Tommy Ruff

Tommy Ruff (Australian Herring) 

The pursuit of Tommy Ruff (Australian Herring) in Victorian waters is strangely addictive and has become a passion of ours.

For those of you who do not know what they are, they are a different species from Australian Salmon, although they share an uncanny resemblance, the taste and eating qualities of Tommy Ruff far exceeds that of their larger cousins. 

They both occur in the colder southern states, both feed heavily on small fish and love to chase lures. 

Tommy Ruff in particular are attracted to small ajing plastics, fished in clear shallow waters. They tend to feed at dusk and after dark, the bites are fast, and unexpectedly violent for such a small fish. They are acrobatic fighters, jumping and flipping in a fight, like a mini marlin. 

The ideal lures for Tommy in our collection are the Cultiva Microworm Ajinekuton and the Ecogear Ajiworm. Match these with a jighead with the smaller hook size that will keep your lure off the bottom. We recommend size #7, #8 (as small as practical), such as the Cultiva Horse Mackerel Bullet and Decoy SV-70 Rocket Magic range. 

Be warned, they are notoriously difficult to land once hooked, and you will be doing well with a 50% landing rate. ~ ENJOY!