National success for fly anglers Sean and Jaco

Two South Coast fly anglers, Sean Tharratt and Jaco Strauss, were part of the five man KwaZulu-Natal B team that won gold at the B Nationals Fly Fishing tournament held in Underberg. Club members are extremely proud of them and congratulated them on their fantastic achievement. It’s quite a feather in the cap for the local club, which is small but active and also includes Liam van der Merwe, a Protea youth fly fisherman.

The competition started last Thursday with a morning and an afternoon session, followed by two sessions on Friday and the final session on Saturday morning. Heavy rain on the Wednesday evening caused river sections that were clean to become brown, which made the fishing very challenging. Sessions consisted of three river sections divided into eight beats and two still water sessions, one fished from the bank and the other from boats. The win really was a remarkable team effort as each team member managed to win one session. Their overall placings were Richard Gorlei (4th), Marc Touzel (7th), Sean Tharratt (23rd), Jaco Strauss (24th) and Malcolm Sharp (25th).

For Jaco, fishing his first nationals after three years of trials, it was a great experience. “For me personally the most important thing was to stay focused and not get despondent when it was difficult. I took the knowledge I’ve learned from club mates and tried to apply it the situation and conditions, even with the thunder and lightning!”

Anyone interested in fly fishing is welcome to join the club at regular events, including outings, away trips and fly tying sessions. For more info, contact chairman John New on 078 2034549, club secretary Dick Plaistowe on 082 4538618 or simply pitch at the month-end meeting at Tweni Tennis Club on the last Thursday of the month at 18:00 – and don’t forget your braai pack for the post meeting braai.

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