherty's Matador was third. Koa, skippered by Andy Kearnan, and Smuggler, tied for first place under TPR, with Matador in second and Hooligan in third.
"It's a good lesson in incremental improvement," said Marcus Blackmore of the Hooligan win.
"I think in the past we tacked too much. With a TP52 you can't afford to tack too much".
"Saying perfection is very hard in this sport, but the way we sailed the first day was quite exceptional," said Malcolm Page, double gold-medallist and the tactician on Hooligan commented.
"There is no question we built the fastest TP in the world. And I think you can get fooled by that. And I think we did," added Blackmore.
"We had to change our strategy a bit. I think we were too focussed on what Matador was doing. So we would end up beating them across the line, and the handicap would get us."
"You can't sail someone else's boat, you've got to sail your own boat. If that's what you stay focussed on you give yourself the best chance," said Page of Hooligan's improved strategy. "But also sport is meant to be hard. It's meant to be a challenge, and I mightn't always like it, but it's what keeps me intoxicated and what brings me back to do more".
"These guys, and girls, did a lot of training for this regatta," which clearly paid off, Blackmore concluded.
The win on TPR gave Koa and Kearnan an offshore win and an inshore win within the same fortnight, following their success in the Pittwater to Coffs Harbour Race.
"The TP's are just such fantastic boats," said Kearnan. "So versatile. To be able to go out and have the boat do an offshore race and have it fully set up for that, and then come back and do an inshore series, and do well in both - it was a really really good outcome. Koa has now won a number of offshore races outright on IRC. It's just a fabulous boat".
"We had some good starts", said Andy Kearnan of Koa's performance in Port Stephens. "It was nice to sail around the front of Hooligan in the first start, and lead the fleet. We probably won most of the starts for the four races that we had. Very happy about that".
Day one saw the first inshore races for the Pallas Capital fleet in 2025, with three tight races on flat water. Hooligan was boat of the day, with three wins on IRC and 3, 1, 3 on TPR, giving them the lead under both handicaps at the end of the first day.
Race 1 start:
Race 2 start:
Race 3 start:
The building breeze and change from an outgoing to incoming tide presented opportunities all day, along with challenges.
"Things didn't go our way," David Doherty surmised on Matador's first day.
At the second top mark of the second race they rounded one minute behind Hooligan, only to snag the mark. This not only held them up for some time, it also shortened the course for the boats behind.
"The rounding... I was annoyed at myself that I was so wide. And to hook the mark... How it happened, who knows. But we got it off, sent a guy overboard. Did our 360, and carried on. Disappointing," Doherty concluded.
On day two, the seven TP52's sailed a 28 nautical mile passage race for race four of Act 3. The fleet started together at the breakwall end of the Nelson Bay start line, with only Hooligan opting to start away from the pack at the pin end. It was tight racing all day, but it was Hooligan who led Matador and First Light out of the heads on the upwind leg towards Broughton Island.
Race 4 start:
There were some big gains and recoveries as the turning tide came into play off shore, with the boats further back able to close the gap to the line honours leaders. Consequently, the handicap results for the day favoured those in the middle of the fleet. Smuggler and Koa were fourth and fifth across the line, but first and second on TPR, and second and third on IRC. Matador battled with Peter White's First Light into the line, with both boats within minutes of Hooligan. This gave Matador the win on IRC, and third on TPR in the passage race.
Racing was abandoned at the briefing on the final day. With low visibility and breeze set to come in at over 40 knots, it was deemed unsafe. The decision was proven right with the conditions worsening earlier than forecast.
"Terrible conditions, but what can you do," Doherty commented on the abandonment of the final day which denied his team the opportunity to attempt to continue a comeback.
"Hooligan and us are quite competitive with one another, and well done to them this weekend, they did a good job. So it's all on the next one now," the skipper of Matador, who won both Act 1 & 2 commented.
"Basically it will come down to who beats who for the series," said Page of the prospects for the Pallas Capital Gold Cup ahead of Act 4, "so I guess from a media perspective you're excited, really, from a sailors perspective we like to dominate early and put it in the bag, but I guess this is going to make it exciting!"
The Act 4 Finale of the 2025 Pallas Capital Gold cup will be sailed on Pittwater from Royal Prince Alfred Yacht Club on 17-18 May.
Thanks to naming rights sponsor Pallas Capital and also to Zhik for their support.