By Reece | No Comments
Last updated: Monday, July 6, 2009

The first time i can ever remember going fishing was when i was about 8 or 9 years old. I wasn’t really intrested in fishing at the time but I knew my brother was heavilly involved with the Worksop Cadet team, and it was coming up to the the most eagilly awaited cadet, junior and intermediate matches of the year, the NFA National.

It came to one of the practice sessions before the National and I was forced to go with my Dad and Brother. My Dad Niel decided that we he was going to take his tackle and let me have a crack at fishing. I didnt catch much i only had a couple of small perch and on that day I thought i was never in a million years going to have a serious career in fishing.

However, 2 years later I entered a local under 12’s match on my local water Sandhill lake. Despite before the match thinking it was going to be a complete disaster, as the match went on I got more and more into it. I had a good days fishing and ended up coming 4th out about 15. After this I started to fish more and more junior matches locally and nationally.

The thing that finally made me want to go into fishing was when I went on the West Yorkshire Police match with my older brother Ashley. Despite not fishing myself I watched him have over 9lb af small roach and skimmers. After the match i said to my Dad, ‘this is what i want to do.’

Reece Nicolson

After this year I broke into the A team and for the next 3 years captained the team to some glory. This seemed to be the turning point in my angling career, as i then went on to win many local junior events. I then realised that to make a name for myself I neened to aim at the senior matches.

In 2007 I sent of for my first ever England trial. When the letter came back a few weeks later I was shocked to find i had got one. On the morning of the trial, for some reason I wasn’t nervious. I fished my nuts off both sessions and didnt get in. But, it didn’t dampen my spirits so i started to fish more senior matches and frame.

From then on I won one or two big junior matches and won sections in senior matches. However none of this could compare to the thrill of winning the Junior NFA national with the team i was so proud to fish for Worksop. The same year my close friend Josh Wilde won the Junior Fish ‘o’ Mania. Ialso fished with my local tackle shop that year in the Van Den Eyne supercup. Despite the desapointment of the tem coming second and not qualifying for round two i managed a creditable individuall second even though i was last of every practice I wen’t on.

Despite the up’s and down’s fishing brings i know that as long as I can catch fish every time i go, I will still go fishing!

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