The sea was silky calm, making for a gentle ride as we slowly edged around the side of the bait school. In front of us my old mate Adam Atkin steered towards us as he skirted around the same bait school in his little tiller-steer tinny.

Pulling in close, our big 7m centre cab dwarfed Adam's little bream-spinning tub.

"Any action?" I asked as we passed each other.

"Not yet," said the ever-confident Adam. "But I reckon they'll be coming in on Harleys soon."

Barely a few minutes later an excited yell had us all wheeling about to see Adam clinging onto one of the two 50lb outfits he'd been trolling. Seconds later a marlin launched out of the water, shattering the still surface.

It had been a long time since I'd witnessed someone catching a marlin on their own, and we all had a good laugh watching Adam as he performed some crazy dance.

At one stage, the fish got tangled around the other rod, which he had never had a chance to retrieve. Suddenly Adam found himself in all sorts of trouble, but somehow he got the other rod cleared without snapping off the fish.

Keen to capture his antics on film, I moved in closer and fired off a few frames on the Canon as the black marlin cavorted about between us. With no one else to drive the boat it took Adam a good 15 minutes to beat the fish and then tag it single-handedly - an impressive effort by anyone's standards!

With the commotion over, we turned our attention back to the job at hand and set about focusing on connecting to a billfish ourselves. But, believe it or not, 20 minutes later it was Adam who hooked up again!

Another entertaining show saw Adam clambering about the tinny in hot pursuit of the high-flying marlin before he successfully tagged and released his second billfish for the day.
"Well, size doesn't always count when it comes to catching marlin, does it!" laughed one of the guys.

Considering Adam was in a boat half the size of ours, it was certainly a humbling experience.

BIG NOT NECESSARILY BEST
It seems to be a common belief that to catch big gamefish, such as marlin and tuna, you have to have a big, expensive 40ft cruiser. Well, I'm here to tell you that that is nothing more than an old wives tale, and in this day and age it's quite possible to catch as many, if not more, fish from a 5m tinny.

Don't believe this bold statement? Well, lets look at who's been winning the tournaments. The NSW Interclub is a classic example. Attracting more than 250 teams, it is one of Australia's biggest tournaments and subsequently attracts some of the country's best anglers.

The majority of boats competing are big cruisers, but there is also an impressive array of trailerboats, which usually start at just 4.5m. However, despite all the big-money boats, it is more often than not the trailerboat brigade that takes out the line honours.

Trailerboats like Express, a 5.5m tinny, has won or listed on the winners board all too often. In fact, Port Stephens local George Trinkler went one further, almost winning the event a few years back fishing in a 4.2m tinny.

"It was a really tough year and there were hardly any fish around, so we just livebaited around the islands out the front, managing a few blacks," recalls George. "On the second weekend we didn't even know we were in the running, so we went bottom bouncing and still managed to place at the top."

Another perfect example is the biggest blue marlin caught in Australia. It was caught out of a trailerboat on the NSW South Coast.

The size of your boat is not as much of a restriction as many anglers may think. A 4m tinny is certainly restricted to inshore waters, however there is no reason why you can't catch marlin out of it. The trick is to fish areas where these pelagics come close to shore, which could be anywhere from Jervis Bay to Exmouth. The key is to know your limitations and not push them.

UTILISE YOUR SPACE
You don't have to be Einstein to realise that the single biggest problem that faces small-boat anglers is a serious lack of space.

Gamefishermen are notorious for hoarding gear, and they have a nasty habit of taking everything to sea - including the kitchen sink. Of course, this is not practical - anglers have to plan ahead and only pack what they really need.

Rods are a perfect example. It is a common sight to see a trailerboat heading to sea laden with half a dozen or more shiny outfits adorning the rodholders. This may look impressive, but in most cases it's for nothing other than show - because in reality, no more than four rods are used.

Trailerboats have limited space whichever way you look at it. Put simply, there is never enough room for all those gamefishing accessories. The first step is to cull all those extra rods.

"When I fish out of my tinny, there isn't a whole lot of room," says Adam Atkins. "So I only take two or three 50lb outfits and one bait rod when livebaiting."

Even if you troll lures, it's impractical to run more than four out of a small boat.

Don't just stop at the rods, though. While you're at it, why not leave your big tacklebox at home? Let's face it: there are really only a few things you need.

To give you some idea, I take just one small, flat tacklebox loaded with circle hooks, Hi Seas leader, Sampos and a pile of spare bait jigs.

If you want to go one step further, pull everything out of the boat before the fishing season and do a bit of spring cleaning. Strip the boat bare and then go through it with a fine-tooth comb and determine what's essential and what's not. Believe me, you'll be amazed by the amount of useless crap you find in your boat!

When it comes to storage space, it is an unfortunate fact that most Aussie-built boats are not very user friendly. To be brutally honest, most are poorly thought out in fishing terms and, as a result, they rarely make full use of the space available.

Therefore, if you are really serious about gamefishing from a trailerboat, you'll have to invest both time and money to customise the rig to your specific needs.

"After selling The Judge, a 40ft Woodnutt, I bought a 6.8m centre cab," says John Franklin. "However, I was disappointed by the poor layout and lack of space, so I customised it to suit my sportsfishing needs. Now there is heaps of useable storage space."

Everything needs a home, be it the esky, gaffs or tacklebox. Anything not stowed away securely instantly becomes a hazard, especially in rough conditions. Even on calm days you're going to pitch and roll, and anything lose is going to cause trouble.

"I was tracing a small black marlin when suddenly it took off," recalls Stefan Duplessis. "At the same time, the carpet pulled out from under me and I nearly went arse over tit!"
Make sure everything is secured, because if it isn't, Murphy's Law will prevail. In the heat of the moment, you'll trip over while you're fighting the fish - I guarantee it!

ELECTRONIC AIDS
One of the biggest mistakes trailerboat owners make is to equip their craft with cheap electronics. Just because your boat isn't 40ft, it doesn't mean you shouldn't invest serious dollars in decent electronics.

Depthsounders, GPS, radios and even radar are all valuable tools that will not only find you fish; more importantly, they will also get you home as well.

So what do you need to spend? Well, it really depends on what you are targeting and the size of your craft; but as a general guide, a colour depthsounder (minimum 600W power) and a GPS/chartplotter with decent resolution will set you back somewhere between $3000 and $5000.

On the radio side of things, you should carry both VHF and 27-Meg: two radios means twice the contact. And that goes for small tinnies as well.

For those who regularly travel well offshore beyond the continental shelf, an HF radio is also a wise invest. These units are far from cheap, but if it's the only contact you have and they save your life, then they are certainly worth every cent.

Tremendous improvements in electronics mean that, these days, if you can forgo the comfort factor you can still safely travel a reasonable distance offshore and get among the big fish. This equipment is still not cheap, but when you look at it in the scheme of things, it's a worthy investment.

TEAMWORK IS ESSENTIAL
Over the years I have caught many big gamefish, particularly marlin, from a variety of boats starting from just 4.3m in length. The one aspect that is more often than not the deciding factor is the high degree of teamwork among the crew.

Put simply, by working together you will catch more fish - and nowhere is this more apparent than in the confined space of a trailerboat.

Those small trailerboats that keep winning all the tournaments do so through working together as a team. Like a well-oiled machine, everyone onboard has a specific job and knows exactly what is required of them. They practice regularly and rehearse their roles each day on the water. There is no room for error on small boats.

Last season I fished nearly every day during February and March with the same crew and it was amazing to see how quickly we improved. Having never fished together, we were a bit rough at the start - but with a bit of practice we were soon all working in unison and never bumped into each other.

The moral to this story is to determine your roles and then practice heaps.

DEALING WITH DANGER
Make no mistake about it: the element of danger is greatly heightened in trailerboats. In fact, I reckon it'd be fair to say that the level of danger increases as the size of the boat decreases.

The best way to avoid any potential dangerous situations is to work as a team, as we have already discussed. The final stages of the fight are when most fish are lost and nearly all accidents occur.

Every situation is different, so it's difficult to give you specifics. However, there are a couple of hints I can offer to keep you out of harm's way.

The first is to remove the need to trace the fish. There are several problems involved with tracing a fish from a trailerboat, and they're confounded by the fact that you're all cramped into a small space. You need to keep the craft balanced, which means you have to restrain the crew and get someone to stay away from the action on the other side of the boat.

Now, the best way around this problem is to eliminate the trace man - which means employing wind-on leaders. Winding the leader directly onto the reel immediately removes the need for a trace man, and suddenly things are looking a lot more balanced.

Another big advantage wind-ons offer is that the amount of pressure put on the fish doesn't change during the final stages of the fight. When a trace man takes the leader, he immediately applies additional pressure. The sudden increase in weight nearly always causes the fish to react, which is when dangerous situations arise.

By using wind-ons, the angler maintains steady pressure and, as a result, the fish is more relaxed. This, of course, minimises the chance of it suddenly going berserk.

One final trick worth considering is running light leaders. You won't just get more bites this way; if a fish suddenly goes bananas and you find yourself in major trouble, you can also snap it off easily.

These days, with less fish in the sea, I spend most of my time livebaiting billfish under the 100kg mark. As a result, I rarely, if ever, use leader more than 150lb - and I am happy to say that even though last season we had two fish try to jump into the boat, we never suffered a mishap.

BEATING BIG FISH
Many anglers feel that small boats are disadvantaged when it actually comes to fighting big fish. Sure, big gameboats have twin screws and can spin about with easy, but the fact remains that you are still pushing 40-odd-foot of boat, which is substantially harder than manoeuvring a little 6m trailerboat.

The biggest mistake some trailerboat anglers make is to pretend they are in a 40-footer and attempt to chase the fish in reverse. Unlike the big brothers, trailerboats simply aren't designed to go backwards at speed.
I remember watching this know-it-all at South West Rocks once, roaring around in reverse crashing into the waves and soaking his crew as he tried to chase a fish. In the time it took this turkey to get one fish in, we successfully managed to release two.

Why were we so quick? Because we chased the fish with the pointy end of the boat. You don't have to be a brain surgeon to be a good angler!

After the initial hook-up, position the angler in the back corner on the driver's side - that way, he can support himself against the coaming or the back of the boat.

With the angler in this position, the skipper has a perfect view of the line while he chases the fish. If the fish does something, he can react. Imagine how hard it would be to see if the skipper was going in reverse!

While on the subject of chasing fish, especially marlin, don't drive away from them. This is simply illogical: you want to catch the fish, so go and get it! For the life of me I have never understood why someone would drive in the opposite direction.

On the same note, don't be a cowboy! Always play it safe: if you don't have the confidence to take an early shot at a ‘green' fish, then don't.

FOLLOW THE BITE
The biggest advantage for trailerboats over larger moored boats is the flexibility to move about. Unlike the bigger vessels, they are not restricted to safe ports, and they move quickly up or down the coast, following the bite at their leisure.

Last season I started fishing at Coffs then moved to South West Rocks before bailing again and moving to Port Stephens. As a result of following the bite, we rarely missed out and scored fish nearly every day on the water. A lot of my friends who fished from big 40-footers put in more days but tallied less, because the bite was elsewhere. No point fishing where the fish ain't!

Sure, you're never going to be as comfortable in a trailerboat as you would in a big cruiser - but with fewer expenses and greater flexibility to shift camp, trailerboats are the perfect pocket battleships.

So what are you waiting for? Get out there and get stuck into some big fish!

Trailerboat essentials

1. Always carry an EPIRB and make sure it's handy so that if you're in trouble you can get to it.
2. Don't just rely on electronic aids; always consult a compass and nautical chart as well.
3. No fish is worth risking your life for - if in doubt, don't get gung-ho!
   
4. Know your own ability as well as your vessel's seaworthiness.

Trailerboat hotspots

• NSW
  - Tathra
  - Bermagui
  - Jervis Bay
  - Port Stephens
  - South West Rocks
  - Wooli
• WA
  - Exmouth
  - Broome
• QLD
  - Southport
  - Mooloolaba
  - Whitsundays
  - Cape Bowling Green
  - Cooktown