Plough Angling Club Minutes

Meeting: 21^st July 2026

In Attendance and Apologies

Present: L Teale; J Blackwell; J Rolf; C Judkins; B Sutton; D Dance; T Warncken; J Pike; N Ponting

Apologies:  R Stone

Minutes:  L Teale

Actions from Previous Meeting

• Work is required on the Boat Shed at Plough Pond. The fallen tree needs to be felled. The boats need consolidating. The structure needs to be improved to better house the boats, mower and feed bins. Work Party scheduled for Saturday 8^th August ’26 at 09:00 to remove what’s no longer needed and plan the new structure.
• Buscot Park – should the Club continue to book this venue for matches? It is not financially viable to book the whole lake. Bookings are available for either side of the lake. The side with Pegs 1 to 15 has the number of Pegs we need for a match. The other side of the lake doesn’t have sufficient Pegs. Input from our affected Members would be appreciated.
• Pegs currently unfishable at Newbridge: 1 (silt); 2 (weed); 5 (boat); 8 (boat); 10 (weed); 14 (silt); 29 (weed); 30 (weed); 36 (weed) and 38 (weed). Secretary will contact our Fisheries Officer at the Environment Agency to see if they can help with reed cutting. Peg 11 is difficult to fish safely because of the sloping bank. Nick will ask the Landowner for permission to rectify.

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.

Sea Secretary’s Report

• The sailing from Weymouth on 21 June was cancelled owing to the forecast of high winds in Weymouth Bay.
• The next sea date is the annual 3 day event:  14 to 16 September 2026, sailing from Weymouth.
• The Sea Shield was won by Barry Sutton for a 14lb Bull Huss (the boat record is currently 22lb).The sea dates for next year are likely to be arranged for midweek, rather than weekend.
• Contact Chris Judkins if you would like to be involved in the Sea Fishing Group.

Match Secretary’s Report

• Four matches have been fished since the last meeting. Full results are published on our website.
• The first leg of the Jon Blackwell Trophy was fished at Plough Pond on Friday 19^th June, with 10 Members attending. The match was won by Bill Hayden with 12oz of small perch. In joint second place were Chris Judkins and Jim Pike,bothwith 11oz of small perch.
• The second leg of the Plough Angler of the Year Trophy was fished on the Stacey’s lake complex at Soke Road on Sunday 5^th July, with 12 Members attending. The match was won by Matt Cramp with 65lb 12oz of carp. In second place was Steve Ferris with 44lb 15oz. In third place was Nick Ponting with 36lb 12oz.
• The second leg of the Jon Blackwell Trophy was fished on The Thames at Newbridge Farm on Friday 10^th July, with 7 Members attending. The match was won by Chris Judkins with 2lb 7oz. In second place was Danny Dance with 2lb 0oz. In third place was Jon Blackwell with 1lb 12oz.
• The third leg of the Plough Angler of the Year Trophy was fished on The Thames at Newbridge Farm on Sunday 19^th July, with 7 Members attending. The match was won by Matt Cramp with 5lb 6oz of Bleak. In second place was Nick Ponting with 4lb 10oz. In third place was Chris Judkins with 3lb 10oz.
• The next match is the third leg of the Jon Blackwell Twilight Trophy. This match will be fished at Plough Pond on Friday 31^st July. The draw will take place at 15:00, fish 16:00 – 20:00 (4 hour match).
• The fourth leg of the Plough Angler of the Year Trophy is scheduled for Sunday 2^nd August at Buscot Park. The draw will take place at 08:00, fish 09:00 – 15:00 (6 hour match).
• The Team Match against Wantage & Grove AC due to take place on 12^th July was postponed as the Grove Pond was closed. A new date has been suggested: Sunday 15^th November 2026 at Grove Pond.
• If you would like to fish any of the matches, then please book in with Danny. He will not be chasing you in future. If Pegs are limited and you haven’t booked in, then you might be disappointed.

Treasurer’s Report

• Refer to printed minutes.

Secretary’s Report

• Plough Pond Water Testing:

Water quality testing was carried out on 21^st July. Nitrite; Nitrate; Phosphate and Ammonia were all below detectable limits (0 ppm). Dissolved oxygen measured between 47.1 (Peg 1) and 100.0% (Peg 13). Water temperature was 21.7^oC (Peg 10).

• Water Quality Monitoring Network (WQMN):

Water quality testing on The Thames at Newbridge was carried out on 19^th July. Phosphate was measured at 0.50 ppm, above the reportable level (0.3 ppm) and nitrate was at 10 ppm. Our Fisheries Manager at the Environment Agency was emailed with these results. Dissolved oxygen measured 106.8%. Water levels are low and clear.

Vice Chairman’s Report

• Plough Pond: There was a small fire at the Pond close to our footbridge on Sunday 12^th July, caused by branches contacting power lines. The work carried out by SSE in early May to remove branches close to their power lines hadn’t been completed as far as the Pond. The branches have since been trimmed and left on the track beyond the footbridge. Hopefully, the contractor will remove these in due course.
• Newbridge: There has been no contact with the Landowner since 26^th May. Permission will be sought for us to level Peg 11 to make it safe.

Chairman’s Report

• Work Parties: A Work Party will take place on Saturday 8^th August to sort out the Boat Shed at the Pond. Meet at 09:00.
• Predation:  Otter sighting on 11^th July by the wildlife camera positioned on the stream. No evidence of fish kills has been found.
• Catch Reports: Could members please report catches at Plough Pond to the Chairman?
• WhatsApp Group: A 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 Chairman at the number shown on your permit.

New Actions

• 128 Crayfish have been caught at Plough Pond since the traps were set last month.
• The Maybush is giving our members a 10% discount on food and hot drinks if you produce your permit.

The meeting ended at 20:55pm.

The next monthly meeting will take place at the RBL Sports & Social Club in Hanney at 19:30 on Tuesday 18^th August 2026. All welcome.