Dounreay Fly Fishing Association: Bracey uses all his experience as he lands Robertson Cup
As Dounreay Fly Fishing Association members gathered at the Oldhall berths on Loch Watten following their bank fishing competition last Friday evening, most of the talk was about “the ones that had got away”.
Tales of epic battles with large trout that had taken all the line and most of the backing off reels before escaping kept anglers amused on a cold evening while waiting for the weigh-in to start.
The 13 members had spread out along the south bank from Kiddies’ Corner to the south end of Laid Bay ready for a 6pm start, so it took some time for them to trudge back to Oldhall following lines up at 10pm.
Toby Bracey had used all his experience to control a 2 lb 9.5 oz trout and get it into his small net, and adding another decent fish gave him a total of 4 lb 7.5 oz – more than enough to secure the Robertson Cup, 13 Bank League points and the bonus point for best fish.
He had used a Ghost Tip line with Black Cormorant and Podvorsky flies while wading near the Red Shed.
Alex Donald had two fish that tipped the scales at 2 lb 9.5 oz. They were caught in the Kiddies’ Corner to Red Shed area and gave him 11 points for second place.
He had used a 12ft Sink Tip line with a Black Cormorant variant and his favourite Ian Sinclair fly.
Wading around the Skerries produced a 1 lb 13.5 oz trout that gave Neil Clyne third place and nine points. He had used a 15-foot Sink Tip line with a small Olive Hog fly attached.
Robbie Hawken’s 1 lb 2.75 oz fish gave him eight points for fourth place. Jan Hughes made a welcome appearance and took fifth place (seven points) for one at 1 lb 0.5 oz and Tony Chalmers completed the top six with six points for a single fish.
After two events Toby Bracey leads the Bank League with 24 points, Alex Donald is second on 19, Robbie Hawken and James Simpson are tied for third on 12, Neil Clyne is fifth with 11 and Tony Chalmers completes the top six with nine points.
The club’s next event is another Bank League round and takes place on Saturday, June 8, on Loch Toftingall.