Eddie Wigston Memorial Trout Contest 2015
The very last Eddie Wigston Memorial Trout Contest was held on the 15th and 16th of March 2015, in the Bronte Park region of the Tasmanian lake country. Unlike recent years the weather was magnificent with Saturday just about as good as it gets for trout fishing in March.
It was another very successful event and one with mixed feelings being the finale to 23rd memorable years. With this event marking 25yrs since the passing of Eddie Wigston the family felt it was a suitable time to wrap up the event and mark the 25 year legacy in 2015.
It was not an easy decision with Garth and Stuart Wigston sharing some emotional words to the crowd throughout the presentation. While the event will be missed all attending this and previous years expressed their thanks and gratitude to the Wigston Family and all involved in hosting the past 23 contests.
It will be remembered as one of the best family orientated fishing competitions in the state and this year once again all the young junior entrants received a substantial prize to take home from Plano tackle boxes loaded with Tassie Devils to rod and reel combos vouchers from tackle stores around the state.
On the fishing side of things it was great to see the number of fish caught well up on last year and the condition and size appeared to be very good this year. Lake Echo fished very well with both browns and rainbows making up bags here. The fish were in great condition too which was a welcome change after a few lean years. Trolling anglers had great success. Teams finishing 2nd, 5th and 6th all fish Lake Echo.
King William also saw a welcome change with fish in great nick here. Saturday afternoon had loads of fish up feeding on both gum beetles and jassids which were about in large numbers. Teams finishing 1st and 4th fished King William.
Bronte Lagoon was home for the third placed team and it returned the best average weight bag in the entire event. The fish again were in superb condition.
The Eddie Wigston Memorial Shield was contested by teams of up to three anglers and fishing with Tim Lowe, we were fortunate to once again win the event by a very small margin of just over 400grams.
- 1st – Devil Worship: Tim Lowe, Justin Causby 13.237kg/40 fish
- 2nd – Valley Boys: Jeff Heawood, Noreen Shearing & Jack Heawood 12.824kg/28 fish
- 3rd – Clarko’s Cluster: Peter Spotswood, Matt Shaw & Cameron Johnson 11.503kg/19 fish
Individual honours were awarded to the following anglers;
- Heaviest Trout 6-13yrs: Shannon Pearce 1.239kg
- Heaviest Trout 14-17yrs: Jaydon Pearce 1.212kg
- Ian Wigston Memorial Overall Heaviest: Adam Williams 4.046kg
- Betty Barratt Memorial Heaviest for Females: Noreen Shearing 0.930kg
The fish winning the Ian Wigston Memorial was the largest trout ever recorded in the history of the event. Adam Williams landed the fish at Dee Lagoon on Saturday afternoon fishing a large soft plastic very deep in the timber. The whole episode was watched by another nearby boat and Adam’s team mate Bryan Watt had never been more nervous holding the net has he played the large brown. It was a remarkable fish in prime condition, deep and extremely thick across the back, and a memorable way to end the event. Adam won a Quantum rod and reel combo valued at over $400 as part of the Ian Wigston Memorial prize.
All entrants also received a commemorative Tassie Devil Lure as a memento as a gesture from the Wigston Family.
The Wigston Family would like to thank all the entrants and sponsors who have supported and fished the event over the past 23 years.
There are discussions regarding a future event that is not necessarily to replace the Eddie Wigston Contest but more to keep up a tradition for those that have become accustomed to heading to Bronte Park in March for a great weekend fishing and enjoying time with family and good mates.
Once again thank you to all involved.
