Variety the spice of life

VARIETY THE SPICE OF LIFE FOR MARCH COMPETITION

Crystal clear waters during the Angling Section’s March competition provided a lucky dip for the 11 anglers taking part in five boats. Light sporadic rain didn’t dampen the spirits of the fishers because there was no wind to speak of and the swell was low. And the varieties of fish just kept coming over the gunwales. A wide array featured at the weigh-in at Shed 7; from herring to sand whiting; sea sweep to skippy; from king george whiting to flathead; snook to morwong to goatfish.

And not to mention a couple of you-beaut squid. The calamari have been uncooperative in recent comps, but they were keen to show an interest in fish being reeled into the boat. It was significant that the squid wanted little to do with the jigs, but wanted fresh fish or unweighted mulie heads flung from boats. Discussion at the weigh-in by a couple of seasoned anglers centred round using squid spikes where a fish is skewered down the central spike to attract prey. Certainly, Joe Venter flung one over with success during this competition after a squid followed in a fish he caught.

In a sub-plot to the day, Marcus Sucur couldn’t wipe the smile from his dial after beating father Goran, scoring 55 points to 39. Goran and Marcus, fishing at the back of the Stragglers, landed plenty of snook (well, Marcus did), a morwong and a 1.46kg sea sweep, along with some skippy. Kev Kroeger couldn’t maintain the form of the previous four comps, while his skipper Joe nailed five species. Flathead were all the rage on the no-name red hull Razerline of Ray Wilson and Pat and Sue Keenan-Smith, with Sue and Ray landing five between them.

Ray nailed a decent-size calamari which hooked itself chasing a floating mulie head on a 3/0 Mustad hook, which was bobbing around trying to nail a snook. Not to be outdone, Pat caught a bigger squid soon after. Ray won the comp with 78 points while Goran took out the Lucky Boat prize and Coralie Litster claimed the Mystery Fish award with a goatie. Each angler gets $110 towards their House Support Scheme.

The next monthly competition is scheduled for April 6, with a 7am start from the Club ramps. Call field day coordinator Bob Litster on 0417 189 776 for more details.