fishomania

[Ferg]

I don't think it fair to say the fish are starved. Hayfield has matches on it all the time and when it hasn't it is pleasure fished so there is gear going in every day and then there the excess bait thats thrown in at the end of every session.

 

I've only fished it a couple of time with my club and its not as easy as it looks. You still have to work a bit to get a decent net of fish.

 

What about the Fishomania a few years ago which was was won by the guy who just fished light down the inside and won with a net of silvers?

 

Even fishing on muddy puddles full of fish, to win you need to get your technique right.

 

By the way who won? there's hardly any mention of it on the Skysport site.

Edited July 23, 2007 by Ferg

[mooserx]

I don't think it fair to say the fish are starved. Hayfield has matches on it all the time and when it hasn't it is pleasure fished so there is gear going in every day and then there the excess bait thats thrown in at the end of every session.

 

I've only fished it a couple of time with my club and its not as easy as it looks. You still have to work a bit to get a decent net of fish.

 

What about the Fishomania a few years ago which was was won by the guy who just fished light down the inside and won with a net of silvers?

 

Even fishing on muddy puddles full of fish, to win you need to get your technique right.

 

By the way who won? there's hardly any mention of it on the Skysport site.

a chap called clive wright from wolverhampton won, he got through in the qualifier at the cudmore complex in newcastle under lyme.

[bingo]

Since they are all fishing the same water, it should still favour the best angler.

 

 

That's a very good point.

 

Anyway, the more TV and magazines focus on these kinds of waters the less pressure there will be on wild, unspoilt and intimate waters. Hopefully...............

[zedhead]

great topic!

 

Im gutted that I missed this years fishomaina, as I normally enjoy the event with a few beers.

 

I dont fish commercials or see the point of creating artificial situations and thus taking out the skill of angling in the purist sense, but its a good watch on tv.

 

the one thing that stands out for me with regards to 'if the best angler would win scenario', is a constant in every match - the peg draw, no angler can account for luck in this sense and so the best angler doesnt always win.

It would be interesting to see how this wave of commercial match men would fare on a range of venues for different species but at the end of the day, the likes of will raison, steve ringer etc have built their reputation by consistantly catching - despite how easy it is to catch on commercials, they have found out how to take advantage of how easy it is, so they are good anglers in their comfort zone.

[coarsefish-torbay]

Interesting thread.

First, I am a match angler, so make of that what you will.

 

I have match fished most of my life, but was bought up the old fashioned way to catch fish from a variety of venues, including catching carp in the era before hair rigs.

 

As a photojournalist, I have worked with most of the current 'top' anglers and have also worked with many specialist anglers. Without a doubt, a good angler is a good angler whatever discipline they follow.

 

On these 'easy' waters, I have no doubt that anglers like Will Raison would catch something like ten times the weight of an average angler 90% of the time. That suggests, for me, that these venues are not fish filled, drop your rig in and bag up venues. Quality anglers will catch much more on these venues.

 

Of course, every dog has his day, but there is no such thing as a venue where anyone can catch as much as one of these stars unless it's an exceptional day.

 

If you fished one of the waters I fish on a regular basis, like Stafford Moor or Viaduct, waters with a reputation as bag-up waters, you would soon see that the difference between those who get it right, and those who think it is easy fishing can be measured in several tens of pounds over the course of a five hour match.

[Anderoo]

I don't think it fair to say the fish are starved. Hayfield has matches on it all the time and when it hasn't it is pleasure fished so there is gear going in every day and then there the excess bait thats thrown in at the end of every session.

 

I think 'starved' is a euphemism meaning that the fish have to eat anglers' bait to survive, i.e. the conditions wouldn't naturally sustain that head of fish, which sounds like it's the case at Hayfield. I'd suggest that (all else being equal) catching a fish that has to eat bait to keep on living is easier than catching one that doesn't, and requires less watercraft.

 

I.e. if the fish are not fed by anglers they would starve.

[Steve Burke]

Some of these waters are so grossly overstocked that not only do the fish need to eat anglers' baits to avoid starvation, they actually need oxygen from the aerators just to breathe!

 

It therefore takes a lot less skill to amass big bags of fish from such waters compared from those with a natural stock density. Anyone who thinks otherwise I'm afraid is simply deluding themselves. Indeed, I've had anglers who've only ever fished commercials join my lakes at Wingham and completely and utterly struggle.

 

However, having said all that, there's a great deal of skill involved in outfishing others in a match. Here you're competing not so much against the fish but other anglers. It's therefore an entirely different ball game. I don't agree with Torbay when he says that these venues aren't bag-up waters, but I certainly do when he says that the top matchnen will totally outfish the average angler.

 

I've a huge amount of respect for top match anglers and, although basically a specimen hunter, have learned a great deal from them. Indeed, I reckon the average match angler is way ahead of the average carp angler.

 

The skills required though are different. Match fishing depends a lot on feeding, and here I believe is where many carp anglers in particular fall down. On the other hand, specimen hunters are far better at location. This isn't really surprising as match anglers almost invariably have their pegs chosen for them.

 

These artificial, overstocked waters do have their uses though aside from match venues. They're the perfect place to take beginners, especially youngsters who need regular bites or they'll get bored. They're excellent for improvers to develop their skills. They're a good place to test new ideas - on more natural waters you may fail to catch even though the idea is a sound one. And as Bingo has already pointed out, they take pressure off the wilder waters.

 

Most of all though for me is that they often grow specimen perch!

 

However, whatever you think about them, commercials obviously fulfil a demand as this type of water is extremely popular.

 

What saddens me though is that some anglers have rarely, if ever, fished wilder waters. They therefore get a false impression of both what is natural and, dare I say it, in some cases their own ability.

 

When this subject has come up in the past I've pointed out that there are increasing numbers of such waters being created. However, at some point in time it's likely that supply will exceed demand, with the result that a lot of fishery owners will go bust, as did many in the put 'n take trout fishing boom.

 

If so, what happens to the poor fish in those waters?

Edited July 26, 2007 by Steve Burke

[Bob Bradford]

Top anglers are top anglers, and the Fishomania attracts some of the very best, take one of this years finalist's Mr Will Raison, he has been an England International angler for at least 8 years, although he is still not 30 years old, this in itself is quite remarkable, Drennan Team England are THE team in International events, England has THE best record of any Nation over the past 15 years, regularly winning the team Gold.

Will Raison can and does fish every conceivable freshwater venue, canals,lakes,rivers and of course heavily stocked commercial venues, it makes no difference to him or others of his level, THEY WILL CATCH WHAT IS IN FRONT OF THEM, anglers like Will are light years ahead of the very best club anglers, they are far superior to regular open match anglers like myself (and I have won ,one or two matches in my time and am still competing at a high level) simply put , anglers of the caliber of Will Raison are WORLD CLASS, I personally know several of the other finalists this year and I can tell you they are all superb anglers that can and do, catch fish from any type of venue, to think these guys can only catch so called "easy Carp" from so called "easy waters" is complete rubbish.

The standard of angling in the Fishomania final is exceptional, it may look too easy to some, but then ,so does a potter at the potters wheel..........until you try it yourself!

[Steve Burke]

Top anglers are top anglers, and the Fishomania attracts some of the very best, take one of this years finalist's Mr Will Raison, he has been an England International angler for at least 8 years, although he is still not 30 years old, this in itself is quite remarkable, Drennan Team England are THE team in International events, England has THE best record of any Nation over the past 15 years, regularly winning the team Gold.

Will Raison can and does fish every conceivable freshwater venue, canals,lakes,rivers and of course heavily stocked commercial venues, it makes no difference to him or others of his level, THEY WILL CATCH WHAT IS IN FRONT OF THEM, anglers like Will are light years ahead of the very best club anglers, they are far superior to regular open match anglers like myself (and I have won ,one or two matches in my time and am still competing at a high level) simply put , anglers of the caliber of Will Raison are WORLD CLASS, I personally know several of the other finalists this year and I can tell you they are all superb anglers that can and do, catch fish from any type of venue, to think these guys can only catch so called "easy Carp" from so called "easy waters" is complete rubbish.

The standard of angling in the Fishomania final is exceptional, it may look too easy to some, but then ,so does a potter at the potters wheel..........until you try it yourself!

 

I couldn't agree with you more, Bob.

 

It always amuses me when I see posts saying that that if the writer could fish the same waters on the same terms that they'd be as good as the stars. This happens both in the specimen world and match angling. In the latter the proof of the pudding is there for all to see!

[Bob Bradford]

That will never do Steve........agreeing with me on this particular angling forum is definitely against the current trend.....would you like to reconsider?