Our ‘Fishing in the Footsteps of Mr Crabtree’ presenter John Bailey appeared recently on the BBC1 News sofa, to discuss the EA’s reports of falling numbers of youngsters and teenagers in taking up angling.

The show’s researchers told us that they’d watched and enjoyed the first series of Mr Crabtree and wanted to have an articulate, positive response and view, to what was – in effect – a very negative news story.

We’re all aware of potential pitfalls from putting one of our people in front of a journalist, reporter or presenter, whose sole aim is to attack and not give a balanced view and so we prepped with John – who is smart, capable and articulate enough to deal with such possible ambushes – and if you saw it – didn’t he have to be?!

Sadly, this wasn’t ever going to be a balanced news story about angling, its benefits, all of the great things that individuals and groups of all ages and genders get from the sport and all the great things organisations and associations are doing. This was an attack on angling and it demonstrated an ignorance and an unwillingness to look at fishing in a positive way, or to see how much and how many people it benefits on so many different levels.

I love fishing and have ever since I first went with my dad as a 4 or 5 year old. I love many sports and have plenty of things day to day and in my working life that I love doing – but nothing gees me up as much as going fishing or thinking about going fishing. And I know that’s the case for millions of people in the UK. And it IS millions of us that go fishing in this country and it’s like that worldwide – fishing is either at the top of the list as the most participated in sport in the country or it’s very close.

Do the stats tell the full story?

Do the EA figures mean than less people are going fishing?  Maybe less people are buying a rod licence or are disaffected about buying one?! It’s no secret that there’s always been a massive discrepancy between rod licence figures and real numbers fishing.

That’s not a swipe at the EA by the way, more a point of note and caution. I think that they would benefit from stronger representation and certainly better PR – Why report such a negative story without having all of your responses in place and inviting an attack from the biggest news show in the country. And why did the BBC ask us to respond and not the EA or the AT?

Calm down with the bells and whistles

I also feel that the EA need to stop appearing as a policing body, with the attitude that you legally have to buy a rod licence to go fishing (akin to having to have a TV licence) but rather to act as the custodians of the sport, to educate people about all of the benefits to angling, anglers and general water-users that comes from the rod licence fee. I’ve met a lot of really good people from the EA at grass roots and cant praise them highly enough but at times they are hampered by a clunky, misguided and bureaucratic organisation.

We need to support, as an angling community, all of the positive angling agencies, media and groups in angling across all disciplines of the sport. There is too much disparity between anglers who fish for certain species, specimen hunters, general anglers, game anglers…we are all anglers! And we will all be in the same proverbial boat, should we lose the right to fish.

Take a look in the mirror

We as a group often don’t help ourselves. And along with those groups that would rather see angling banned we don’t always present ourselves in the best light. We need to all act as ambassadors for a sport that often gets negative or certainly little good media attention, outside of the dedicated angling press and media.

I know the guys at the AT and EA well through my dealings over Mr. Crabtree, and I know that they do some very good things. But I feel so much more can and should be achieved in terms of educating anglers, those new to the sport or thinking about becoming involved in it and to those that don’t understand it or are plain anti it.

Fly the flag

We need to help make the sport attractive to beginners and their families, we need to not be elitist or hide behind jargon and we need to encourage people of all ages, genders and race to have a go at what is a great sport and hobby.

So let’s do more about showing angling in a positive light, let’s get more kids and new anglers fishing by helping and teaching them, stop the in-fighting and get our house in order. Let’s support our angling bodies and our voices, but let them also do a better job at representing the sport internally and externally.

Rant over – I need my morphine and still can’t go fishing!!

Tight Lines, Lester