A young local angler who weighed in a record-breaking fish earlier this year was officially recognised at both domestic and national levels at the Doubtless Bay Line and Rod Fishing Club's end of year prizegiving recently.
This month, the club's prolific junior member Jessica Scott was presented with a swag of trophies, pins and certificates to celebrate her achievements over a memorable 12 months, of which the undisputed highlight saw the 10-year-old reel in an 11.115kg snapper off the rocks.
To mark her entry into the exclusive 20-pound club, Scott was presented with several Doubtless Bay Line & Rod Fishing Club titles, including the club princess (most points for junior with pin), Peter Sparksman Trophy (a seasonal event held four times a year in which club members can weigh two snapper in as opposed to the normal maximum of one), Hikurangi Fisheries Cup (most meritorious angler for catching the most significant snapper during the season), the Wally Swanson Cup (biggest snapper by a junior), and the Brian McLaren Cup (champion junior angler).
The young fishing prodigy was also presented with several NZACA (NZ Angling and Casting Association) awards, and claimed the New Zealand record for girls' smallfry shore-caught (she also held the previous record with an 8.55kg fish) along with two merit awards for reeling in a snapper over 9kg.
