The Angling Trust, commenting upon the criticism of the decision, state:
It was made very clear that the decision to use a stillwater venue in 2013 does not in any way mean that natural venues will no longer be used for National Championships. It is a fact that many of the Trust’s coarse match anglers still favour the more traditional venues. However finding such venues which meet all the requirements for a National Championship is becoming increasingly difficult. Alongside this the Trust has an obligation to provide those members who these days do most of their fishing on commercial stillwaters with events on venues which they prefer.
The decision to trial a stillwater championship in 2013 is, therefore, by way of an experiment to enable a full assessment of issues such as suitability, popularity and cost.
However, given the reaction of some of its members to the announcement, the Trust’s Coarse Competitions Committee decided to contact directly all those teams eligible for the Division 2 event in 2013 asking them to indicate which type of venue they would prefer to fish.
If the result shows a majority in favour of a natural venue for the 2013 Division 2 National Championship the Committee will proceed to find a suitable venue which meets all the requisite criteria. Indeed any recommendations from member clubs for 2013, and beyond, would be welcomed. However, a stillwater team championship at Lindholme and surrounding fisheries will still go ahead but clearly not as Division 2.
Mick Turner, Chair of Coarse Competitions, said:
“I hope anglers will realise that we are trying these ideas out with the best of intentions and that we only have their interests at heart.”
