MVFF V Scottish Select 2025
Military Veterans V Scottish Select
Yesterday saw our second match against the very friendly Scottish Select team. After narrowly losing last year by 4 fish, we were determined to put up another good show against an experienced team.
Both team practiced on the Lake of Menteith for 2 days in flat calm conditions, therefore we knew that it was going to be tough fishing for all on match day. The majority of fish appeared to be in the Eastern Basin and were generally in the top 2-3 feet of water. Most fished floating or tip lines with washing line set up and patience was the key.
Off the water and even with an average age of 60, we couldn’t secure accommodation in the Rob Roy but hopefully next year with some blue rinse and incontinence pants we’ll try again! 🙄 Instead, we stayed for 2 nights in the Buchanan Arms in Drymen which although was a 15 minute drive, ensured we could all get together and enjoy some social time/team bonding.
My room 36 at the Buchanan Arms was duly named the Whisky Bar 🥃 and those keen on a pre-meal dram, we demolished 3 bottles of Malt over 2 nights. Suffice to say, there were only 6 of us! 🙈 The Clachan Inn in Drymen was our focal point and the food was absolutely delicious and very reasonably priced. Thankfully they also had a well-stocked wine cellar and that certainly took a battering. The Whisky and Wine soon took effect on the vertically challenged members of the team and predictably our Chairman kept us entertained all night with his same selective stories as last year 😂 Apparently he has more medals than Mutley 😂 but wasn’t so talkative in either of the following mornings.
Back to the fishing. Too much emphasis can be put on these events for anglers to catch fish, so my match brief was very simple, enjoy your day first and foremost and communicate effectively to team mates on the water. If you beat your boat partner then fine but if not, you’ll spend 7 hours with someone who will most likely be a friend for life. I certainly did with my boat partner George Murray and look forward very much to fishing with him again.
Quite a bit of fuel was used during the match due to the calm conditions but we had sufficient productive areas for everyone to dip in and out of. Communication was excellent and tips were passed out to those who were struggling. George and I had a great day together and would still have had if we had both blanked. Like many, we both lost more fish than we landed but that’s just the nature of the sport.
We finished at 16:30 and were greeted by a delicious curry, arranged by Quint. The Lake on Menteith staff, Quint, Douglas, Connor, Calum and Alma continue to consistently deliver a superb product and service where the quality of fish are unrivalled in the UK. It would be fair to say that due to environmental conditions, the fishing has been challenging over the past couple of months, however in my opinion, tougher conditions bring out the best in competition anglers and rod averages of 3-5 make for a better match and most certainly better boat etiquette.
3 anglers caught 7 fish each but catching a fish on his first cast enabled Ian Wilson to win the Individual Prize for best basket 👏
From a team perspective, current holders Scottish Select caught 49 fish and Military Veterans 56. It was a great honour as Captain of the Military Vererans team to be presented with the Rose Bowl from Scottish Select Captain George and we look forward very much to next years event.
On a personal perspective, I thoroughly enjoyed the camaraderie both on and off the water and my highlight from yesterday was congratulating John McCauley on being top rod for our team. John only began boat-fishing this season and has developed steadily through our Veterans Cup events. His result yesterday will hopefully provide some confidence in his ability and inspire some of our other less-experienced anglers.
With our AGM coming up in January, I’d like to encourage members with the necessary skills to consider a place on the committee. We are currently short of a Treasurer and our (Magic, Glen and myself) 3-year terms are all coming to an end. Given that we were only established 3-years ago, the Club is in a great position both financially and members wise, mainly due to the time and commitment of the current committee. It’s vitally important that we continue the good work so please consider what you could offer in terms of a committee position.