NASG had been a very successful organisation, which experience phenomenal growth within the late 60s and early 70s. Towards the end of the 70s however and despite any problems the NASG had experienced within its leadership, a new input put the group back on track with an adoption of the body into the specialist needs of the time. The group was renamed The National Association of Specialist Anglers to reflect both the change in anglers fishing as individuals and the old Specimen tag changing to the more user friendly specialist term which it was felt reflected this branch of angling more suitably. Like all groups NASA rose and declined and towards the end of the eighties the national Conferences were beginning to lose support, this was due mainly to the rise of other single specie group growth, like the Carp Society and the PAC, each who now had their own National Conferences and with only so many specialist anglers around financial choices had to be make, membership of NASA began to drop away and many were saying NASA was not doing enough politically for specialist angling, although NASAs social side was still well represented (although on a decline, i.e. the two day conferences went down to one day as the National single specie group conferences gained momentum).
A new political arm of the group came into being towards the end of the 80s being, this being initially called the New Political Group. NASA Political Group which soon became the Specialist Anglers Conservation Group (SACG), SACG ran along side of NASA for a number of years, indeed many of us served on both committees, until eventually the inevitable happened and the groups amalgamated, the struggling NASA was mixed with the SACG to metamorphoses into the new body Specialist Anglers Alliance (SAA), a continuation of NASG, the Mother).
So what changed?
Well nothing and everything, what the SAA is, is basically the political activist wing of the old (1965) NASG, but with the tried and tested experience and commitment to deal with an ever-changing specialist and coarse fishing political environment. With the demise of the NASA, we lost the social side of the old NASG, and with modern tackle development the scientific side of the organisation was no longer required of course, big business saw to that. Basically the organisation SAA (the Mother) has swung politically because a great need exists for political activation in this day and age, The roots were put down by NASG and SAA carries on with this necessary and essential work, the most amazing thing I?ve always found with the Mother, is that it always manages to attract professional activists who fight for the benefit of others behind closed doors, many unsung heroes have got the organisation to where it is today and much progress has been made.
So why are more anglers not members.
Simple really, not many people are interested in the political side of the sport, the social side of the Mother has ameliorated into the growth factor of the national single specie groups and SAA have a much grater need to advertise and market the group now, more so than at any time in the past, they/we need to get out there, but without the bodies to do that, anglings political fight will have to take a back seat for a while longer. The lads who sit with SAA at present really have their work cut out, they don?t ask much, only that we pay subs, obviously if we can offer practical support, angling can move forward a peg or two. It really is up to us, all of us, we are SAA, use it or lose it. What do you thing will happen if angling suddenly gets banned, do you think the cavalry will come charging over the hill and save us? Help us to help you, united we stand and all that!