Update: 4.15pm (Tuesday)

Cudgen Headland SLSC athlete Josh Jones was named NSW Country's Athlete of the Day for Round Two of the Trans-Tasman Tri Series' at Takapuna, New Zealand on Monday.

Jones, an under-16s water athlete, continued NSW Country's strong performances in the series and helped them claim Round Two honours.

NSW Country took a 12 point lead into Monday's Round Two after claiming Round one honours at Waipu Cover last Friday and extended their series' lead with a 1.5 point win over Northern Region (36 points) and the Central Coast (33.5 points).

Another young athlete to make their mark was Claudia Crawford (Cabarita) who won back-to-back Sprint races and back-to-back second placings in Flags.

Series results:

Series One:

• NSW Country: 3
• Central Coast: 1.5
• Northern Region: 1.5

Series Two:

• NSW Country: 3
• Northern Region: 2
• Central Coast: 1

Overall:

• NSW Country: 6
• Northern Region: 3.5
• Central Coast: 2.5

Original: Two up-and-coming Tweed stars of surf lifesaving put NSW Country in pole position for a third surf lifesaving Trans Tasman series title in-a-row.

Young ironwoman Anthea Warne (Cudgen Headland) and beach sprinter Claudia Crawford (Cabarita) were standout performers during the first leg of the series at Waipu Cove on New Zealand's North Island on Friday.

Warne, 15, headed into the competition in top form after winning three races from three starts at last weekend's Yamba Open Swim.

She kept her momentum going, claimed first in won the Female Ironwoman race on her way to being crowned NSW Country's Athlete of the Day and Crawford claimed first in Beach Sprints and second in Flags.

Far North Coast Branch manager Belinda Pye said the pair's results showed FNC's future was bright, with five of the six under-16 athletes chosen for Country from the region, with Brad Hunt (Byron Bay), Joshua Jones (Cudgen Headland) and Will Jones (Byron Bay) all competing.

"It's a great thrill to see so many FNC kids in the side and it's a testament to how hard these kids train, so it's a thrill to see them do so well,” Pye said.

"The calibre of the kids up here is amazing and they take their sport very seriously,” she said.

The wins headlined a big day for NSW Country, who took a strong lead heading into leg two in at Takapuna.

The side, made up of athletes from Cudgen Headland, Cabarita, Sawtell, Byron Bay, and Warilla Barrack Point, won 10 of 18 events and placed second of five to take the lead on 44 points, with Central Coast and Northern Region (NZ), level on 32 points apiece.

• Round two update: Tomorrow (Tuesday)