Peadar O’Brien, of Irish Fishing Guides, enjoyed some good days on the water in the Carrickmacross area of Monaghan last week, as he was joined by some of his usual guests, Steve and Dave, back over from Wigan. This time the target species were pike and coarse fish, with the guys mixing it up on different days.
The weather was all over the place during their stay, with everything from blue skies to windy downpours but they still managed to land some nice pike and some decent nets of roach, bream and hybrids.
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No doubts the guys will be back again next year for another crack at the Monaghan lakes.
Come and do some fishing in this wonderful country Ireland with your friends to be Peader and Tom. If anyone would like to book a fishing tour with us, contact details in our contact info!
We are both qualified fishing guides and coaches with an abundance of knowledge of all the hotspots for coarse fishing, pike, salmon, trout and sea fishing.
Our qualifications include Angling Guides Cert, NOCN, Sports Coach UK, National
Powerboat Cert., and First 4 Sport Game Angling Coach. We can put together for you any fishing package, corporate or groups of any numbers whether it is two or twenty two.
We always do our best to make your trip a wonderful adventure.
The West Cork & District Sea Angling Club will be hosting an open competition on Youghal Beach this Sunday, 9th November. The word is that the East Cork beaches are fishing well at the moment. Bait is supplied on the day, so competitors need only turn up and catch fish! If it were only that easy…
Yesterday marked the third round of the Leinster Coarse Anglers Royal Enfield Winter League. The canal was crystal clear, and the bright sunshine made conditions tough for everyone taking part. Unfortunately, there wasn’t much to report in terms of catches, as the weights below reflect. However, there was an exciting duel between Conor and Griffin in section “B,” with Griffin narrowly edging out Conor by just 1oz — the highlight of the day!
South Shore SAC wrapped up their 2025 Master Angler series at Ballinoulart last Sunday in bright, mild conditions with a lively, coloured sea and a rising tide — ideal for fishing.
Early on, flounder were scarce, though Paul Mason and Alby Allan each found early success in Zone B, while in Zone A, Eamonn Bermingham and Paul Scanlon caught steadily and Paul Doyle landed a 46 cm bass (after some exaggerated reports!).
As the match progressed, bass became the main target, with Thomas Keogh leading the way in Zone B before Alby Allan enjoyed a strong mid-match spell, landing several quality bass despite losing one in the surf. His run secured him first place in Zone B, followed by Thomas in second and Paul Mason in third. Promising young angler Daniel Gricius impressed with fourth place.
In Zone A, Eamonn Bermingham dominated with 12 fish — including 10 bass up to 59 cm — earning both zone and overall wins. Paul Scanlon was second, and Paul Doyle third. Pool prizes went to Eamonn’s 59 cm bass (round) and Paul Mason’s 33 cm flounder (flat).
The final Master Angler standings saw Alby Allan crowned 2025 champion, with Thomas Keogh in second and Eamonn Bermingham third.
Munster Coarse Anglers fished the second match of their winter series on Clondorney at the weekend. Kevin Leahy reports…
Two wins out of two for league debutante Leon.
Clondorney is always a difficult lake to fish with the difference in depths along the shore a little more than 6ft to almost 20ft on your pole line. The shallow pegs were a lot more productive with small fish coming to the pole and whip while the deeper peg struggled for bites with the skimmers not showing in any numbers on the feeder line.
Section 2 had only 1oz separated 3 anglers for valuable section points.
Munster Coarse Angling Club are affiliated to the National Coarse Fishing Federation of Ireland, NCFFI the National Governing body for coarse and predator fishing and casting. www.ncffi.ie
Going into the second-last league match at Cushendun, the leaderboard for the Ulster Krakens league was tight between Ally Nicholl and Raymond “Fish Whisperer” McCann, with several others competing for third place and a possible Master Angler qualification.
Bad weather once again forced a venue change, and there were mixed feelings during the peg draw as some anglers missed out on the better side of the beach. Early on, Ally Nicholl took a strong lead with 15 fish, while David Rainey and Gavin Mahaffy also started well.
Catches mostly consisted of small whiting and a few dogfish, with flounder, coalies, and pollock notably scarce. As the tide turned, fishing slowed dramatically for most anglers, except for Stephen Kinning, who found a few fish from peg 1.
In the end, Raymond McCann’s late whiting earned him the win, followed by David Rainey in second and Ally Nicholl close behind in third—leaving Ally and Raymond tied on the leaderboard ahead of the final match. Gavin Mahaffy caught the longest fish, a 33 cm flounder.
The winner of the TAFI youth fundraising raffle which took place last June, Martin McCoy, picked up his new boat on Saturday November 1st.
The boat was built to suit Martin’s specifications by William Ganly of Ganly Boats.
Youth team manager, Frank Dempsey, presented the boat to Martin.
On behalf of the 2025 youth team, Frank would like to thank William Ganly for doing a fantastic job on building the boat which is finished to a very high standard. Frank also would like to take this opportunity to thank Martin and everyone else who bought tickets for the raffle, for supporting the 2025 youth team.
If you are interested in supporting Irish teams who are attending international events held overseas, keep an eye on the Trout Anglers Federation of Ireland Facebook page for details of other fundraising activities in the future.
The Oaklands 2-day all Methods Match was held at the weekend. There were a few great bags of fish weighed in on both days, but one angler fished particularly well.
On Day 1 Kieran Reeves netted 77.020kg from end peg 10. This put him 30kg ahead of 2nd placed Adrian Browne on 47.630kg and nearly 40kg ahead of Andreis Pirchio on 37.880kg.
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Kieran Reeves
Trev Platt, best on Day 2 but not enough overall for a podium finish
Michael Urbanski
There were no doubts going into Day 2 that Kieran Reeve’s lead but to hard to catch. Trev Platt gave it a good rattle from his end peg, 26. He weighed in 56.160kg at the end of the day. Andries Pirchio was bot too far behind on 44.740 but in 3rd was Kieran Reeves who had 40.520kg and more than enough for an easy victory.
Results
1st Kirean Reeves 117.970 kg
2nd Andries Pirchio 82.620 kg
3rd Trev Platt 78.230 kg
4th Peter Poprawski 55.460kg
Juniors
Best junior on both days was Michael Urbanski with 12.080 kg on day 1 and an overall total of 34.580kg
A very popular carp fishery. Popular with competition anglers and novices alike. Alway a great chance of a bumper bag here. Friendly staff more than happy to advise beginner anglers. Caters to all sorts of clubs and groups.
Angling guide Johannes Bulfin reports on pike fishing recently in the Midlands…
The pike fly fishing has been challenging at times this autumn but thankfully has now settled down into a more predictable rhythm, with some great excitement and a lot of boat side takes providing solid evidence of why fly fishing has to be the most exciting way of catching these predators.
I’ve had several people out who had never fished for pike in any form before. To be able to guide them to their first pike on a fly has been a real privilege.
I’ve also now invested in Livescope technology for the boat and look forward to developing the expertise in combining the latest technology with the traditional skills of fly fishing, a learning curve for me too. I’ll be more than happy to leave it turned off but it’s better to be looking at it than for it, as they say.
As the water continues to cool, a slower retrieve with pauses has been a real key to success. And silver has been by far and away the most dominant fly colour.
There is a real beauty in the autumn colours and the bite of winter coldness out on the water, the fish have been in fantastic condition lately and I’m looking forward to creating more memories:)
Watershed Fly Fishing is a full time professional guiding service specialising in pike fly fishing operating from Banagher, Co. Offaly. In season we also guide for trout on the Shannon tributaries. Get in touch to make your own memories at 085 7386944 or www.watershedflyfishing.ie
Watershed Fly Fishing is owned and operated by Johannes Bulfin who grew up fishing the waters he now guides on.
As a child the pike, that would often be as long as I was tall, would fill me with awe. Pursuing these monsters, as well as the aesthetically beautiful native Brown Trout, became an obsession that never waned.
I have lived in Finland for over eight years which gave me invaluable insights into pike fly fishing, the Nordics are traditionally known for their innovation and pushing boundaries. Various techniques and flies have been born there. Perch fly fishing is a prime recent example of this. I have also fished in England, France, Denmark, Sweden, Norway, across the US, South Africa and Kenya.
It was a cooler week for most and generally fairly wet with heavy rain in places. Land is getting water logged and inland waters are rising. The rosy glow of our autumnal evenings is quickly pushing towards miserable wet winter nights (and days!) since the clocks changed last weekend…
But enough of that! It’s Halloween, and tonight children around the world will be out and about in masks and costumes avoiding the puca and the banshee and hoping for a good haul of sweets. At this stage we all know that Halloween is derived from the ancient Irish festival Samhain with its roots in Celtic Ireland. But it’s actually older and far more ancient than that, originating from an even earlier invasion of this island.
Before the Celts and before the Tutha de Danann came the Fomorians, raiders or sea demons who conquered Ireland and ruled it from their stronghold on Tory Island. After decimating the Nemedians, the Irish people of that time, the Fomorians imposed a grim tax. And the tax had to be paid every Samhain. A tax of thirds was due each Halloween; one third of all their grain, one third of all their milk. Normal enough, but the last part was more horrific – one third of all the children born that year. The practise of paying the tax is thought to have changed over time to offerings being thrown into the sea, and it has come full circle with sea anglers up and down the Irish coast firing out the best of squid, mackerel and lugworms in hopes of appeasing some ancient sea gods…
Trout fishing is over until next year but there’s still room for stories of the season just past. In Keith McDonnell’s latest blog, The Dark Side of the Lough: Streamers for Connemara’s Ferox Trout, Keith brings his experimental approach to the loughs of Connemara with some spectacular success. Well worth a read…
In other news
Irish Specimen Fish Committee
The deadline for submitting specimen claims is on us. If you were lucky enough to catch a specimen fish this year and want to claim it, get your paperwork into the Irish Specimen Fish Committee now so that the ISFC can assess it. All specimen claims to be submitted by tonight, 31st October. Further information on how to claim your specimen award are available here.
Salmon angling logbooks
A quick reminder for all salmon and sea trout anglers — don’t forget to return your 2025 salmon angling logbook and any unused gill tags. These returns are vital for managing and monitoring our wild Atlantic salmon and sea trout stocks. Anglers can submit returns via the business reply envelope provided with their licence, or by posting directly to the IFI office listed on their logbook or licence.
Sharks le Chéile
Sharks le Chéile (“sharks together”) — an independent group linking scientists studying sharks, skates, and rays in Ireland with the public — is inviting interested anglers to get involved. Working in partnership with government agencies, the group’s mission is to bring marine science closer to the public and foster collaboration. Anglers who’d like to learn more or participate can visit their website at https://sharkslecheile.org/ for details.
There’s more rain forecast for tonight with winds staying in the southwest. Tomorrow will start bright and mostly dry with some showers on Atlantic coasts. These showers will spread east during the day. They will be heavy at times with a chance of hail. Breezy with moderate to fresh south-westerly winds. Highest temperatures of 9 to 12°C. With persistent low pressure dominating the weather the unsettled and mixed conditions will continue into next week. Though temperatures might climb a degree or two, winds will be switching southwest to westerly blowing, moderate to fresh and fresh to strong.
Safe fishing to all and tight lines, here’s to finding a ring in the barm brac!
If you have an angling story to share with the Irish Angling Update please send it to reports@fisheriesireland.ie and don’t forget that all of our fishing reports are available on our dedicated Angling Ireland Facebook page.
Anyone who would like to fish the Munster Coarse Anglers Winter League can contact us by 
The deadline for submitting specimen claims is on us. If you were lucky enough to catch a specimen fish this year and want to claim it, get your paperwork into the Irish Specimen Fish Committee now so that the ISFC can assess it. All specimen claims to be submitted by tonight, 31st October. Further information on how to claim your specimen award are available 
A quick reminder for all salmon and sea trout anglers — 
