12/06/16 2nd Leg H.O.F.C Xuereb Installations Ltd Singles League 2016.
Hooked On Fishing Club Malta
2nd Leg H.O.F.C Xuereb Installations Ltd Singles League 2016.
12/06/16 Venue : Held at Gozo (Id-Dwejra)
This 2nd Leg was held in Gozo & was different from the other ones we organize in Malta ,
this is due to we had a fair distance to travel & to ensure we all met up as early as possible at ‘Cirkewwa’ Terminal to make our way to Gozo on the Ferry.
Started to arrive at the terminal at 05:15 at ‘Cirkewwa’ where the ferry started loading around 05:30 for a departure of 05:45. Once we drove onto the Ferry we parked the cars & made our way to the decks obviously to see if we can see any fish in fact we managed to spot a few nice sized bream which you could see some of the anglers imagining how to fish for them. Once the ferry was on its way you could hear all chatting about fishing & a few jokes where not a miss neither. On arrival at Gozo everyone followed each other to the Venue at ‘Id-Dwejra’ & immediately started draw the Pegs for the competitors on the spot. This competition was the first ever held at this spectacular venue that the hardworking Club’s Committee always looking for new venues & succeeded to obtain. This Venue was chosen after Peter Azzopardi was scouting for venues & he dreamt to hold one of the Legs this year in Gozo & that would have been his first preference. He discussed his wish with committee & shortly after Raymond Farrugia & the Spiteri Brothers Alexander & Carmel went over to Gozo to inspect & asses the status of the terrain which was deemed possible not easy to fit everyone in but possible same goes for the ground quite rocky too.
The atmosphere between the members was just as always high spirits & helping each other as one family. All the anglers started to take the gear to their spots & started to get some gear rigged up & ground bait sorted, which was quite difficult due to the unknown species around the area being the first time it was fished for most. The Match was delayed a little & started at 08:00 by the time everyone arrived at the spot that was drawn & rigged up ready to start fishing. As the signal sounded you could see different tactics & techniques being used by all which was proving difficult due to southerly winds not the best for fish. At the latter part of the competition there were more frequent bites especially at spots were the Bogue started to come in closer. At other places there was a few Parrot fish being caught but it was clear that the Bogue was dominating on the day. Surprisingly enough another species I wanted to mention that was caught was the Garfish (the same size we normally expect in September) it is unusual to catch them from shore at this time year. It all came to an end at 12:00 with the Marshalls on the day started the weigh in process with all the competitors keen to see how the points went on the day. Once the weighing was complete it was time for the presentation of the vouchers sponsored ‘Fishin Fever tar-Rabat’ & Angler Centre. As usual every one gathered whilst refreshments were made available thanks to General Soft Drinks Malta & home baked cake made by Danica Farrugia. There were also raffle tickets available for a Rod sponsored by ‘Angler Centre that was won by Peter Paul Azzopardi.
The winners of this first leg were in 1st Place Maverick Muliett with 3 Kilos 450 grams in 2nd place Luke Bonnici with 3 Kilos 210 grams & in 3rd place Josef Cassar with 3 Kilos 050grams.
Section Wins: Miguel Grech, Michael Godfrey, Carmel Spiteri & Mario Micallef.
Biggest Fish Alexander Spiteri : Moray Eel 660 grams.
Wish to emphasize that all the fish caught where all released were possible with the anglers ensuring minimum harm done to the fish when handling the fish. The Club practices catch and release in order to ensure sustainability and to avoid overfishing of fish from our waters.