This report in from the IFSA affiliated Ballybrack Sea Angling Club:
Ballybrack SAC’s first Master Angler Competition for 2025 saw 17 anglers line the shores of Dodds Rock in Courtown yesterday.
A 3pm start saw baits hurled into a lumpy sea, tailored by the light southerly winds present. Things looked promising from the get-go, however, it was noticed by many how much the venue has changed after recent weather events. The majority of the bank has been significantly pushed out and the shelf of shingle and stone along the beach has dissipated into the gully for the most part. A few anglers managed some nice flats early on which made things interesting.
The 4 junior anglers that turned out didn’t waste much time putting the pressure on the seniors. Sean Keane with a nice 26cm flounder would take a share of the biggest flat fish pool, while Kalim Byrne scratched one out to beat his dad on the next peg and earn his place on the leaderboard. Paul Crimmons on his debut was rewarded well for his huge effort, also doing very well in his zone with some whiting and a flounder. The angler of the day had to go to new Junior member Jessie Murphy who fished his socks off and had a fine haul of 11 fish on a tough day. A well-deserved winner in the juniors. Great fishing Jessie!
Zone A started off slow with anglers struggling to find the fish in daylight. However a few fish came early for some, Peter Taite at the end of zone A managed a couple early on, one of which saw him take a share of longest flatfish Pool. Stephen O’Reilly and John Hughes also finding fish. With light fading a few more fish started to feed in places. Paul Tyndall made a burst for top spot catching well at distance. Claiming 2nd place, he just fell short of Stephen O’Reilly who fished a great match and won the beach with 14 fish. Well done Stephen. John Keane who struggled early on managed to come back into it and take 3rd place.
Zone B started off at a similar pace. Joe Cannon, Darragh Mulligan and Eric Gasparro all on the scoreboard early. The fish didn’t turn up in numbers coming into darkness, however Eric Gasparro managed pick them off and find a few, including a high scoring dogfish in his tally to take 1st Place. A close 2nd went to Joe Cannon who seems to always find fish on a tough day. Cian Corcoran claimed 3rd place with a few very well earned whiting.
A very enjoyable first competition of the year, but the highlight for most was seeing the junior anglers fish so well.
Zone A:
- 1st Stephen O’Reilly
- 2nd Paul Tyndall
- 3rd John Keane
Zone B:
- 1st Eric Gasparro
- 2nd Joe Cannon
- 3rd Cian Corcoran
Longest Round:
- Eric Gasparro 28cm Whiting
Longest Flat:
- Sean Keane and Peter Taite 26cm Flounder
