A better way to run matches?

[Pangolin]

Newt's 'new tourney' thread seems to have been buried in a debate about the rights and wrongs of killing your catch. I did like the idea of only being able to have your biggest three fish weighed, to decide on the outcome of the competition, and I wondered if it would work here? If it was adopted as the norm, matchmen would return small fish straightaway and, in theory, no keepnet should ever contain more than three at a time. I'm no match fisherman, probably because I don't like the idea of having to catch fish at a high rate in order to succeed: I'm really not entitled to have a say in the rewriting of matchfishing rules at all. What do the match anglers think?

[Peter Waller]

I'm sure that it would! I can see it being a disadvantage in regard to pike and barbel though.

 

Like you I am not a match fisherman although I dabbled during the 1960's.

 

I would like to see a minimum size however, that I do think would help conservation. Atleast let the fish breed once!

 

In all honesty I'm with Fenboy re top level match fishing. Can't help feeling that it has lost its way.

[Pangolin]

Looking at the posters on this board, we probably don't have any really serious match angler contributors. I wonder how many people might be tempted to fish matches if the result was decided on the combined weight of the three largest fish?

 

[ 22. July 2004, 09:25 AM: Message edited by: Pangolin ]

[Lid]

I can see a problem in determining which are the three biggest, particularly if they are close in weight different species.

[Peter Waller]

Certainly think it might sort out the problems re keepnets etc. But it won't take off, people want big, as in quantity.

[bluezulu]

so what are you going to do then pangolin!!

have someone with a set of scales behind every fisherman! or every time you catch a fish thats bigger than one of the three in your net pull your net out and replace it! i think not!

if you had one man with one set of scales he would be running all over the place weighing fish none stop. if you were the scales man would you like the job of running around say moorlands, woodlands,larford lake etc where decent size fish are being caught almost every cast! i think not! you would end up fitter than daly thompson in his prime or dead!

i`m sorry it just WOULD NOT work! its hard enough just getting people to turn up for matches without asking someone to do an impression of linford christie with a set of scales in there hand!

most match men are lazy bugga`s (and i said most of em)they want every thing done for them just turn up and fish collect winnings and go home!

no pangolin i really don`t think it would work mate!

[Peter Waller]

I think BZ, that it would be down to each angler to retain three fish that he, or she, considers to be the biggest. Can't see a problem there.

 

My local Broad is awash with small fish. In the last few days I've caught literally hundreds of small 1 to 3 inch perch, and no end of similar sized roach. No skill, no groundbait, just reel 'em in. It soon became somewhat less than demanding although very relaxing. To put it bluntly catching small fish has nothing to do with skill. Anything that takes angling away from mundane no skill events has to be good surely? Mind you, there is a thing in the Mail this week re an attempt on the World Match Record from some carp haulin water. So the fish have got bigger but boring or what! Basically an insult to angling!

[bluezulu]

point taken peter but not every one has the same veiws as you or me on the skill involved in fishing, we are all different.

if every one agreed with one another a.n. would be dead!

[tetley]

Im a very keen match angler, and i just ant see these rules being as fun, i love being able to bag up, no matter what size they are. Especially when u get them going, its what makes match fishing for me!

[Bradford Angler]

Hang on . . so do I get this right, we fish a match and only weigh the three biggest fish. Okay, brilliant . . so first chuck in I catch a 2lb roach . . it then spends the next 5 hours being used as either a weight to throw a net back in or sliding up and down a net everytime I want to compare sizes . .

 

I have been away for a while I know .. but who let the crazies in