Dermot Page reports on thefirst leg of the Rathcon Winter League final fished earlier this month…
The first qualifier of the 2019 winter league was fished on November 4th. There were 18 anglers out and a total of 38 fish landed over the 4 hours with plenty also lost. There was little wind which made the fishing challenging and the buzzers came into their own in the early afternoon. The top five anglers qualified for the final next year.
The results were:
1st Martin McGorian – 5 fish
2nd Carl Owens – 5 fish
3rd Ger Fogarty – 5 fish
4th Aidan Heffernan – 4 fish (biggest fish 57cm)
5th Glen McGrave – 3 fish
Many thanks to Southside Angling for sponsoring a prize.
The third winter league match was on Albert Lock today and it fished very well. Catches were well up on round 2 which was fished at Cloonahee at the start of the month. Catches were made up of big numbers of smaller fish but even though the fish were at bit on the small side it was an enjoyable competition. Brian Bohan had over 300 roach for his second place weight of 18.07lb.
Francis McGoldrick 20.01lb
Brian Bohan. 18.07 lb
Gavin Brown. 16.09lb
Bill Cassidy. 15.06lb
Gary Chandler. 14.10lb
Robert Howgate. 14.01lb
Micheal Fitzpatrick. 13.08lb
Joe van der spek. 13.05lb
Dave Oddy. 12.10lb
Stuart Greene. 12.06lb
Ray Carpenter. 11.01lb
Andrew Riley. 7.12lb
So some good weights all round and well done to Francis for also winning the golden peg today. The biggest fish was Joe van der Speck’s perch of about a pound.
Last week at a club match also fished at Albert Lock, Brian drew peg 5 and had over 200 fish for 34 lb and a match win.
Sheemore Angling Associationare affiliated to the National Coarse Fishing Federation of Ireland and are members of the Angling Council the National Governing Body for coarse and predator angling. www.ncffi.ie
Adrian Browne reports on the 2nd leg of the Oaklandswinter league…
James Foley at Oaklands
18 November: The 2nd leg of the winter league went ahead today at Oaklands. It was bright and cool and fishing was hard for most. As a result the weights were well down on the first leg.
Alain Aphadine has top weight on the day winning his section with 120.00 lb.
But James Foley continued the perfect start by winning the other section and is now leading the way with 2 points.
Section 1
1st Alain Aphadine 120.000 lbs
2nd John Browne 27.800 lbs
3rd Trevor Platt 23.600 lbs
Section 2
1st James Foley 79.550 lbs
2nd Attila Paldick 50.100 lbs
3rd Sean Moore 45.550 lbs
Thanks to every one who travelled down hope to see ye all again on December 2nd for the 3rd leg.
Results
Top 10 after 2 rounds
1. James Foley 2 points
2. Attila Paldick. 5 points
3. Sean Moore. 6 points
George Quinlan. 6 points
4. Alain Aphadine. 7 points
5.Damion Maddock 8 points
Danny Murphy 8 points
6. John Browne. 12 points
7. Ion (Dublin) 13 points
8. Fint Brennan. 14 points
Nikie. 14 points
9. Adrian Browne. 15 points
Kiran Reeves. 15 points
Adrian Bus. 15 points
Oaklands Lake in New Ross Co. Wexford is a fishing paradise for coarse angling. It offers a wide selection of fish. The lake can be fished by people of every level of experience from beginners to professionals.
Adrian Browne
Oaklands Lake,
Marshmeadows,
New Ross, Co. Wexford.
Lough Muckno Matches and Festivals group Presents their calendar of events for 2019…
With some less than expected or deserved numbers on some of our Festivals in 2018, we have ,made a few minor changes in 2019, with the temporary excusion of one Festival, and date changes to another, in order to maximise the availability to our most sought after audience`, from Mainland UK.
Strong indications now show that a resurgence in lough Muckno interest is very much on the cards for 2019, with a number of Fetivals already nearly booked out, at a cap of 50 anglers on each Festival, for this coming year at least.
Another change for 2019 is the mandatory prebooking policy now being adopted, in order to make these Festivals better and more attractive for everyone, not least the competitors, who will now know the stature of the event when booking, be assured of a fantastically competitive environment, with loads of fish in a well spaced setting, with big numbers big sponsorship, and with big Festival status by any standards in Irish Festival Angling terms.
We will offer the unique Lough Muckno range of add on attractions in 2019 in the safest, cleanest, most accessible and fair setting, in Festival angling anywhere in Ireland or beyond.
All intending competitors wishing to enter any Festival are now asked to PM this page signalling your interest in any Festival of your choice. and we will then make arrangements for your easy transfer of a non refundable but transferable deposit.
A huge interest is already evident at this stage on all 2019 Festivals so please check in as soon as possible to ensure your place on some of the most exciting Fishing and competition anywhere.
Please note that all 2018 competitors on these festivals will have first preference in the 2019 bookings and many have already signalled their intentions to book for 2019, along with several old favourites, making a welcome return.
The penultimate development project envisaged for this mighty Lough is nearing completion at South Lodge and should come on stream before Christmas when the Lough Muckno Matches and Festivals group will host an opening Coarse Angling Match Open to all on a first booked first served basis to mark the occasion.
More information on our 2019 Festivals and the completion of the south lodge Section will issue in posts on this page over the coming weeks.
Inniscarra Lake TDL have published their Festival Calendar for 2019…
From St. Patrick’s weekend to the October Bank Holiday weekend we cater for a variety of anglers’ needs; smaller and confined competitions to suit the visiting club angler, one day opens, festivals of 3 and 5 days and those specifically for the feeder angler. New for this year, and for the first time in Ireland is the continental style Inniscarra Feeder Pairs – more on that soon coming soon.…. The festival year ends as usual with the prestigious FEEDERFEST attracting high profile anglers from overseas.
For details of the venues, a downloadable copy of the calendar, festival results and a directory of angler friendly accommodation in the local area please visit w.ncffi.ie/inniscarra-angling.
Sharing their support of the economic benefit the visiting angler provides to the area, local businesses and accommodation providers are supplementing the cash prizes which already provide a full payout on entry. ILTDL would like to take this opportunity to thank its members and sponsors for their continued support.
Dermot Page reports on thefirst leg of the Rathcon Winter League final fished earlier this month…
The first qualifier of the 2019 winter league was fished on November 4th. There were 18 anglers out and a total of 38 fish landed over the 4 hours with plenty also lost. There was little wind which made the fishing challenging and the buzzers came into their own in the early afternoon. The top five anglers qualified for the final next year.
The results were:
1st Martin McGorian – 5 fish
2nd Carl Owens – 5 fish
3rd Ger Fogarty – 5 fish
4th Aidan Heffernan – 4 fish (biggest fish 57cm)
5th Glen McGrave – 3 fish
Many thanks to Southside Angling for sponsoring a prize.
Due to a staff shortage this week, and very few angling reports too, the regular angling update will be published next week, and this week’s reports will be included then.
John Quinlan and his guests have had some lovely late bass and mullet fishing recently around Cahersiveen and Waterville in Co. Kerry…
05 November: Beautiful November sunshine and a nice bass for Mike Brazendale. Bad weather!!! What bad weather?
06 November: Another beautiful day in Kerry.
10 November: Mullet on the fly in November. Great sport for Mike and Cornell.
Go fishing…
Thatch Cottage
Lure and fly fishing for bass normally begins mid to late March with April and May often giving superb sport. Please get in touch to check for best times and availability. If you fancy a spring bass fishing break just give John a call on (066) 947 4721 (or +353 66 947 4721 from abroad).
Due to a staff shortage this week, and very few angling reports too, the regular angling update will be published next week, and this week’s reports will be included then.
Water users urged to take precautions to limit an outbreak of Crayfish Plague confirmed on Al River, Athlone, Co. Westmeath
All water users along the River Shannon are being urged to take precautions after confirmation of an outbreak of Crayfish Plague (which kills native freshwater White-clawed Crayfish) on a stretch of the Al River. This river is one of the main tributaries to the River Shannon in Athlone and flows westerly, entering the Shannon downstream of the weir.
A small number of dead freshwater crayfish were reported on the river last week. DNA analysis by the Marine Institute has now confirmed that crayfish were infected with the fungus-like organism responsible for causing Crayfish plague. Further analysis is still ongoing to establish if there may be any links between this and previous outbreaks of Crayfish plague.
Crayfish Plague only impacts native White-clawed Crayfish. Fish and other freshwater animals are not affected. The disease infects species of crayfish and experience elsewhere indicates the disease can cause up to 100% mortality in white-clawed crayfish species. Agencies including the National Parks and Wildlife Service, Westmeath Municipal and County Councils will be working together to erect signage along the Al River and information will be on the Westmeath County Council website.
Crayfish Plague is recognised as a very significant threat to the survival of the globally threatened White-Clawed Crayfish in Ireland. The disease is considered fatal to all infected native crayfish and the experience in other countries is that where outbreaks occur there is complete extermination of White-clawed Crayfish populations. It is spread invisibly in water and the infectious stage may be moved to other river and lake systems on equipment, boats and machinery.
A native white clawed crayfish. Photo by D.Gerke.
The Crayfish Plague comes from the North American species of crayfish, which are now widespread in the UK and on the continent of Europe. To date there are no known records of these American species in Ireland and it is against the law to bring them into Ireland, to sell them, distribute them or release them.
This is the seventh confirmed outbreak of the disease in the whole of Ireland since it was first found in 2015 in County Cavan, followed by four separate confirmed outbreaks in 2017 and one confirmed outbreak in Northern Ireland earlier this year. The closest known previous outbreak to this was one in the Lorrha in Co. Tipperary and it is not known how the disease could have spread to the River Al at this time.
Anyone involved in activities in the Al River and River Shannon should observe the ‘Check, Clean and Dry’ protocol once they leave the river and before visiting any waterway again. This includes community and local authority clean-up groups, survey work, as well as anglers and all recreational water uses. All wet gear (boats, clothing and equipment) should be checked for any silt or mud, plant material or animals before being thoroughly cleaned and finally dried. Disinfectant or hot water (over 40 degrees Celsius) should be used to clean all equipment and this should be followed by a minimum 48 hour drying period (preferably longer up to a week).
Members of the public will see any dead or dying crayfish should report this to National Parks and Wildlife Service, Westmeath County Council or Colette O’Flynn at the National Biodiversity Data Centre, Waterford (email: [email protected])
