Hi Dave,
I just got back from Coffs yesterday. I don't have much advice for pelagics but the Bellinger river has quite a few jews atm - even a newbie like myself was able to pull one out at mid-day after just 30mins.
Also, the jetty is loaded with yakkas esp at dawn. You'll get a dozen yakkas within 10mins with a sabiki rig.
Lastly, a fellow fisherman caught what looked like a 1.5kg snapper just off the northern breakwall - that may be worth a try if you had a boat.
I hope this helps,
Naux