Anglers drove from as far afield as Manchester, Bristol and Birmingham to take part in the match on Norfolk’s Denver Sluice and FishingMagic’s predator specialist Mark Barrett was amongst the competitors.
The competition attracted 6 British, 21 Polish and 4 Lithuanian anglers plus one Slovakian and one Romanian angler, there was also one junior taking part in the match, which started at 9am with most fish were caught before 11.00am.
The total catch comprised 11 pike with smaller spoons and spinners proving the most successful tactic; surprisingly no zander were landed.
After five hours hard lure fishing the competitors put down their rods and were treated to a BBQ of delicious Polish sausages and new friendships were forged as the anglers had a chance to talk to each other and some made plans to go fishing together in the future.
The match was sponsored by Fox International, who donated some excellent prizes including a spinning road, lure box, and tackle bag and the Environment Agency who are partners with the Angling Trust in the Building Bridges project.
The project aims to help anglers from Eastern Europe understand UK angling laws and customs. The Angling Trust initially employed Radoslaw Papiewski, an enlightened Polish angler, to work in a pilot project area close to his home in Wiltshire, an area which has significant Eastern European migrant communities. The project has gone from strength to strength and there are now two officers employed including Pawel Nycz (who works in East Anglia Region) dealing with requests from right across the country.
Results:
• First prize of £130 went to the highly experienced Polish angler Grzegorz Pawlak who has won many contests in the past. Grzegorz also won £35 for best fish of the day – an 8lb pike.
• Second prize of £100 went to Alan Manastrean from Romania.
• Third prize of £65 went to Renatas Vaidila from Lithuania.
Radoslaw Papiewski, Angling Trust Building Bridges Project Officer said:
“Events like this are here to prove that different nationalities can enjoy time spent together and shows that not every angler from Eastern Europe is here to poach and take fish for the pan. We have made a lot of local and national contacts and have planned further activities in different regions of the UK.”
