A big Club contingent fish the 2026 Bermagui Alliance Tag & Release Tournament
- STC Committee
- Apr 29
- 4 min read
The 37th annual Alliance Tag & Release Game Fishing Tournament, held out of Bermagui over the Victorian Labour Day long weekend (6–8 March 2026), again delivered another exciting chapter in one of Australia’s most respected bluewater game fishing events.
Hosted by the Bermagui Big Game Anglers Club in partnership with Latrobe Valley, Canberra and Vic Game Clubs, the tournament again showcased the unique cooperative “Alliance” format—where teams of three boats combine their scores—fostering both competition and camaraderie among anglers.
A solid fleet of 35 boats contested the 2026 tournament, with anglers greeted by productive weather and fishing conditions on day one, although day two saw only saw 22 leave port as the forecast proved too troublesome for many to fish in.
From a Club perspective, we had three teams enter, made up of 11 anglers – a high point for the Club. The STC views the Alliance as somewhat of our own interclub tournament, having had many members fish in it since its inception back 37 years ago.
Team Watermark (left), skippered by Mark Haley, saw Ben Lovick, Mark Mullinder and Dean White hitting the high seas. Andrew 'Davo' Davidson, skipper of Rocky (right), saw a team of his son Aaron Davidson and current Club President Scott Gowland, and his father Allen Gowland, on board. Andrew and Allen have collectively fished the Alliance since the inaugural tournament.
While newly appointed committee member Phil Marks, took along his boat Misfit with Club Members James Davies and Sean King. This would mark their very first time fishing in a sanctioned GFAA tournament. Hopes were high for the ‘Misfits’, having hit the port a few days before the tournament for a pre-fish and going extremely well. 6 tagged fish from 8 strikes in a day had them thinking this first look at tournament fishing might be a good one!
A special thanks goes to Phil for decking out Club members in tournament shirts. Rumour has it, it might have kicked off a new trend for Clubs next year.
As it went, the fishing activity report from day one saw a remarkable 64 marlin tagged and released by the fleet, highlighting the continued strength of Bermagui’s late-summer billfish fishery.
For our Club teams, it was a great days fishing. Each team got on the board with a fish, supporting their group teams. Team Misfit managed a very solid blue Blue Marlin (right), who put on a great show, while team Watermark tagged a marlin and team Rocky did the same.
The crew on Watermark had a day to remember, as they saw close to 40 fish across the day, after journeying down south. Yet, convincing them to take a bait was a different story. Alas, it was still a brilliant day on the water, although their trip home to port wasn’t a smooth ride to stay the least.
Team Rocky also had a fantastic day, enjoying mother nature putting on a show as thousands of mutton birds ducked and dived all around them across the day, as fish continually marked up on the sounder below them.
Come day two, all three Club teams didn’t make it to sea. Yet of the the boats that did, 26 Marlin and a Whaler Shark were tagged. Of those fish, 15 Marlin were split between just two boats!
At the conclusion of fishing, the Champion Team title was awarded to the combined crews of Panlicker, Kahuna, and Mr Hooker, who amassed a winning total of 165400 points, equating to 14 gamefish tagged and released. Overall there were 81 Striped Marlin, 9 Black Marlin, 1 Blue Marlin and a Whaler Shark tagged and released across the two fishing days. Unfortunately our Club boats didn’t feature in any trophy presentations.
In review the Alliance format once again proved its value, with success hinging not just on individual performance but on coordinated effort across all three boats. Teams from multiple clubs—including Bermagui, Victorian, and Canberra-based crews—were prominent throughout the leaderboard, reflecting the good nature of the event.
A Tournament Built on Tradition
First established in 1990, the Alliance Tournament remains one of the most distinctive fixtures on the Australian game fishing calendar. Its founding principles—team fishing, tag-and-release ethics, and minimal emphasis on material prizes—continue to define the event today.
Bermagui’s unique location, with quick access to the continental shelf, again played a key role in the tournament’s success, offering anglers reliable encounters with species such as black marlin, striped marlin, and occasional pelagic bycatch.
Beyond the scoreboard, the 2026 tournament reinforced its reputation as a social highlight of the fishing season. The Labour Day weekend timing once again attracted visiting anglers from Victoria, many of who have made the annual pilgrimage a longstanding tradition. The combination of competitive fishing, strong fish numbers, and the enduring spirit of cooperation ensured that the 2026 Alliance Tag & Release Tournament will be remembered as another successful and enjoyable event on the south coast.
All STC Club members are encouraged to mark their diaries for next year's tournament. The committee will actively assist any member to find a spot on a Club boat so they can join in the action, or take their own, with a crew.
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