Ryan Young and his group of 12 friends and family from New Zealand were thrilled to have a successful fishing trip on board Akura Fishing Charters yesterday morning.

They caught three marlin (each weighing around 70 kilos) and two yellowfin tuna (15-20kg).

Young is getting married today to his fiancé Kayla Wilkins at the Nautilus Resort. A group of 40 people have flown in for their wedding.

He said that everyone was excited about the catch.

“We hit up Akura because they seem to know what they’re doing, and sure enough, an hour in we hooked the marlin, landed two, and lured straight back in and hooked another,” Young said.

A few of the group work on boats and do some recreational fishing, but most of them were new to game fishing.

“Only one of us – Ben – has caught a marlin before,” Young said.

“We are pretty excited. We weren’t expecting too much, and when you’ve got marlin jumping at the back of the boat and people yahooing, it’s good fun. That’s what it’s all about.”

Young said that Chris, one of the guys, had a big effort reeling in one of the marlins. “There was a lot of squealing going on...”

Jarod Horrell, who reeled in another marlin, said he was left feeling “puffed”.

“It definitely left me thirsty,” Horrell said. “It was a really good day out trawling. It was an absolute stunner.”

Tina King from Akura Fishing Charters said it has been “tough out there lately, so it was great to see this catch”.