The Munster Youth Fly Fishing Championships were held on the River Suir on Saturday last, hosted by the Cashel Golden Anglers. Young anglers from all over Munster competed in this very enjoyable event. Angling conditions were not very favourable, with strong cold winds prevailing all day. The river was also dropping from the recent floods. It is testament to the skills of all these young anglers that a total of 81 trout were caught and released in such demanding conditions.
The competition is fished on a catch-and-release basis, using barbless hooks. Each angler draws a beat and gets to fish a three-hour session in that beat. After a lunch break, the second session is fished, with the angler getting a different beat. Points are awarded for each fish recorded, on the Fips Mouche World Championship scoring system.
The winning team was Mallow who were retaining their title, with Cahir and District in second place. The winning team and runners-up were presented with their prizes by PJ Jackman, Honorary Secretary of the host club.
The individual title went to Eoin Curtin of Mallow and the trophy for the longest fish went to Aaron McCann, also from Mallow. The individual trophy was presented by Denis Cronin, Chairman of the Munster Trout Angling Council, and the longest fish was presented by Kevin Healy who sponsored the prize.