SILLY STUFF! – THE END

[DaveHarrellParticipant]

After running for five years I have decided that it’s time to bring the curtain down on Silly Stuff! Instead we’ll be able to use the two pages to bring you another feature on how to catch tame carp from pools!
Seriously, the pages have been fun for the past five years but its difficult trying to come up with new material every month so we’re giving it a rest.
From the April issue we’ll be carrying a new section of the magazine called ‘Match Scene’ where we’ll be bringing you news of forthcoming events, tackle news and also including your views and letters. If you’d like to let us have your opinions on anything to do with match fishing that you might want to get off your chest or let us know about any forthcoming events simply email us at: [email protected]

[TF_piperpilot]

10/10 for the Stan Piecha article in Jan’s mag as it was absolutely brilliant. Must remember to put a pick-axe handle in my holdall,

[TF_Johnny Mac]

I agree PP, the Stan Piecha article was a good read.

[TF_NW Cut Angler]

Correct decision Dave

[TF_Serious Sam]

Good idea, the pages were starting to look desperate.

[TF_herbie]

just one more reason for not renewing my subs. i along with plenty of others always read the lighter stuff and put the paper down smiling. now all i have is photo,s of fish being pulled into a landing net by the same people who pulled them in the month before. to be honest im sick to death of experts telling me how to catch carp from the best peg on the venue with no one else in sight. long live the scooooneeee.

[TF_Money4nothing]

No harm giving it a rest, don’t think there’s any need to give it the chop for good though.

Why not replace it with a regular article where you alternate one of the magazines regular ‘celebrity’ anglers to fish an open match on a venue they’re not that familiar with (not one where they’re a regular framer anyway). What tactics they try & why would be a very interesting & educating read for the learners out there, especially if they draw a bad peg & have to pull out all the stops.

[TF_AnthonywatersParticipant]

It was boring silly stuff anyway right decision to scrap it.

[ForestEverForestParticipant]

It perhaps needed a rest, but even at is best it was not a patch on Snide Rumours….. unless I’m looking at the past with my rose tinted spectacles!

Dave – could you not re-run Up For T’Cup!

I certainly think there is room for humour or some lighter articles.

[TF_yorkshire]

silly stuff was getting a bit naff, that being said a 1/2 page caption comp or silly stuff would be ok.

get rid of sconeee zone, i just didnt get it.

features are becoming brand marketing features and beyond a joke, with the angler in question wearing the cap, jacket, box and making sure they get the right shot.

In my opinion standard club / match angler articles would be better than the brand sponsered guys, and they would give honest tackle opinions.

[TF_AnthonywatersParticipant]

Yorkshire most things are brand orientated and marketing exists in areas you havent even considered my mate! Advertisers will plug things “Any which way they can ” And to be honest the Sponsered carrying his or hers strapmark can sometimes be a blatant advertisment but sometimes the tried and tested items in eye shot can create the most awarness.

[TF_matt rosevear]

i would like to see normal fisheries used for stopwatch stlye features
buy normal i mean not the same prolific waters every month,i would like to read jamie masson fishing a mid week open at lodge farm for example,and i am shore others would agree?

[TF_double red]

alan scotthorne will raison and mark pollard were all gd reads this month. i love matts angle never get rid of this feature the matches he fishes on the severn and wye require different tackle and tactics for nearly every peg very gd imho more river feature on the wye please dave.

[TF_Rob A]

It would be a good place to put readers own articles – if you had enough of the right quality!

[TF_raver]

Right decision in my eyes.

There’s only so many Tom Scholey Mankini pictures i can stand.

Mr Scholey did used to write a good blog in Angling Star that was quite funny

[TF_joffmiester]

@piperpilot wrote:

10/10 for the Stan Piecha article in Jan’s mag as it was absolutely brilliant. Must remember to put a pick-axe handle in my holdall,

quite agree Stan has been around for years top class angler and now fits into our team nicely but what you have read is just the beginning of what Stan piecha is about and I’d love you to hear more of stan the mans stories ~clap ~clap i hope you’ve signed him up Dave ~shh
scone is a top bloke and is really funny but perhaps the anglers that don’t get it are the anglers that are not in his circle top bloke when i’ve fished with him ~clap ~clap

[deano1Participant]

Glad silly stuff and scone zone has been removed.Scone zone was aimed at the in crowd on the internet anyway so most normal readers did`nt get it anyway….

And if i wanted to look at half naked men i would buy the Gay Times….

Only decent pic in feb issue is the bloke who bagged all them perch at Barston……..

Whatever you do don`t use the 2 pages for more advertising please,26 pages of adverts in feb issue and thats not including the 32pp booklet inside…….

[TF_Gary]

At least the adverts keep the cost of the mag down. I usually skim read the ads as well, to be honest, as they often give me ideas for future purchases.

I should also add that if you think the fishing mags are bad for ads, you should pick up something like GQ or Esquire! I usually get bored flicking through ads before you even reach the contents page!

[TF_billy the squidParticipant]

I think Matt Rosevear’s idea is good, stopwatch style, big names turning up at the not so popular venues and try to take the envelope.. After all this hype of gettin rid of sillystuff n scone it would want to be a good feature.

[TF_Nigel.]

I love it personaly. The best 2 pages in the mag.
This months caption comp, Steve Sanders says to Mark Downs ‘even you should be able to sit on that flyer for 5 hours Mark’! Anyone that knows him, knows he often packs up early.

You dont have to know the anglers to get the humour.

Scone zone is also good fun as is all of silly stuff, its in the title!

Shame, its a nice change from all the other regular stuff, you must admitt, its the only things that are always differant from the rest.

You dont have to read it if you dont like it, some pages i dont read, but i allways read silly stuff!

[TF_feeder]

i am with you nigel on this.

[TF_Leaky Lloyd]

i agree with matt rosevear on his idea to bring lesser known waters to the fore!
i used to like the the features where you would travel to a venue and sit with a venue regular through a typical 5 or 6 hour open match!!!!!
its a break from the norm and also gives anglers an insite into local fisheries that they perhaps had no idea existed!!!!!
or why not just do a fisherie watch,,once a month traveling to a lesser known water and giving readers the run down on the place!!!!
i would also like to see a bit more from the ladies of our sport too,,i think in all the years ive read MF i’ve only ever seen one artical from a lady and that was Emma pickering putting a net of silvers together through the ice!!!!

[TF_Money4nothing]

@Nigel. wrote:

I love it personaly. The best 2 pages in the mag.
This months caption comp, Steve Sanders says to Mark Downs ‘even you should be able to sit on that flyer for 5 hours Mark’! Anyone that knows him, knows he often packs up early.

That’s the problem, how many readers actually know the chap ? I don’t & didn’t get the joke, was just left scratching my head wondering how bad the other caption entries must have been if that one won it.
Now you’ve explained it I can see how a few people would have got the in-joke, in a similar way to Scones column most months, although in fairness his comments did make me smile some months when they were more general – so nothing against the bloke as the general consensus seems to be he is a fun bloke to know.
I hope they leave the caption competition in but just get someone else to judge it……

[TF_Nigel.]

Good point. But thats often the case, if you dont know the angler, sometimes its hard to understand the joke.

Another idea, a lot of us have picture phones now, how about anglers send in pics off there phone, of our mates that have fell in, trod on a section or what ever mishap has happened this week!

They do seem to happen every match!~think

[TF_Pikey]

I still think that they could do with an article from a club angler rather than all by top matchmen.

I’m not just saying yhat cos I did it for years but it just gives a different perspective on match fishing.

[TF_Leaky Lloyd]

the last 2 posts on this topic are great ideas!

would be nice to see some of us numpty club anglers getting a look in! as after all its still matchfishing!

and nigel,

thats a class Idea that mate,,would be great if MF had “NUMPTY OF THE MONTH” page!

taking the mickey out of unfortunate accidents my mates have had is right up my street!

would make me fanous for 5 minutes TO, NO DOUBT!
PMSL!

“QUALITY”!

[TF_mike pattinson]

Dave

when the mag run the Maver club angler it followed individuals who fished the final, the following year, if they were doing well and did a feature on their club and a match.

These introduced a lot of our guy’s to the mag and no doubt many others as well.

There are lots of people fishing club waters that are mixed fisheries or natural waters, not commercials. Where to be consistent you have to change your approach from one week to the next, i.e. groundbait mixes. To provide information and evidence of this would be of interest to a lot of anglers who do not fish the carp puddles.

The knockout cup feature is good because of its varying venues but it looks at each round, who qualified and tactics used.

A look at say two anglers their approach, what information they gained and source through practice sessions, what went well what didn’t and finally the match give anglers the curiosity to buy the mag one month and again the next.

[TF_Chum MixerParticipant]

Like everything in life . . . . . . . . . . . .

All good things come to an end ?

I’m sure the new material will make interesting reading ~think

[TF_NW Cut Angler]

I hate all those Average Joe articles. You need to learn from the best not the mediocre.

[TF_kev34]

I think more should be put in the mag about the Garbolino club Angler,where the noted pegs are and the better areas .I mean some lads travel miles for that 1 match so any help printed in the mag would help..This was done in 2007 for Tunnel Barn Farm……

In 2007 the full results and anglers pics where printed and the top 5 all had a piece written on how they approached there pegs on the day at TBF ……Not seen this since….

The 2007 final at barston had a great peg by peg write up and made for a very enjoyable read….Rob swain lost an animal on the pole if i remember……..

Just my honest opinion of course…..

[ian.bParticipant]

@NW Cut Angler wrote:

I hate all those Average Joe articles. You need to learn from the best not the mediocre.

Strange comment, surely one mans average Joe is another mans excellent angler.
And aren’t todays ‘best’ yesterdays average Joes ?
Don’t know how many times I’ve read that someone of Alan Scotthornes calibre is more than happy to question/learn from an angler who beats him, numpty or not……

[TF_Cutnut]

Long may it rest in peace…or at least until some fresh material is gathered and a broader appeal found. Most of the silly stuff was so obscure to the general not in the know reader that to them it was a waste of two pages.

A match scene report or venue reviews would do well, afterall the mag is called matchfishing.

[TF_Leaky Lloyd]

@NW Cut Angler wrote:

I hate all those Average Joe articles. You need to learn from the best not the mediocre.

its not all about learning mate,,!
fair enough,,we do pick up alot of info from MF but i think there has to be a variation of articals,,,i personally think a mag full of top drawer anglers bagging up on every page would get a little boring and to be honest,,,would start to look like de ja vu after the 2nd or 3rd mag!!!!!

[TF_Leaky Lloyd]

@kev34 wrote:

I think more should be put in the mag about the Garbolino club Angler,where the noted pegs are and the better areas .I mean some lads travel miles for that 1 match so any help printed in the mag would help..This was done in 2007 for Tunnel Barn Farm……

In 2007 the full results and anglers pics where printed and the top 5 all had a piece written on how they approached there pegs on the day at TBF ……Not seen this since….

The 2007 final at barston had a great peg by peg write up and made for a very enjoyable read….Rob swain lost an animal on the pole if i remember……..

Just my honest opinion of course…..

another top notch idea!!!!

[TF_Fred Davis]

I e-mailed Dave last night and suggested a club feature live,or match feature live, I think this type of idea has merits to the mag that the normal star features don’t have, it shows what happening at the grass roots of match fishing,I know when writing club feature live for southern angler clubs were keen to get involved and lots of anglers who fished each club match, if not most, bought a copy just to see there boatrace in the mag, Ok many may not have bought the following months mag but I bet some did, so it is also beneficial to the mag in terms of increasing circulation, another advantage is that a lot of good ideas new methods actually come from innovative club anglers who are less likely to fish like clones,not saying top anglers do but reading about a top rod fishing a certain method on a fishery where he is the only angler fishing promoting his sponsers gear week in week out gets a bit mind numbing imo,even if coverage of local matches was turned into a feature it would show up and coming new stars, we all have plenty of local matches in our respective areas and some anglers dominate the venue, some don’t, getting feedback from those that do however would make very interesting reading, not all are house hold names, however they are specialists on venues good enough to frame consistantly, persomally I like the idea of a club feature as it will show different methods and approaches up and down the length of our isle, mind you everyone has a different idea, but whatever dave goes with lets hope it’s still a great read.

[TF_steve r]

@DaveHarrell wrote:

From the April issue we’ll be carrying a new section of the magazine called ‘Match Scene’ where we’ll be bringing you news of forthcoming events, tackle news and also including your views and letters.

Let me see if I understand this then. You’re going to replace these two pages with news of forthcoming event and tackle news [Which already have their own places in the magazines’ ‘News’ and ‘Tackle review’ sections] plus ‘Readers Letters’ which was dumped not so long ago as not enough people were writing in?

In reality [To me] it sounds like 2 more pages of ads or a reduction in the number of pages.

[TF_NW Cut Angler]

@ian.b wrote:

@NW Cut Angler wrote:

I hate all those Average Joe articles. You need to learn from the best not the mediocre.

Strange comment, surely one mans average Joe is another mans excellent angler.
And aren’t todays ‘best’ yesterdays average Joes ?
Don’t know how many times I’ve read that someone of Alan Scotthornes calibre is more than happy to question/learn from an angler who beats him, numpty or not……

If I want to learn something I find the best sources possible. Alan Scotthorne has far more to offer than NWCA in terms of other people learning from him. Likewise who would say they do not learn more from Steve Ringer here than any other average jo poster?

[Author]

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