Angling News - Blackcountryfishing

YOUTUBERS HIGHLIGHT HOW FISHING HELPS MEN'S MENTAL HEALTH IN WALSALL

13/1/2025

Fish On! highlights how men's wellbeing can be positively impacted by fishing

A New initiative has been launched in Walsall, highlighting how fishing can have a positive effect on men’s mental health. YouTube creators Snagged Bro and Bostin' Creative CIC partnered together to create a new initiative called ‘Fish On!’ to prove how fishing and getting active can significantly improve people’s wellbeing.

They produced a short film where they spoke to Fish On! members about the unique challenges they face in their lives and how fishing helps them cope.

The film aimed to raise awareness about men’s mental health, celebrate each member's story, get men talking and mobilise a new angling initiative in the heart of Walsall.

It premiered at an event in November at Walsall Arena where 150 men and their families and friends attended.

Sean and Tom from Snagged Bro, who helped create the project, have been creating fishing videos for almost seven years and hope to use their growing platform to advocate for men’s mental health.

Sean said: “We've always used fishing as an escape and to help reset our focus mentally.

“So, when the YouTube channel started to grow, we always wanted to do something behind the scenes to help people get into fishing.

“As we've grown out of the platform, we wanted to use that to help others.

“There are many different avenues we want to go down, accessibility and advocacy is one, helping young people get into fishing is another and showing the benefits of fishing for people who struggle with their mental health - so that's where we started!

“We now plan to grow the project across the midlands and eventually across the entire UK!

“The project wouldn't have been possible without Bostin Creative and Paul, our facilitator, without whom we'd have been lost!”

The film was supported by Crowdfund Walsall, a council-led programme that provides financial support to initiatives across Walsall.

Portfolio Holder for Health and Wellbeing and Walsall Council, Cllr Gary Flint said: “We are delighted to have supported the Fish On! Crowdfund Walsall project.

“It has created an amazing local opportunity for men across Walsall to get involved in fishing and improve their mental wellbeing.

“It is great to support something with such a wide reach into the heart of our communities and we look forward to finding out where this inspirational project may lead.

“I would also like to thank everyone who has pledged to Crowdfund Walsall projects over the last three years and for helping projects like ‘Fish On!’ make a difference to the lives of communities across the borough."

The full film can be watched here.

STOURBRIDGE ANGLER AMONG THREE FINED FOR FISHING OFFENCES

9/1/2025

A Stourbridge man was among three people from the West Midlands recently prosecuted by the Environment Agency for fishing offences.
The cases were heard at Northampton Magistrates Court on August 22, 2024, with fines and costs totalling £517 imposed.

Lee Sillito, of Sensall Road, Wollescote, had his case proven in his absence for fishing without a licence at Wassell Grove Fishery, Hagley, on February 10, 2024.

The 34-year-old was fined £40 and ordered to pay costs of £65 and a victim’s surcharge of £16.

The other men prosecuted were: Josh Hubbard, aged 33, of Hoo Walk, Polesworth, Tamworth, who was fined £100 and ordered to £135 in costs and a £40 victim’s surcharge after admitting fishing without a licence at Riddings Fishery, Grendon, near Atherstone, on February 11, 2024.

Wojciech Gibowicz, aged 36, of Pickford Street, Birmingham, who admitted fishing without a licence at Lea Marston Settling Lakes near Kingsbury on February 11, 2024, as well as fishing at a private fishery at Lea Marston Settling Lakes.

He was fined £40 for both offences, ordered to pay costs of £65 and a £16 victim’s surcharge.

The Environment Agency said it was hoped the prosecutions would deter anyone thinking of breaking angling laws and bylaws.

A spokesperson for the Environment Agency said: “Such fishing can incur a fine of up to £2,500 and offenders can also have their fishing equipment seized.   “We inspect rod licences 24/7, seven days a week to check on cases of anglers fishing without valid licences.

“Such fishing undermines the Environment Agency’s efforts to protect fish stocks and make fishing sustainable.  “Money raised from fishing licence sales is used to protect and improve fish stocks and fisheries for the benefit of legal anglers.

“Anyone with information about anglers fishing without a valid licence can contact the Environment Agency incident hotline 24/7 on 0800 807060 or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555111.”

MBE FOR ENGLAND MATCH FISHING BOSS MARK DOWNES IN NEW YEAR’S HONOURS!

2/1/2025

Match fishing legend Mark Downes has been rewarded in the King’s New Year’s Honours list with an MBE for his services to angling, seeing the current England boss join the likes of past recipients Dick Clegg, Alan Scotthorne and Bob Nudd in receiving the honour. A part of the England men’s set up since 1975 when he was selected by the then manager Stan Smith at the age of 21, Mark has also played a key part in developing the England youth set up in more recent times, helping both teams

to countless World Championships titles on both foreign and domestic soil.
“It’s a real honour to be acknowledged like this,” Mark said. “I was brought up in the golden era for team fishing and that will never, ever leave me. I’ve always said that a manager is only as good as the anglers that they have to work with, so this award is as much for them and all of the people I’ve worked with as it is me.”

“My whole family has supported me wholeheartedly – my wife Helen and myself celebrate our 50th wedding anniversary this coming year,” he continued. “Everybody quips that you may have been married 50 years, but he’s never at home! True, I’m afraid! I’ve also got to pay tribute to my brother Paul, who has been a real driving force in everything I’ve achieved both as an angler and as a brother.”

Mark’s partnership with Mark Addy when they took over the England reigns from Dick Clegg in 2000 has to rank as one of the most successful that match fishing has ever seen. Just 12 months into the job England won the world Champs in Paris before going on a run that produced further world titles in 2005, 2006, 2008 and 2010. To that little lot individual titles for Alan Scotthorne (twice), William Raison and Sean Ashby can also be added.

Mark fished for England from 1965 through until the early 90s, when has made the decision to step aside and go down the management route, initially as Dick’s right hand man.

“I’d been captain of Starlets since I was 20, so it was a natural progression – I’ve always enjoyed the tactical and logistical side of things, and I felt I could do as better job from on top of the bank than actually being sat on it!” he explained. “However, I felt that the management needed to see upcoming international skills-based talent and how they were progressing, which is why I took on board overseeing the Youth teams. We didn’t have an under 14 team to begin with, so I went out and raised the money to make it happen. Now we’ve got three teams and a steady stream of talent with international experience coming through. Indeed, 50% of the current seniors team have come through the ranks, with more to come, so it shows how important it all was.”

All good things come to an end though, and at 71 years of age, is retirement on the horizon? Not yet…

“As long as I’m fit and enthusiastic, I’ll keep going,” Mark revealed. “What’s more important though, it so surround myself with anglers that contribute to the cause. I want to bring in extra people to help advise and lessen the load, with an eye on guaranteeing progression for the future. At the moment, though I’m focused on winning medals with Summer, with the gold the ultimate goal.”

ANGLER’S FIRST EVER PIKE IS A MONSTER FROM BIRMINGHAM CANAL

16/12/2024

We have all heard of beginners luck in angling but most of our first angling escapades end in a blank, followed by another then another before we start to get things right. This certainly wasn't the case for Reiss Vaughan who, while pike fishing with a friend for the first time, landed a monster 27lb 8oz fish from the Birmingham Canal.
"We decided to explore a new stretch of water spotted on Google Maps. It’s about 1.5 miles long, running basin to basin, and I chose to start at the deeper basin," Reiss explained.
"For this session, I went with a standard inline float rig and used a smelt as the hookbait. I cast towards the far side, just off the edge, and let it sit for around 15–20 minutes."

After receiving no indications, Reiss decided it was time to reel in to refresh the deadbait, and recast to a new area of the swim. However, just as he grabbed the butt of the rod, the float moved. Initially thinking he might have accidentally caused the movement himself, he paused for a moment before realising it was a pike showing interest in his smelt.

"I waited, watching intently, and then saw the float start to drift off, so I struck, and it felt like a deadweight. At first, I thought I’d snagged the bottom—but then my reel started screaming as drag was stripped off," he recalled.

"The fight was something else, lasting around 20 minutes before I even caught a glimpse of the fish. But when I finally did, I knew it was something special."

"After landing it and letting it rest, I weighed the fish, and I was absolutely amazed. Never in my wildest dreams did I think I’d catch something like that."
"My mate was as shocked as me as he has been fishing for years and his PB is 21lb, and this pike obliterated that weighing 27lb 8oz."

"Passersby stopped to take a look, and one said, “I’ve been fishing for over 50 years and never caught anything over 20!” Another joked, “That’s it—sell the fishing gear and take up golf. You’ve completed pike fishing!”

MUCH LOVED ANGLING ARTWORK SET FOR RETURN

21/11/2024

The angling community was collectively saddened when the Environment Agency ditched the beloved artwork of David Miller on rod licence cards, but his iconic

iconic imagery will now be returning in a different format.
The Angling Trust and Fish Legal have announced that, from this week, their membership card will boast his beautiful illustrations.

The first instalment depicts a pike and is in the same format as previous rod licence cards, allowing anglers to continue their collections, or start afresh.

“I’m a long-time supporter of the Angling Trust, particularly the work that they and Fish Legal do to fight pollution and preserve our precious rivers, lakes and oceans,” says David.

“I’m delighted my artwork will feature on their membership card going forward.”

New members will receive their cards immediately, whilst existing members will get theirs upon renewal.

A FAIR FOR FANS OF VINTAGE TACKLE

13/11/2024

Collectors and enthusiasts of antique fishing tackle should make a beeline for the highly anticipated Vintage Tackle Fair being held at The Abbey Stadium in Redditch, this coming Sunday. Established in 1995, the fair has run twice a year since, and is the largest gathering of vintage tackle dealers in the country.
Those who attend will get the chance to not only browse the huge selection of rare and interesting old fishing items on offer, but also

have any tackle they bring along valued free of charge by Neil Freeman of Angling Auctions. “I’ve been running the event 'Calling all vintage tackle tarts!' for the last 20 years and am proud of our links to Redditch – an area with a rich history of tackle making,” John Andrews, the event organiser, said.

The doors will open at 9am and close at 1pm, and there is free parking, wheelchair access and an on-site café. Admission costs just £4.00, and the event’s location is The Abbey Stadium, Birmingham Road, Redditch, Worcestershire, B97 6EJ.

ANGLER BEATS WORLD CHAMPION DARTS PLAYER

7/11/2024

PDC World Champion Luke Humphries with Cadence Superteam ace Darren Massey

One of the best canal anglers in the land proved he is also a dab hand at other sports as he beat a current world champion at their own game.

Cadence Superteam ace Darren Massey is a regular winner on the circuit, but he swapped his tackle for a set of darts during a special event that pitched him up against current PDC World Champion Luke Humphries.

Darren was given the chance to throw nine darts and if he could score more than Luke in six darts, he’d walk away with a pair of tickets for the upcoming Grand Slam tournament.

He held his nerve in style to bag the prize, scoring 226 in nine darts to see off the challenge of Luke who could only muster 102.

REDDITCH BROTHERS CAUGHT FISHING ILLEGALLY ORDERED TO PAY MORE THAN £300

14/10/2024

Two Brothers from Redditch have been prosecuted after illegally fishing without a licence in Evesham.
The pair – Liam Astley Morris, 19, and Joseph Astley Morris, 21, both of Kingsley Avenue – pleaded guilty at Northampton Magistrates Court

to three counts of illegal fishing in cases brought by the Environment Agency.

Among the charges they pleaded guilty to were fishing in the close season, fishing without a licence and using an illegal bait at Cleeve Prior – River Avon, Evesham – on April 21.

Joseph Astley Morris received a fine of £87 as well as costs of £65 and a victim surcharge of £34. His brother, Liam received a fine of £40, costs of £65 and a victim surcharge of £16.

The annual close season (from March 15 to June 15) prevents fishing for coarse fish in rivers and streams across England, helping to protect fish when they are spawning and supporting vulnerable stocks.

Fisheries enforcement officers clamp down on illegal angling to protect fish stocks and make fishing sustainable.

An Environment Agency (EA) spokesperson said: “These two brothers were not only fishing in the close season, but they were also fishing without a licence and using an illegal bait.

“We hope their prosecutions will act as a deterrent to anyone who is thinking of breaking the laws and byelaws we have in place across England.

“We urge anglers to respect the close season to help reduce pressures on our fisheries, benefiting fish and the wider environment.”

They added illegal fishing undermined the Environment Agency’s efforts to protect fish stocks and make fishing sustainable.

“Money raised from fishing licence sales is used to protect and improve fish stocks and fisheries for the benefit of legal anglers.”

Rod licences are inspected 24/7 to check on cases of illegal fishing and for those caught cheating the system, the EA will always prosecute.”

ANGLER BELIEVES POLLUTED LAKE COULD TAKE YEARS TO RECOVER

13/9/2024

A pool which lost thousands of fish in a pollution incident could take years to recover, a local angler has said.
Alfie Tomkinson, who volunteers with Telford Angling Association, said people who had

fished on Holmer Lake and Nature Reserve for 50 years told him it was the worst they had ever seen.

He said "wherever you looked it was just sheer carnage" and there had been "dead fish everywhere".

Severn Trent, which owns the pool, said it was working with a "third party", believed to be the source of the pollution.

The Environment Agency said it had been pumping oxygen into the pool since the pollution was discovered last week and levels of dissolved oxygen were improving.

But Mr Tomkinson said he believed that would need to continue "for a long, long time to come".

He said the pool had suffered from pollution coming in from drains for the last 10 years and there were a lot of questions to be asked.

His group has had boats out collecting the dead fish and he said they were finding them washed up on every side of the water.

"Being a fisherman myself it hits you", he said.

Mr Tomkinson said it would take "years and years" to return fish stock levels back to what they were.

He also feared the pollution would remain in the water.

"It'll sink to the bottom and it'll be in the silt now," he said.

Severn Trent said the pollution was not a result of its operations and it added: "We believe the source of the pollution is coming from a third party which we are now working with."

It said it had been working with the Environment Agency and other partners.

EVESHAM ANGLING FESTIVAL 2024

8/8/2024

Europes biggest outdoor fishing show... the three Day Evesham Angling Festival being held from Saturday 24th to Monday 26th August 2024.

See top anglers battling man v fish on the stunning Warwickshire Avon, fully licensed Beer Bus, live entertainment, craft fair, fun fair, tackle bargains galore & completely FREE entry.

Secure on site car parking at just £5 for upto 12 hours parking.