Location: Landry, Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region, SW France
Dates: 15th-20th September 2024
Sectors: 1 River & 3 Lake sectors
Venues: River Isère (river sector), Lac de Tueda (1 lake bank sector), Barouchat (1 lake bank sector) & Barouchat (boat lake sector)

PARTICIPATING TEAMS

England – France – Ireland – Ireland White – Scotland

AT Team England Fly Fishing is represented by: Mark Withyman (captain), Andy Taylor, Simon Clarke, Bernie Maher & Paul Page (manager).

Paul Page reports: “The team arrived safely at Eden de la Vanoise on the banks of the River Isère. We have been practicing Monday and Tuesday on the competition sectors of the River Isère, and the lakes Tueda, Meribel and Barouchat. The 2-day competition starts on the 18th, with one river sector on the Isère (5 beats), two lake bank sectors on Barouchat and Tueda, and one boat sector on Barouchat.”

RESULTS

Session 1

The opening session of the 9th Five Nations Championship saw Andy Taylor gain a second place on Lac de Tueda, Meribel, with 13 fish, with Mark Withyman coming 3rd, also on Lac de Tueda, with 2 fish. Bernie Maher and Simon Clarke both came 5th in their session on Barouchat, Bernie off the bank and Simon on the boats. England are currently lying in 5th place, with Ireland in 1st place on 8 placing points, one less than France in 2nd place with 9pts.

Paul Page reports: ‘The proposed reduction in the River Isere flow rate was cancelled on Tuesday afternoon by the local river authority, so at a hastily convened captain’s meeting it was agreed to peg another bank section on Lac de Tueda. It was a cold start to Session 1 on both lakes, however once the sun had risen above the high Alps, which dominated the skyline in every direction, another bright, sunny and hot day developed. Fishing was fast and furious on Lake Barouchat with 25 fish winning the 3 hour boat session and 27 off the bank. The Irish team were off to a flying start. Up on Lac de Tueda things were slightly slower with 13 and 6 fish winning the two sectors. This time both to the French team. Andy Taylor was pipped into 2nd place on Tueda with the same number of fish but Xavier Parent’s 49cms trout beat Andy’s biggest. Last day tomorrow, 3rd and 4th sessions.

Session 2

Session 2 saw 3rd places for Mark Withyman on Lac de Tueda, Simon Clarke off the bank on Barouchat, and Bernie Maher on the boats at Barouchat. On the other bank section on Lac de Tueda Andy Taylor scored a 4th place. England moved up one place to 4th, with Ireland holding on to their 1st place with 13 placing points, and France 2nd on 19pts. Ireland White are 3rd with 26pts, and Scotland 5th with 34pts.

Sessions 3 & 4

In the 3rd session Andy Taylor came 2nd off the bank at Barouchat, with Mark Withyman also scoring a 2nd place on the boats at Barouchat, plus a 2nd place for Simon Clarke, while Bernie Maher came 4th on Lac de Tueda.
The 4th and final session saw Andy Taylor come 3rd on the boats at Barouchat, and Simon Clarke come 3rd on Lac de Tueda. Mark Withyman came 4th off the bank at Barouchat, and there was another 4th place for Bernie Maher.
England finished the competition in 3rd place on 51 placing points, behind France 2nd on 37pts, and Ireland, the 2024 Five Nations Champions, in 1st place with 24pts. Ireland also had the top two individuals, with Campbell Baird Individual Champion, winning all four of his sessions, to end up with just 4 placing points, with Mark Driver in 2nd with 6pts, and Kevin Ducourtioux (France) 3rd with 7pts.

Paul Page reports: ‘Thursday, the last day of competition, was a cold start with cold air dropping down from the high Alps above the venues. With Barouchat at 4500 feet and Tueda at 6000 feet, mist rose from both lakes until the sun rose above the surrounding mountains, revealing another very bright, hot and clear blue sky day.
The team set themselves the challenge to overtake the Irish White team in Session 3. Their good performance in the session brought them up into 3rd place, 6 points behind France. Another good push in Session 4 would be rewarded with a silver medal. However, this wasn’t to be, and they finished with the bronze.
Ireland dominated the scores, with 10 1sts out of the 16 available, they proved unassailable. Their captain Campbell Baird leading them with a clean sweep of 4 1sts.
2026 5NFFC will be hosted by Scotland at Inverurie in early September. The 5NFFC committee hopes that Wales and Norway will join this year’s competing nations in the beautiful surroundings of Aberdeenshire.’

PRESENTATION

SECTORS
River Isère

Lac de Tueda, Meribel

Barouchat

TEAM SPONSORSHIP

The AT TEFF team for the 9th Five Nations Championship in France is sponsored with corporate clothing by Envirofil Ltd, as part of their ongoing sponsorship commitment to Team England Fly Fishing.

Envirofil Directors: “We need to bring Fly Fishing to the surface, and we need to be focused on Team England’s image, and bring together Youth, Ladies, and all nationalities, to learn the sport, and fish for England, and their associated countries”