69 fish caught in annual comp

Fifteen Cook Islands Game Fishing Club boats competed in the annual Weighmasters Competition on Saturday.

This competition was generously sponsored by Trader Don, Michigan Motors and the club.

A fresh northerly breeze provided excellent fishing conditions particularly around several local FADs.

Catches were well up on the three previous comps that were run late last year.

Altogether eight boats weighed in a total of 69 fish with a combined weight of 282 kg.

Small skip jack tuna (bonito) and yellow fin tuna were biting freely and these made up the bulk of the fish landed.

A nice bull maimai, a few small wahoo and an ono were also landed.

Don Beer came in with the heaviest fish of the day, a yellow fin tuna that would have weighed in at well over 30kg but unfortunately the fish had been savagely mauled by a shark and therefore was ineligible for the competition.

Heaviest fish 1st Teariki Buckley with a 25.6 kg yellow fin tuna, 2nd Steven Kavana with a 21.6 kg bull maimai, 3rd Poila with a 18.1 kg yellow fin tuna,

Aggregate weight 1st Pupuke Robati with 28 fish weighing 77.2 kg (mostly small skip jack tuna), 2nd Poila with a total weight of 36.6kg, 3rd Junior Ioaba with 31.7 kg.

Prize giving followed a successful days fishing along with a live band and carry on.