Plough Angling Club Minutes

Meeting: 18^th November 2025

In Attendance and Apologies

Present: L Teale; J Blackwell; D Dance; T Warncken; J Rolf; N Ponting; J Pike; R Stone

Apologies:  C Judkins; A Earl; B Sutton

Minutes:  L Teale

Actions from Previous Meeting

• The Christmas Carvery Meal will take place on Sunday 7^th December 2025 at the RBL Sports & Social Club, Hanney at 15:00. Details have been emailed to Members.
• A Work Party at Plough Pond took place on Saturday 25^th October 2025. The island was cleared in preparation for felling of the dead poplars. More cormorant tapes and submerged barriers were installed.

Club Welfare Officer’s Report

• Our Club Welfare Officer is Richard Stone (mob. 07551 031857; rstone0311@yahoo.com.)
• The Club’s welfare policy is available on our website (www.ploughangling.org.uk/safeguarding/)
• No issues were reported this past month.
• A webinar from the Angling Trust for Club Welfare Officers will take place on 8^th December,

Sea Secretary’s Report

• Chris will endeavour to book a sailing for January 2026.
• Contact Chris Judkins if you would like to be involved in the Sea Fishing Group.

Match Secretary’s Report

• Two matches have been fished since the last meeting. Full results are published on our website.
• The eighth leg of the Plough Angler of the Year Trophy was fished at Newbridge on Sunday 26^th October, with 9 Members attending. The match was won by Matt Cramp with 5lb 10oz, from end Peg 3. In second place was Nick Ponting with 1lb 14oz from Peg 4, and in third place was Barry Sutton with 1lb 12oz from Peg 17. Barry fished the first four hours of the match and packed up early, thinking it was an hour later than it was, having not allowed for the end of British Summer Time!
• The Gifford Fean Memorial Trophy was fished on The Thames at Rushey (Tadpole Bridge) on Sunday 9^th November, with 6 Members attending. The trophy was won by Steve Ferris with 4lb 4oz, from Peg 39. In second place was Garry Cramp with 4lb 0oz from Peg 31, and in third place was Barry Sutton with 3lb 1oz from Peg 47.
• The next match is the ninth leg of the PAY trophy on the Hungerford Canal (Church stretch) on Sunday 23^rd November. The draw will take place at 08:00, fish 09:00 – 14:00.
• The Match Fund currently stands at £307.00.
• The 2026 Match Calendar has been completed by the Match Secretary. All bookings have been made. Clashes with Sea fishing and W&G have been avoided wherever possible.
• PAY 2026 will comprise 10 matches, with the angler’s top 7 results counting. PAY match venues are as follows: 5 – Newbridge; 1 – Plough Pond; 2 – Buscot Park; 1 – Soke Road and 1 – Canal.
• A new venue has been booked for 31^st May 2026: Priory Farm Fishery in Lyneham, OX7 6QN. This is courtesy of Coldstone AC. This is a mixed fishery with a net limit of 50lb!
• We are awaiting a response from W&G regarding the Team Matches in 2026.
• The trophy for the largest fish caught in our matches has been purchased from Steve Norris. The cost, including engraving, was £128, paid from the Match Fund.
• The Presentation Evening scheduled for Saturday 25^th July 2026 has been confirmed with RBL Sports & Social Club.

Treasurer’s Report

• Refer to printed minutes.

Vice Chairman’s Report

• Plough Pond Update: Feeding is continuing at the rate of 1 – 2 times/week. The dead Poplar trees have been felled from the island by TG Tree Services. We would like to acknowledge and thank Nick Ponting, Barry Sutton and Danny Dance for their help. A further work party is needed to tidy up after the logging activity on the island.
• Predation: One cormorant has been seen on a few occasions close to Peg 3. The scarecrow has been relocated to Peg 1. Additional floating barriers are needed to limit cormorant transit through the lake.
• Stocking: To be arranged for March 2026.
• WhatsApp Group: A new WhatsApp group has been created for the Club. This will enable quicker and more efficient communication regarding catches, match updates, and any other matters of interest. If you would like to join, please contact the Vice Chairman at the number shown on your permit.

Chairman’s Report

• The Club’s application for a grant from the Fisheries Improvement Fund has been successful. We have been awarded the grant from the Environment Agency for habitat improvements at Plough Pond.
• Water quality testing at Plough Pond was carried out on 24-Oct. Nitrate levels remain low at 5ppm, with all other contaminants (nitrite; ammonia and phosphate) undetected. Dissolved oxygen levels were between 45 and 82%. Water temperature was 10.2^oC.

New Actions

• A Work Party at Plough Pond is required to tidy up the island after the tree felling activity. Nick will liaise with the landowner to avoid shooting parties before we set the date.
• The gates at Newbridge have been locked. There is currently no access through the farm. Car parking is available in the car park opposite The Maybush or in the car park behind The Rose Revived.

The meeting ended at 8:55pm.

The next meeting will take place at the RBL Sports & Social Club in Hanney at 19:30 on Tuesday 16^th December 2025. All welcome.