Fishing Australia

Australia wins gold at the 2011 Oceania fly fishing championships at Adaminaby, by Danny Spelic

In what turned out to be one of the most one sided competitions in the history of the event, Australia took out the coveted trans Tasman Oceania Fly Fishing Championships from New Zealand and South Africa at Adaminaby on the weekend under the guidance of team captain Pat Kennedy.

Team manager Danny Spelic described the victory as one of the best by an Australian team in recent history with Australia Green and Gold finishing in 1st and 2nd place respectively, and New Zealand 'Silver' finishing 3rd.

The individual winners were:
- Craig Coltman - VIC (Australia Green) Gold Medal
- Mark Bulley - NSW (Australia Gold) Silver Medal
- Phillip Luff (South Africa) Bronze Medal

Of the top 10 anglers at the end of competition, 8 were Australians, with the remaining 2 Aussie team members finishing in 12th and 13th respectively. Largest Fish in the River (Murrumbidgee) was a 58cm brown caught by Mike Nolan (Australia Gold) Largest Fish in Lake (Eucumbene) was a 63 cm brown caught by Daniel Factor (South Africa). The total number of fish caught over the 2 and a half days of competition (5 x 3 hour sessions) was 376. The most fish caught by an angler in a single 3 hour session was 28 fish by Craig Coltman (Australia) on the Murrumbidgee River in the first session of the competition on Friday morning.

Despite the one sided result, the Kiwis will be keen to make amends at the up-coming Commonwealth Fly Fishing Championships to be contested by 16 teams from 12 countries in Tasmania in February 2012. Australia will again be represented by 2 teams and will be defending the Commonwealth Trophy after winning the event in Wales in 2010. The Australian teams for the 2012 Commonwealth Championships are as follows:

Australia Gold:
1. Vern Barby (VIC)
2. Joe Riley (TAS)
3. Rick Sunderland (NSW)
4. Jonathon Stagg (TAS)
5. Brian Hughes (VIC)
6. Craig Carey (TAS)

Australia Green:
1. Emilio Caggiano (NSW)
2. John Fisher (NSW)
3. Christopher Bassano (TAS)
4. Lubin Pfeiffer (SA)
5. Danny Spelic (NSW)
6. Steve Seclier (WA)

Special thanks to the Adaminaby Angling Club and the town of Adaminaby for their support, Bolaro Station for access to the Murrumbidgee, and to Fly Fish Australia for organising and hosting the event.

Recreational anglers come together seeking better conditions for Murray darling native fish

The recreational fishing industry, incorporating peak bodies from five states and territories throughout the Murray-Darling Basin have come together in an unprecedented alliance, calling for better conditions for native fish in the Murray- Darling Basin.

Membership of the newly established Murray-Darling Basin Recreational Fishing Council includes VRFish, the Capital Region Fishing Alliance, Native Fish Australia, Freshwater Fishing and Stocking Association of Queensland, NSW Council of Freshwater Anglers Inc., South West Anglers Association Inc. (NSW), Field and Game Federation of Australia, South Australian Recreational Fishing Advisory Council, Australian Fishing Trade Association, and Recfish Australia. Collectively they represent the voice of over 991,000 recreational fishers. Never before have recreational fishing groups come together in this way with a single purpose: to help ensure the health of our rivers and fish communities in the Murray-Darling Basin.

Chair for national recreational fishing peak body Recfish Australia, Mr Russell Conway said “We may not see eye to eye on some issues, but we are a united voice in calling for healthier waterways and fish communities in the Murray-Darling Basin. That means more, healthier habitat, enhanced fish passage, and obviously, water. It’s important to remember that it’s not just about volume too; water needs to be high quality, and flows need to be delivered at the right time and in the right way to optimise benefits for fish”.

CEO of the Australian Fishing Trade Association, Mr Alan Hansard said “A recently released study has shown that recreational fishers spend approximately $1.3 billion in the Murray-Darling Basin every year when they go fishing. This is a reminder that looking after our rivers and fish communities won’t just provide much-needed environmental benefit, but will also afford enormous economic benefit to regional communities as well”.

See you on the water.
Rob Paxevanos