Photo: James Kearney and Michael Sherriff accept the Quinnsworth Cup from Eamon Cummins of the Green Olive while Michael Ganly Club Chairman looks on after the recent Athlone Anglers Association competition.

BACKWARD FISH WINS QUINNSWORTH CUP....

Last Sunday the signs were good for an excellent days fishing, the wind was from the west and at the right strength, the sky was overcast and the air temperature was warm but yet again the only thing missing was the trout. There have been many theories expounded for the poor start to the fishing season but it seems that Michael Sherriff and James Kearney may have found the solution, catch the fish backwards!

The weigh in and presentation of prizes took place that evening in the Green Olive Lounge, the first time we have had a weigh in at this venue and judging by the success of the night it will not be the last. When the scales came down the winners were Michael Sherriff and James Kearney and their incredible backward fish. Normally a fish is hooked in the mouth but that’s too easy for these lads so they hooked him in the tail which meant that instead of coming in head first they brought him in tail first, backwards, and apparently the fish gives a much better fight this way. Even though there was only a few fish weighed in, or maybe it was because there was a lack of fish, the competition was very close and second place was awarded to Sean Kelly and Connor Hannon whose fish was just under an ounce lighter than the winners, this was the first time this year that last year’s anglers of the Year have won a prize so they have a little bit of catching up to do but it’s not beyond the bounds of possibility for two such dedicated fishermen. Camillus Greene on his second ever outing with the club and Christopher Grogan on his first ever outing claimed third place for their fine trout which was exactly two ounces lighter and whether this was beginners luck or not, I’m sure the lads will be back to prove that no luck was involved. Fourth Place went to Philip Keogh and Keith Dowling whose trout was again less than an ounce behind third place and just over a half ounce behind them in fifth place was Owen Murphy and Richie Fallon.
As in previous weeks there was plenty of Perch and Pike caught on the day and hopefully next week will be the same as we are taking a break from the Trout and moving onto our first Pike competition of the year and for those of you interested in all things Mayfly, there have been some sightings of the fisherman’s best friend. Some small hatches have been reported on Lough Derg while a small number were spotted on Lough Corrib on Friday and an even smaller number were spotted on Lough Ree last Sunday. Hopefully this means that the Mayfly season will start early and bring on the good trout fishing.
Our sincere thanks to Keane Moran and Eamon Cummins of the Green Olive for their generous sponsorship of this competition and for their excellent hospitality on the night and the fantastic atmosphere will ensure that we will be back again.

FOR YOUR DIARY...
The following is the schedule of competitions that it is proposed to hold over the next few weeks. Please note this list may change due to unforeseen circumstances, however the details of each competition will be published in the local newspaper, on the posters, the Athlone.ie website and sent out to members by text message in the week prior to each competition.

• April 29^th – Tipperary Water Cup, Pike.

• May 6^th – Lough Ree Inn Cup, Dapp.

• May 13^th – Teddy Browne Cup, Dapp.

• May 20^th - Barra Flynn Memorial Cup, Dapp Home and Away.

FRIENDS OF LOCH AN DOCHAIS...