Great Expectations can be a heavy burden to bear.

Initial predictions for TC Ului had him (or her?) showering the SE QLD coast with ten feet plus of raw cyclonic swell. The week passed slowly with surfers anxiously awaiting each new model run to see if the predictions would hold.

The models held true until very late in the piece when an early westward track limited the time spent in the swell window. A quick drop in intensity sliced a few feet off also.

The coast was largely spared. SES volunteers and waterfront property owners were relieved, surfers were disappointed. Still, as Matt Robertson shows us here, all was not lost with a slightly ragged six foof swell hitting a perfectly primed Burleigh bank and a nine time world champ getting loose.

All photos by Matt. //STUART NETTLE