ENGLAND MARINE TALENT PATHWAY 2023

Superstars of the future shine at two-day coaching event

THIRTEEN aspiring England shore anglers took part in the latest Angling Trust Team England Marine Talent Pathway at the weekend – and there were fish galore caught!

The group of 10- to 16-year-olds had been selected via applications tendered earlier in the year and were treated to two days of expert advice from sea fishing legend Chris Clark, David Graham, Callum Graham, and Paul Driver.

With support from tackle company Kamasan, the weekend event consisted of a day’s coaching in the classroom at Lymington and District Sea Fishing Association clubhouse followed by a day of beach action at Milford on Sea.

The group included members of this year’s gold medal winning Home International team who were looking to take their fishing to the next level while a number of new attendees all received coaching advice to kick-start their England career paths.

As well as the youngsters, a Team from the RAF Shore Club attended to polish their skills, led by Steve Rathbone, an ex-Talent Pathway apprentice himself who won individual gold in Barcelona in 2008.

After all the theory, the youngsters were keen to get some fishing in on the beach and despite foul conditions on day two of the event, they all caught plenty of fish – testament to their commitment!

The classroom work was carried out at the Lymington & DSFA’s clubhouse and Chairman Alec Harmer addressed the attendees, welcoming them to the Club and wishing them well in their future achievements.

It’s not just technical ability that was coached, there was also focus on respect and teamwork, topics which arose during the recent Home International at Pwllheli, North Wales.

The Welsh Federation stewards reported back to AT to commend the English U16 and U23 attitude, commitment, and respect, both on the beach and at the ceremonies, a credit to the managers and parents. This is an important aspect of coaching which must not be underestimated in developing a World-class angler.

DAY 1 – CLASSROOM

The first element delivered by Chris was what do you need to be a good England Team member and the responses the young anglers did not just relate to skills, but included confidence, passion, teamwork, commitment, determination, work rate, respect, and humour.

This set the scene for the rest of the day when a mix of theory and practical skills were delivered. At times this included pitting the young anglers against the RAF Team, who didn’t always come out on top!

Richard Hadley, of the Angling Trust, delivered a significant and well received session on what it takes to become a champion athlete, including safeguarding and respect, letting the young anglers know they have a voice, and they could speak to him at the Angling Trust if needed.

The theory section of the day covered beach craft, with a great presentation from Callum Graham, another previous Talent Pathway angler and a World gold medallist.

A fundraising raffle was held raising £300 for the youth and junior England Teams and the main prize of a rod and reel presented by the RAF Team was won by Poppy, one of the young anglers.

Day one concluded with a briefing ahead of the second day beach fishing, held at Milford Shingle Bank.

DAY 2 – ON THE BEACH

For the practical day on the beach, the weather wasn’t kind with a stiff onshore breeze (more like a force 7 gale!) whipping the sea up with a backdrop of the Isle of Wight and the Needles in front of them.

This did not deter the anglers with everyone catching fish including garfish, black bream, and red bream.

This Talent Pathway has been running in the current format for around 10 years and is not only a brilliant event in its own right but has consistently assisted and supported young anglers to become World Class competitors including the likes of Saul Page, Richard Yates, Steve Rathbone, Callum Graham and many Youth and Junior England Teams.

FUTURE EXPANSION

This year’s event was tinged with a touch of sadness as Chris Clark and David Graham announced that after over 13 years of involvement as volunteers, they plan to take a step back.

However, we are confident that the history of this incredible event will not end here and are currently engaging with the next generation of anglers who will take up the role of delivering the Talent Pathway into the future. We hope to make an announcement for the 2024 event shortly.

This has been a Southern based event for many years, but we are now in discussion with Kevin Warner who is working to set up and deliver the same event in the North of England, possibly the Redcar area. If you wish to be involved and support Kevin, please contact [email protected]

THANK YOU

We must thank a number of people in supporting this year’s event:

* Lymington and District Sea Fishing Association Chairman and Committee for allowing us to use their facilities

* Angela Graham for organising the lunch, Terry and Phyl for managing the teas and refreshments throughout the day

* Callum Graham, and Paul Driver for supporting the organisers Chris Clark and David Graham.

* All the parents for their support and commitment for the event and future international team competitions.

Finally, good luck to the England World teams competing in the Netherlands later this year. Go For Gold!

If you are a qualified Coach and would be interested in managing a Regional Talent Pathway session for 2024 in your local area please contact Kelly Latimer for more details. [email protected]