The 2nd Annual Goondiwindi Classic is over for another year and what a success it was. With over 200 entries and some competitors travelling as far as 400km the OzFish Goondiwindi committee couldn’t have been happier with the turnout. Everyone was keen and braved the cold weather to pull in 216 Murray Cod, Yellowbelly and Catfish legal entries.
This weekend is all about the kids and families. 68 of our contestants were in the Junior Category. Landon Kopittke topped the charts with 15 fish, taking home a kayak/fishing package donated by Gundy Guns & Outdoor Supplies. Second-place was a weekend fun package to Toowoomba taken out by Zac Welch with 6 fish, Zac and his family get to enjoy prizes from Kloud9ine, Sunset Superbowl, Pizza Hut, Darling Downs Zoo and Blue Violet Motor Inn with Dillon Mechanical throwing in a $100 fuel card. Third place was a tie between Johno Morrissy and Tayla McGowan who landed 5 fish each, both taking home a scooter from Gundy Clothing.
The Catfish categories were taken out by Colin Burns and Bernadette Osborne with a 60cm and 43cm netted. Gary Brown came in close with a 42cm but unfortunately wasn’t present to claim his prize. These prizes were donated by Mackenzies Home Hardware, Gundy Sheds and Border Tyres & Batteries.
The entries were extremely strong in the Yellowbelly category with Ben Hegarty, Josh Kopittke and Shane Rigney landing the biggest with 56cm, 52cm and 51cm catches. These prizes were donated by Gundy Mower & Bearings, Shot2U and Allen’s Pharmacy.
The Murray Cod were elusive with only 3 legal entries coming in at 77cm,76cm and 66cm. Brent Sampson and Grant Elliott took out the major prizes, with the third-place contestant, Freya Duncan, missing out due to not being present to claim her prize. These prizes were donated by Lowes Petroleum, Shear Power Contracting and Perry Farming.
The committee have decided to donate the $575 in unclaimed prizes to the local fish restocking group.
Everyone enjoyed a BBQ lunch which was sponsored by Gibson’s Butchers, Foodworks and Coles.
The raffle prizes were so damn good that there were 700 tickets sold in an hour! There was a pamper hamper from Allen’s Pharmacy, an esky, battery box and light kit from Repco, a Weber BBQ from RDO Equipment, a stove, lantern and boombox from Betta Home Living and 2 chartered fishing tours from Fishing with Usher and Northern River Sports Fishing.
The day didn’t end until the kids had well and truly had their fill. There were 3 rod combos that were donated by Robert Knight to be won, every single kid took home a water bottle thanks to Think Quality Building and the day ended on a high with our junior lure casting comp, where there were heaps of lures to be won, sponsored by GKR Contracting.
Last but not least, one very lucky competitor won the lucky entry prize – a weekend at the Sunshine Coast at Element on Coolum, tickets to Australia Zoo and a $100 fuel card from ACW Irrigation.
North West Rural came to the party again this year, kindly donating the tags to identify the fish and a small memorabilia for the entrants to collect and take home.
The committee have many great ideas and look forward to this event getting bigger and better every year, the 2023 Goondiwindi Classic will be 9th-11th June!
As always, this event would not be possible without the keen competitors, the generous sponsors and the hard-working committee! A massive thank you and congratulations to everyone who made this event such a raging success.
