Bob Nudd talking crudd.

[martin BATEY]

Having read the minute column that is allocated to Bob Nudd on a Sunday morning in the News of the World. I find myself gobsmacked as to his article dated the 26th of November.

Bob does not condemn Alec Watson's actions in killing two 4lb plus Rudd and having them stuffed, oh no!. Trout anglers do it all the time. That's all right then!

Bob then goes on to say, and I quote his article. "Impaling a roach on a treble hook, hurling it into the water and then waiting for a pike to clamp its jaws around it is acceptable but I find it barbaric!"

He then goes on to say that the rudd were near the end of their natural lives anyway. Whereas a livebait's life is taken in its prime.

If the livebait was not in the vacinity of a hungry pike then another one would be and would be taken anyway.

Just when angling is under pressure from the anti-angling brigade Bob has to write a column that is I feel manna from heaven to the antis.

Livebaiting is part and parcel of fishing for pike. Most waters would be devoid of pike stocks if it wasn't for the pressure from the great army of pike fishermen and pike angling associations in this country. Did not fight for this magnificent creature.

Gone are the days when pike were considered a pest and knocked on the head.

Stick to your pole Bob. Hope that you win many more world titles. Live and let live I say.

 

[GrahamM]

Yes, that sounds like it's brought the issue of livebaiting and killing prime specimen fish right into the living rooms of plenty of non-anglers. And in a publication belonging to the same stable as a clown called Catchpole writes for.

I'm all for free speech, and respect that Bob has a different opinion than me and lots of others, but for fishing's sake let's debate these inflammatory issues somewhere different than a tabloid rag.

 

[DAVE COOPER]

Do guys like Nuddy get a free hand in the subject of these articles? Or was he given the thread? If he has aired this view in the newspaper off his own back he has shown himself to be a bit naive for a professional and experienced fisherman.

 

[GrahamM]

You usually get a free hand, other than topic suggestions occasionally, which applies to every editor of any publication.

But any author worth his salt would excercise his right to refuse to write anything, anywhere, he suspected could damage angling.

I do have to say though, that many of today's angling 'writers' are not writers at all. They're just 'names' that have lent their name to a piece written by the editor or one of his team.

I'm not saying that is the case with Bob Nudd. I don't know.

 

[Chris Bishop]

You can be fairly certian that's ghosted. I think one of the agencies does it but I'm not sure.

I find match fishing barbaric when I see all the dead and dying fish floating in the margins after the weigh-in. Not to mention our names fishing foreign matches where they kill all the fish, or the commercial waters where they cram 100lb of carp in a keepnet on a boiling hot day etc etc.

 

[Ron Clay]

Yes, be very careful when you read articles which are "written" by well known people in the national press. Editors are often looking for sensation and let's face it, the editor can do just abot what he likes with a writer's copy.
By the way Chris, try putting your thoughts about match fishing being barbaric to "Angling Plus"? You have a much better chance of winning the lottery than getting it published.

 

[Chris Bishop]

Are you a betting man by any chance Ron..?