Angling Competition 28th & 29th March 2026
RPIAC Season Concludes with Strong Final Weekend and Junior Champions Crowned
The Rhyll-Phillip Island Angling Club (RPIAC) brought the 2025/2026 angling season to a close with its final weekend competition held over March 28th and 29th, delivering a fitting finale to another successful year of fishing, and community involvement.
Weather conditions across the weekend provided mixed opportunities, with light rain and wind on Saturday making for a challenging start, before a fine and settled Sunday offered what many anglers described as the best fishing conditions of the entire competition season.
A total of 52 fish, 1 shark and 2 gamefish were weighed in across the weekend, highlighting a solid spread of catches to round out the year. Eligible species included King George whiting, flathead, snapper, trevally, mackerel, leatherjacket, pike and salmon, reflecting the diversity of fishing available across Western Port.
In the Squidgies Mixed Bag competition, Byron Griffin finished in first place with five fish worth 90 points, narrowly ahead of Jude Brown, who claimed second place with five fish worth 85 points.
The junior competitors once again demonstrated their growing skill and consistency. A week after setting a new RPIAC Club Record with a 1225-gram Kingg George whiting, Kolby Carton won the Junior Points competition with another impressive King George whiting worth 1736 points (620 grams), while James Dyason secured the Junior Weight competition with a standout pike weighing 1875 grams.
In the senior categories, Peter Hall won the Senior Male Weight competition with a snapper weighing 1695 grams, while Debra Orr claimed the Senior Female Weight prize with a leatherjacket weighing 510 grams. The Senior Male Points competition was won by Matt Brown, who landed the biggest King George whiting of the weekend, worth 1820 points (650 grams). Anne-Marie Richards took out the Senior Female Points competition with a King George whiting worth 1582 points (565 grams).
The Gamefish competition was won by Duncan Firth, who weighed in a tuna of 3370 grams, while the Shark competition was claimed by Sam Treacey, presenting the largest gummy shark of the weekend weighing 12,200 grams. The Squid/Cuttlefish competition was uncontested, and the Secret Weight prize went to Brendan Anderson, whose salmon weighing 345 grams came closest to the secret weight of 311 grams.
Despite a full season of competitive fishing and mixed conditions across multiple events, the club’s Extraordinary Catch Incentives remained unclaimed for the entire season, meaning all members-only, competition-weekend $1000 first-to-catch prizes will again be sought in the next season.
The conclusion of the competition also marked the announcement of the 2026 Squidgies and Junior Club Champions, recognising consistent performance across the entire season. In the Squidgies division, Jude Brown finished as runner-up with a total of 30 fish worth 535 points, while Harley Griffin was crowned 2026 RPIAC Squidgie Club Champion after catching 37 fish for a total of 655 points.
In the Junior division, Kolby Carton finished runner-up with an impressive 9694 units, while Denver Firth was named the 2026 RPIAC Junior Club Champion, finishing the season strongly with a total of 14,021 units.
The presentation concluded with a roast chicken dinner, providing members and supporters with an opportunity to reflect on the season, celebrate the achievements of anglers across all age groups, and to thank all volunteers and the competition sponsors, including Phillip Island Ten Pin Bowling, Clip’n’Climb Cowes, Bakers Delight Cowes, Jim’s Bait and Tackle, and Phillip Island Marine, ensuring the event was an outstanding success.
The club’s Senior Club Champions will be announced at the RPIAC Presentation Night on April 18th, 2026, bringing the season to an official close. The RPIAC clubrooms are located adjacent to the Rhyll boat ramp and are open to members and visitors on Fridays from 5pm and on competition weekends coinciding with weigh-in. For more information, visit the club’s official Facebook page or www.rpiac.com
