The boat we were working on was a 40-foot custom build, a fairly average size for the time. Groover and I had the flybridge to ourselves as crew accommodation, which sounds far better than it was.

There were no cushioned lounges or bunks, just a helm chair, a steering wheel and enough floor space on either side for us to lie fore and aft. If it rained, you got wet. If it blew, you got cold. A wiring loom ran beneath us, creating a lump directly under the middle of your back that our thin foam mattresses did nothing to disguise.

Our bedding was equally luxurious: two pillows and two blankets.

Believe it or not, Rockhard was the good pillow. The other was as flat as a Sayo biscuit and offered about the same level of comfort. ItchyScratchy was the larger blanket, named for obvious reasons, while the smaller blanket became known as Chop Off.

To keep things fair, Groover and I swapped each day. Whoever got Rockhard also got ItchyScratchy. Whoever got Sayo had to make do with Chop Off.

The system worked, although whoever had Rockhard made sure the other person heard all about the wonderful sleep ahead.

One evening, after a particularly big day’s fishing, it was my turn. I smugly reminded Groover that Rockhard was mine that night and carried on about the magnificent sleep I was going to enjoy.

Groover’s reaction was unusually quiet.

I soon discovered why. When I laid my head on the pillowcase belonging to Rockhard……Sayo was inside.

He had swapped the pillowcases.

The games continued throughout the season, but during the Lizard Island Tournament, ItchyScratchy was called upon for a far more important role.

At the time, the Heaviest Fish trophy was one of the tournament’s biggest prizes, and one we desperately wanted to win. We had a husband-and-wife team fishing with us, both experienced anglers and capable of handling a big fish if the opportunity came.

Like the rest of the fleet, we began at Number 10 Ribbon Reef after the sailpast at Lizard Island. Fishing was slow, so the next day we ran 40-odd miles south to Number 5 Ribbon Reef, hoping to escape the crowd.

That move didn’t pay off either.

Rather than return to Number 10, our skipper decided to travel another 50 miles south to Linden Bank, the southern boundary of the tournament grounds.

It turned out to be a very good decision.

We had the Bank to ourselves, and the fish were biting. After tagging several mid-range black marlin during the morning, a much bigger fish piled on that afternoon.

It quickly became obvious she could be the tournament winner.

The fight was relatively short, and soon we had her alongside. With four days of fishing still remaining, we had to decide whether to take her or let her go. It was a long way back to Lizard Island to weigh the fish, and keeping her could cost us valuable fishing time.

The lure of the Heaviest Fish trophy was too strong. Skip made the call to take her.

The fish was gaffed and brought aboard. By pushing her bill into the saloon and bending her tail inside the covering board, we managed to close the transom door and, most importantly, keep fishing.

For the next few days, we fished around a 1,067-pound black marlin lying across the back deck.

This was ItchyScratchy’s moment to shine.

The blanket was laid over the fish to protect her from the elements, and we kept it damp to reduce dehydration and weight loss.

Wet blanket. Dead fish. Tropical sunlight.

You get the idea.

Everyone on board slept beside that marlin for the next two nights, until the smell became more than we could stand.

Thankfully, the fishing slowed in the south and we returned to Number 10, putting us close enough to run into Lizard Island and weigh our precious cargo at the end of Day Six.

By then, the fish had to be lifted onto the scales headfirst to stop the tail from detaching.

She weighed 1,067 pounds, won the Heaviest Marlin trophy, was the largest marlin weighed that season and became our angler Sandra’s first grander black marlin.

We won, and ItchyScratchy helped get us there.

Having done its job, ItchyScratchy found a new home in a bin on Lizard Island.

Groover and I went back to fighting over Rockhard — now one blanket down.