Mmmmm,not entirely true Mark Pollard has always carried a trombone in his carryall,that said most of the good matchmen I knew didnt spout a lot,most of the time they didnt need to,they were very confident of their own ability....
What makes a good match angler???
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I’ve got nothing to say beyond the obvious, but since a couple of obvious things haven’t come up yet…
You have to enjoy competition – so much so, that it compensates for fishing at the worst time of day, or in places and swims you’d never otherwise choose. You have to accept that all the time preparing bait, rigs and tackle, networking and compiling information, might count for nothing with a poor draw or bad conditions on the day. Match fishing can be up early/home late, with actual fishing the thin filling in a thick sandwich of faffing around before the draw and waiting to weigh and hear the results. Also, you need to like fishing with, as well as against, other people - the craic, the banter, the blather. You don’t have to be sociable to fish matches, but it helps to be a gregarious type.
I’m not knocking it – just saying it demands more than just highly developed fishing skills. It’s more like a way of life and a little world of its own. I’ve fished a few matches over the years, club and open, enjoyed it up to a point, and done ok, but aside from lacking the talent to be that good at it, I’m too much of a do my own thing, as and when I please, alone or in selected company kind of angler. I sometimes fish with a friend with a long match fishing pedigree, and he says, as we set up in adjacent pegs, let’s have a £1 on it. But I generally decline as I don’t want to spend the day remarking on who’s ahead so far, a different matter to seeing how we’re each faring. Fishing against the fish is enough competition for me.
That said, if I’ve got, or ever had, any angling heroes, they were match anglers, and I read their books and columns and even went to many matches to watch them fish. I still do that, in fact, and often spend a few hours watching the summer evening opens on the local river. The standard is high, and seeing what the best can do is eye-opening. If you’re a turn up, pick a peg and play it by ear angler – as opposed to chasing a species, targeting specimens, going camping etc – it’s hard to find a better display of technique, know-how and making the most of a swim.
You have to enjoy competition – so much so, that it compensates for fishing at the worst time of day, or in places and swims you’d never otherwise choose. You have to accept that all the time preparing bait, rigs and tackle, networking and compiling information, might count for nothing with a poor draw or bad conditions on the day. Match fishing can be up early/home late, with actual fishing the thin filling in a thick sandwich of faffing around before the draw and waiting to weigh and hear the results. Also, you need to like fishing with, as well as against, other people - the craic, the banter, the blather. You don’t have to be sociable to fish matches, but it helps to be a gregarious type.
I’m not knocking it – just saying it demands more than just highly developed fishing skills. It’s more like a way of life and a little world of its own. I’ve fished a few matches over the years, club and open, enjoyed it up to a point, and done ok, but aside from lacking the talent to be that good at it, I’m too much of a do my own thing, as and when I please, alone or in selected company kind of angler. I sometimes fish with a friend with a long match fishing pedigree, and he says, as we set up in adjacent pegs, let’s have a £1 on it. But I generally decline as I don’t want to spend the day remarking on who’s ahead so far, a different matter to seeing how we’re each faring. Fishing against the fish is enough competition for me.
That said, if I’ve got, or ever had, any angling heroes, they were match anglers, and I read their books and columns and even went to many matches to watch them fish. I still do that, in fact, and often spend a few hours watching the summer evening opens on the local river. The standard is high, and seeing what the best can do is eye-opening. If you’re a turn up, pick a peg and play it by ear angler – as opposed to chasing a species, targeting specimens, going camping etc – it’s hard to find a better display of technique, know-how and making the most of a swim.
Mark Wintle
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At the time I packed in open match fishing back in about 1994 my weeks looked something like this in the summer, bearing in mind I was working 5 days a week:
Friday evening, get/prepare bait for weekend, fill car with petrol.
Saturday and Sunday; get up at 5:15, on road at 6:15, breakfast at Warmisnster 7:00, get to draw at 7:50, fish 10 - 3, weigh in, get home about 8pm after meal on way home. If Saturday, ensure bait ready for Sunday.
Monday evening: tie hooks, fix floats, sort shot, rigs etc.
Tuesday evening: go fishing.
Wednesday evening, poss Thursday evening, fish evening matches/go fishing.
Aside from the tackle, bait, technique, the mind games/confidence tricks played a part at times; there were many variations on this but in essense weaken the opposition.
In team matches being in the best team was always easier than a not so good team as you wouldn't have one of the best team anglers to beat in your section. I didn't realise this until someone joined our team and said what a relief it was not to have to beat one of our team members plus the information was usually better in the good teams.
When I fished with Blackhorse,the summer months went a bit like this,work five days a week,practice for canal summer leagues two or three evenings a week,matches Saturday and Sunday,after several years of this I couldnt fish two matches at the weekend,so my own open matches became a bit limited,you need to be 100% commited,I certainly couldnt be judged that....
ADAMSANGLINGTV
Member
There's an interview with Bob Nidd, I think it may be the life in angling one?
He says that fishing is feeding most importantly and how he has won and lost matches with how he has fed the swim.
I guess that is true and an angler that can feed in a way that keeps the fish feeding for the longer period of time.
I on the other hand have a tendancy to go for the all or nothing approach sometimes and can be a little bit on the heavy side especially when trying to force the fishing on short sessions.
He says that fishing is feeding most importantly and how he has won and lost matches with how he has fed the swim.
I guess that is true and an angler that can feed in a way that keeps the fish feeding for the longer period of time.
I on the other hand have a tendancy to go for the all or nothing approach sometimes and can be a little bit on the heavy side especially when trying to force the fishing on short sessions.
markcw
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I used to run my clubs matches before moving to Oxford, I first started doing it in 2000 after fishing them for a couple of years, I stopped both running them and fishing them in 2012 after a stroke .
Running them is a lot different than fishing them, even though these weren't serious affairs as such.
You had to be there early to peg out, ask members to move off the water even though notices about match were around the water, then after the match and all gone home, go around the water checking that no one has left anything.
I got asked to do them again in 2018 and had a fair bit of interest,
It sometimes got the way when I went pleasure fishing, I was fishing as if I was in a match, and I wasnt enjoying it.
A couple of clubs I am in down here have matches, one clubs is on the canal. Another clubs is on one their pools.
The pools matches I will turn up at first to watch and see how they fish them, have pleasure fished them, but that is a different setup as in can choose my own peg, I would say I am a decent canal angler,and this one is pretty much the same as one I fish up north, so I will just turn up for those, and see how I do, not expecting to frame at first but who knows,
What I do know is once I start not enjoying them or pleasure fishing, I will cut down on matches, No match is that important
Running them is a lot different than fishing them, even though these weren't serious affairs as such.
You had to be there early to peg out, ask members to move off the water even though notices about match were around the water, then after the match and all gone home, go around the water checking that no one has left anything.
I got asked to do them again in 2018 and had a fair bit of interest,
It sometimes got the way when I went pleasure fishing, I was fishing as if I was in a match, and I wasnt enjoying it.
A couple of clubs I am in down here have matches, one clubs is on the canal. Another clubs is on one their pools.
The pools matches I will turn up at first to watch and see how they fish them, have pleasure fished them, but that is a different setup as in can choose my own peg, I would say I am a decent canal angler,and this one is pretty much the same as one I fish up north, so I will just turn up for those, and see how I do, not expecting to frame at first but who knows,
What I do know is once I start not enjoying them or pleasure fishing, I will cut down on matches, No match is that important
sis the roach
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Ivan use to use him as a guiea pig to find out different methods my mate Wayne swinscoe was pals with him he fished the notts fed matches I was a founder member of trentman my best mate was frank Barlow johhy Rolfe along with Peter warren ted stokes roy toulson Peter palmer Terry doorman Steve draper Eric Thurman gerry woodcock Pete Dudley
Paste paul
Well-known member
I’ve been reading this thread with interest.......
I have matched fished from an Earl age (9) and used to love it........ back through the eighties it was all river Trent and the witham plus our local reservoir.
I’ve had a fair bit of success too and adapted to commercial fishing pretty well but didn’t find it easy at first.........
However I’ve grown old and or grown out of match fishing I’ve realised there’s more to angling than winning matches......
I fished a local match yesterday that my old club invited me to and to be honest I struggled with it ..... not catching I won my section but the whole pressure thing ....... for example I wasn’t even set up when the whistle blew and when it did I was rushing setting up when it should have been an enjoyable experience......
im also falling out with commercial waters not necessarily because they are over stocked puddles but when I see the state of the fish I do feel sorry for them and I question my morality being involved with such practices.......
To answer the question what makes a good match man .......
1. Raw natural talent (Ivan marks springs to mind)
2. Dedication ( Ivan marks springs to mind)
3. The love for competition ( Ivan .......you guessed it)
I could go on as there are many different elements...
One thing I will say being in the right place at the right time and being exposed to the right people goes a long way........
When I was about 16 a guy from our club bob Goodwin a real class act always won the club championship and was a former 1000 peg match winner on the witham winning the stones championship ( I can’t remember the exact name)
Took me under his wing ...... he taught me waggler and stick float fishing and more importantly the importance of feeding ..... I then started to win matches regularly something I wouldn’t have done without his help......
There was no internet back then !!!!!!!!
Any how I think my match days are pretty much over and my pursuit and passion for pleasure fishing is back ...... and as for commercial waters well ..............
I have matched fished from an Earl age (9) and used to love it........ back through the eighties it was all river Trent and the witham plus our local reservoir.
I’ve had a fair bit of success too and adapted to commercial fishing pretty well but didn’t find it easy at first.........
However I’ve grown old and or grown out of match fishing I’ve realised there’s more to angling than winning matches......
I fished a local match yesterday that my old club invited me to and to be honest I struggled with it ..... not catching I won my section but the whole pressure thing ....... for example I wasn’t even set up when the whistle blew and when it did I was rushing setting up when it should have been an enjoyable experience......
im also falling out with commercial waters not necessarily because they are over stocked puddles but when I see the state of the fish I do feel sorry for them and I question my morality being involved with such practices.......
To answer the question what makes a good match man .......
1. Raw natural talent (Ivan marks springs to mind)
2. Dedication ( Ivan marks springs to mind)
3. The love for competition ( Ivan .......you guessed it)
I could go on as there are many different elements...
One thing I will say being in the right place at the right time and being exposed to the right people goes a long way........
When I was about 16 a guy from our club bob Goodwin a real class act always won the club championship and was a former 1000 peg match winner on the witham winning the stones championship ( I can’t remember the exact name)
Took me under his wing ...... he taught me waggler and stick float fishing and more importantly the importance of feeding ..... I then started to win matches regularly something I wouldn’t have done without his help......
There was no internet back then !!!!!!!!
Any how I think my match days are pretty much over and my pursuit and passion for pleasure fishing is back ...... and as for commercial waters well ..............
I used to love match fishing and was keen,keen both to learn and to win,team wise and individually,it wasn't a money motivated thing,it was sheer competition,I enjoyed the whole thing,then suddenly I lost interest,last year I fished a small club match and wished I hadn't,it was an awful experience,the banter was there,the ambition wasn't.
steve2
Well-known member
Like you I was sitting there one day fishing a match on yet another carp hole and thought why am doing this I am not enjoying this. I have never fished another match.
I still chat to a few of my old team mates from back in the day,one guy,Rob Hewison,used to fish with Blackhorse,well now he lives in the East of England,he fished a match on Rookery fishery Saturday I think,caught 191lbs to win his section,when I saw that it sickened me,some guys were saying how great the fishing was,imho if a match was won with 40/50lbs(or less)and it wasn't too peggy that would be a far better match,instead of hauling hapless,starving fish from the water,awful...to think he used to be a very good canal angler,he fishes the drains in the winter mind...
markcw
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Up north I fished the club matches I organized, and also I am in a small club that only fish commercial matches, we would book commercials for matches during the year,
It got that way with the commercial matches I knew which pegs would produce and which you would struggle, Had 7 matches on one commercial over 3 year period, they were won off same peg 6 times , we had to put it in due to numbers fishing.
I started to lose interest in these because it was same commercials each year .
As for the ones I organized I was losing interest in these, not because of venues or bad pegs, I was losing the edge to compete. Maybe it was having to peg out ,weigh in etc, and preparation I am not sure.
I found when I went pleasure fishing ,I was treating it like a match.
So I had a couple of months lay off, when moved down south,and now when I go I am enjoying my fishing.Not fished any matches here yet, want to see how they fish them first. Am still in the commercial club up north and will pick and choose those venues , I need to enjoy those because 3 hour drive, As for matches I organized ,someone else is doing those now.
If you stop enjoying matches , either take a break from fishing for short while, or reevaluate how much gear you need and go pleasure fishing. There are no "what ifs" in pleasure fishing like in matches where you take a kilo of feders/leads, enough pole rigs for every venue in the country, pole, long margin and shove under brambles margin, 3 pole rollers, 2 landing net handles and spare nets, plus minimum 2 keepnets.float rods and feeder rods,
No wonder we need shuttles/barrows to take our gear, Also I put it down to taking to much tackle to a match.
It got that way with the commercial matches I knew which pegs would produce and which you would struggle, Had 7 matches on one commercial over 3 year period, they were won off same peg 6 times , we had to put it in due to numbers fishing.
I started to lose interest in these because it was same commercials each year .
As for the ones I organized I was losing interest in these, not because of venues or bad pegs, I was losing the edge to compete. Maybe it was having to peg out ,weigh in etc, and preparation I am not sure.
I found when I went pleasure fishing ,I was treating it like a match.
So I had a couple of months lay off, when moved down south,and now when I go I am enjoying my fishing.Not fished any matches here yet, want to see how they fish them first. Am still in the commercial club up north and will pick and choose those venues , I need to enjoy those because 3 hour drive, As for matches I organized ,someone else is doing those now.
If you stop enjoying matches , either take a break from fishing for short while, or reevaluate how much gear you need and go pleasure fishing. There are no "what ifs" in pleasure fishing like in matches where you take a kilo of feders/leads, enough pole rigs for every venue in the country, pole, long margin and shove under brambles margin, 3 pole rollers, 2 landing net handles and spare nets, plus minimum 2 keepnets.float rods and feeder rods,
No wonder we need shuttles/barrows to take our gear, Also I put it down to taking to much tackle to a match.
rayner
Well-known member
My match fishing was due to either fish matches or don't fish the river Trent. When I was really wanting to fish the river my only option was organised competition, places I wanted to fish were booked up for years with competition.
In truth, I was nowhere near experienced enough to compete, that soon showed, in fact almost instantly.
My ability was and still is limited, more now through circumstance than ability but still limited. I was on a sharp learning curve that I dropped as soon as pleasure pegs became more available to me.
The biggest issue for me was work, the only time off for me was Saturday. Saturdays were match days on the Trent with next to no experience I took the leap. OK, my skills improved slowly but nowhere quick enough to compete with anglers who simply had too much natural talent for a want to be angler.
I've picked up a little over the years but I reckon I'm still a wannabe angler, I can manage just about to fish in a fashion especially on the fish rammed venues I fish now but that's because I accept my limitations and don't try to do what I can't.
On the whole, I did learn a bit from match fishing, as for what makes a good match angler
I could spout a load of tripe but I don't really know, probably down to my lack of ability.
In truth, I was nowhere near experienced enough to compete, that soon showed, in fact almost instantly.
My ability was and still is limited, more now through circumstance than ability but still limited. I was on a sharp learning curve that I dropped as soon as pleasure pegs became more available to me.
The biggest issue for me was work, the only time off for me was Saturday. Saturdays were match days on the Trent with next to no experience I took the leap. OK, my skills improved slowly but nowhere quick enough to compete with anglers who simply had too much natural talent for a want to be angler.
I've picked up a little over the years but I reckon I'm still a wannabe angler, I can manage just about to fish in a fashion especially on the fish rammed venues I fish now but that's because I accept my limitations and don't try to do what I can't.
On the whole, I did learn a bit from match fishing, as for what makes a good match angler
I could spout a load of tripe but I don't really know, probably down to my lack of ability.
My match fishing moved at pace,when I used to go on Vauxhall AC weekly coach trips,I was spotted as a 'possible' recruit to match fishing,within two years I was fishing league matches and in the winning team,my keeness shot upwards,wanting to learn how to catch chub on the float and then it was a pretty successful match fishing career,winning many leagues,winning top individual point scorer in several different leagues,some up to three years in a row,fishing many nationals,mainly division 1&2,winning a decent amount of club and open matches,it seems odd to me how many of my team mates still match fish,yet I feel an odd non-interest,almost numbness to it,yet i'm still quite competetive and enjoy getting into bagging mode...
sis the roach
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Has has been said Ivan marks Kevin Ashurst his dad Benny I have been friends with them and spoke and watched them I was a founder member of Trentmen and fished with Frank Barlow ted stokes terry dorman Jonny Rolfe Wayne swinscoe Roy toulson peter Palmer Jonny moult forget what tackle he used if I told you wouldn’t believe me Eric Thurman eddy Upton Peter Warren who I still see two or three times a week Gerry woodcock Steve draper don slay maker Pete Dudley and many more they al have great ability there is no substitute but there are short cuts phil coles got them from Ivan marks has did Kevin Ashurst from his dad and other but some people have the ability to learn quickly and if you had a job were you could have more time off work and practice I wish we could document all the great anglers tha have passed I also befriended Stan brown from goole what a brilliant Trent angler he was and I could keep writing name for weeks **** ward and so on
Aknib
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They are great names of the sport,and i've had the pleasure of meeting a great many of them,doesn't really explain what made them that good,whether it's a combination of different ingredients for each one,or whether there is is one common denominator is a matter of opinion,one thing is certain Ivan Marks was a totally different sort of angler to Ken Giles,Ken whilst match fishing was organised to the nth degree,Ivan not so much,both heroes of mine back in the day and top,top matchmen....