AGM 2018

Monday, February 26, 2018
 
MOYOLA ANGLING ASSOCIATION WELCOMES NEW YOUNG TEAM AT 2018 AGM

All too often in our sport we hear that for a number of reasons, fishing will one day become a thing of the past. An aging population, a decline in interest of angling, and a general adverse environmental impact on fish numbers are all significant reasons. But there is one shared worry for all field sports, which just doesn’t seem to be going away;

Our young people are losing interest.

However at the Moyola Angling Association, we are proud to see that our efforts in promoting our sport with young people has not gone unrewarded, and we are very pleased to announce one of the youngest leading teams in Irish fishing. Following on from our 2018 AGM we now have 3 members taking top table roles, ALL UNDER 25!

After several years as Chairman, Michael Brunton chose to step down due to work commitments, but in his last meeting remarked on how great it was to see so many young people participating in our open day, competitions, and committee. This is a shared notion of our new chairman, Philip Maguire. Philip is a previous chairman, and probably the most experienced member of our committee when it comes to the internal workings of the club. He welcomed our new committee, and in particular the three young men taking on top table roles.

Joseph McNeill from Toome is our new Vice Chairman. The 22 year old dentistry student at Queen’s University Belfast is likely to be our youngest VC ever. Coming from a Field Sports background, Joseph is an experienced angler and is keen to bring his ideas forward this year, while assisting Philip with any duties required.

Andrew Rainey from Maghera is our new Assistant Competition Secretary. The 18 year old Civil Engineering student is a regular face at our competitions, winning almost every trophy over several years competing, and has now stepped up to give something back. After decades of service to the club, Tommy McGrath has agreed that he will serve one final year in training Andrew to take over the role as Competition Secretary.

Matthew Devlin from Magherafelt has been re-elected as Club Secretary. The 23 year old IT Sales Rep has been involved in the committee for years, and after being taught and helped by Philip last year, is keen to take a more proactive role in the 2018 season as secretary.

What may seem insignificant to some, having three young members step up to roles of leadership in our club is a welcome reminder that our efforts in promoting fishing to young people have not been wasted. We wish the new team and Chairman Philip Maguire the best for 2018.