A STAR-studded Snapper Rocks Surfriders Club turned up to claim the inaugural Queensland qualifier for Surfing Australia's Battle of the Boardriders clubs and earned a spot in the nationals at Cronulla, Sydney, to be held on the Australia Day Long weekend in 2014.

In the only sanctioned teams event allowing clubs to utilise their ASP world-rated elite, Snapper made full use of their ASP World Tour Champions Joel Parkinson and Stephanie Gilmore, and their stars didn't disappoint throughout the two-day qualifying event held in marginal windblown surf at Duranbah Beach.

The winning Snapper package included defending world champion Joel Parkinson, five-time women's world champion Steph Gilmore, world tour qualifier Mitch Crews, tour veteran Dean Morrison, club president Jay Phillips and up-and-coming women's junior champion Holly Sue Coffey.

"On tour, if I lose a heat I get disappointed in myself, but the thought of losing a heat for my club is way worse," laughed Parkinson, who also managed four straight wins in the skins component of the event, adding 1300 extra points to the team's accumulative tally.

The competitive teams format ran single, pairs and tag teams heats for an overall accumulative score.

Crowd favourite Steph Gilmore was the first of the big names to appear in the opening day of competition draw as she joined fellow Snapper Rocks surfrider and president Jay Phillips in the pairs division.

Gilmore and Phillips came out of the gates early in the pairs with a series of high scores, proving to a packed beach exactly why they're considered the best in the business.

Clubs give you your first real taste of competition and really help you to develop as a surfer.

"It's so rare that I'm actually home to be able to surf with Snapper, and this event is such a great event to be able to surf in," said Gilmore.

"Clubs give you your first real taste of competition and really help you to develop as a surfer."

2013 ASP world title contender Mick Fanning represented his club, the Kirra Surfriders, in the main round of the tag team before taking off to Hawaii next week where he will face off with 11-time world champion Kelly Slater in the final event of the ASP World Tour, the Billabong Pipe Masters.

Despite placing second to Snapper Rocks, Fanning joins Kirra along with D'Bah Boardriders and the Burleigh Boardriders at the national final in Cronulla.

Overall results: Snapper Rocks first, taking home $2000, Kirra Surfriders Club second with $1500, D'Bah boardriders third with $1000 and Burleigh Boardriders fourth with $500.

All four clubs will now line up at Cronulla on January 25 and 26 to contest the $105,000 prizemoney up for grabs across the entire national series, including the national final.

The Be the Influence Australian Boardriders Battle also includes a monster raffle giveaway with one lucky ticket holder to drive away in a new Toyota RAV4, plus a host of other prizes.

The monster raffle is open to all Surfing Australia-affiliated boardrider clubs with proceeds returning to the boardriders club community.

There had been some controversy over Surfing Australia's foray into national teams events and the only teams event to be given exclusive ASP sanctioning as reported in a national newspaper.

However at the end of the day, it is only logical that the national surfing body further develop teams events and the end result can only be good for surfing.