Get in touch with your club’s news
Well,
finding my feet would best describe the first of my weekly columns for
the Guardian.
Fortunately, I have been inundated with offers of assistance to get me
up to date with local events – so please keep them coming and try
to bear with me as I try to cover them all, space permitting.
But I’m still keen to hear from as many people as possible. Contact
me on 01909 472305 or e-mail me at martintrona@aol.com with news or results.
There is a connection between the Guardian angling column and myself –
the late Gerald Rollinson was cousin to my late mother – but I promise
to be less scary than him!
Welbeck Lake
In the
Miners’ Welfare on Christmas eve, keen Worksop angler and old mate
Mick Underwood approached me.
He informs me of his prowess in tackling the trio of lakes at Welbeck.
I’m sure many of us shall benefit from this knowledge and, in particular,
his favourite pegs and how he tackles them.
He told me: “I rarely suffer a blank throughout the season. Much
is to do with watercraft i.e., reading the water.” More on this at
a later date.
Holiday Fishing
For those
of you looking for a day’s fishing over the holiday season, it has
been reported to me that the WDAA canal water from Retford High School
to the marina is fishing well on bloodworm and joker.
The Torksey Arm (between the Trent and the Fossdyke) is also a good spot
using all methods, with plenty of bags in excess of 20lb being taken.
Greatest ever angling
In a
national angling paper’s anniversary issue, they featured results
of the 50 greatest anglers of all time.
Number one was John Wilson, but I don’t know about that one. I grew
up reading about the likes of Ivan Marks (10th), Kevin Ashurst (35th),
Ian Heaps (47th).
The latter inspired me in my early years of coarse fishing and another
’great’ I admired was John Dean (45th).
He was a master on the River Trent and is now to be found on Rutland Reservoir
targeting big rainbows and brown trout with the rudder and tube flies
– a far cry from the stick float and centrepin reel which brought
him so much success in the past.
Several other greats – Arthur Cove, Tommy Pickering, Billy Lane,
Benny Ashurst and popular legends the likes of Bob Church and Jack Hargreaves
(of television fame) – failed to reach the top 10.
It’s a difficult one to judge as far as I’m concerned because
all the 50 anglers deserve recognition for their past work in our sport,
but to judge one better than the other is a little harsh.
Today’s anglers are much better equipped and, some would argue, more
knowledgeable than the past masters.
Mr Wilson is a very good exponent of our sport and congratulations to
him (does he win owt for this?) but, let’s be honest, fishing some
of the best waters available worldwide over the years has rewarded him!
It doesn't make ‘good’ television watching a bloke struggling
in a fishless hole-in-the-ground or a river/canal surrounded by immersed
shopping trolleys and traffic cones – though I’m sure Mr Wilson
would have still caught a few.
Weekly Angling Courses
Want
to brush-up on your angling skills or learning from scratch? Then Ken
Stevenson, local NFA coach is the man.
He is holding a weekly course, starting on 12th January, at the Hop Pole
pub in Retford and each consecutive Monday for 10 weeks.
More locally, the same course shall be starting on Wednesday 14th January
at the Gateford Hotel in Worksop. Both courses are free of charge and
all are welcome.
At each venue, the syllabus may differ slightly to cater for each group’s
needs.
This is another opportunity to gain valuable knowledge and get to grips
with different styles of coarse fishing.
Again, it is funded by North Notts College and the NFA and I shall certainly
be attending. See you there.
Question and Answers
I’m
hoping to do a regular question and answer piece in this column on all
aspects of our wonderful sport.
So contact me with a question and I shall do my best to help as I have
enlisted a few people to assist me, including NFA Coach Ken Stevenson.
Local Stars in 2003
THE year
2003 was a very good year for many local anglers.
It is worth mentioning the achievements of the Worksop and District Anglers
Association (WDAA) youngsters.
In May, five juniors and five intermediates were selected for England
trials. July witnessed Terry Foulds (WDAA juniors) representing England
under 16s in Portugal and also saw the WDAA cadets win NFA gold, with
Matt Godfrey taking individual gold.
The juniors and the intermediates also took silver and bronze respectively
in the same competition.
During September, the ‘flying’ juniors registered a silver in
the NJAA National at Hallcroft.
And last, but not least, WDAA intermediate team member Craig Locke’s
fantastic win in the Shimano Classic was followed by team-mate Brian Searle,
who came second.
These results show us that we have a number of talented youngsters in
and around the Worksop area and, for this, Glen Foulds, WDAA junior manager,
deserves a huge pat on the back.
Hopefully, we can get more and more kids interested in fishing and follow
in the footsteps of the class of 2003.
Notice Board
Worksop
United are holding their annual general meeting on Monday 12th January
at the Flamingo, starting 7.30pm.
If you want to get in contact with Martin to give him any results, stories
or information, you can e-mail him at martintrona@aol.com