2. The Charity Cheque was still to be presented; the Chairman had chased this matter, but was awaiting the availability of other personnel.

3. The final draft of the RAFCAA (Coarse) Constitution would be issued in the next few weeks. The Chairman encouraged all Committee Members to read the Constitution as it contained a great deal of information that is vital to the running of a smooth league.

4. Although the information for Command Colours had been sent out to the Sports Board 3 months ago personnel had still not received their Colours.

5. Decisions. It was decided that:

a. The Charity Cheque would be presented as soon as the necessary personnel were available.

b. The draft Constitution would be issued within the next few weeks.

c. The STC Rep would chase up the issuing of Command Colours and pegging fees for the last Inter-Command competition.

d. All other outstanding issues would be presented as agenda items.

a. Match venues and dates.
b. Match results
c. Details of initiatives to get people interested in fishing.
d. Sales and wants.

2. The site would also contain the Contact List and Constitution, venue details, bulletins boards and a specimen site. It is also hoped that details of Inter-Unit matches etc would be included along with the match paperwork and, where available, a link to the venue sites.

3. The Chairman stressed that the site will only be as good as the information it contains, and he urged all members to provide as much relevant information as possible. To this end all Committee members are to ensure that the Chairman has soft copies of information sent via his Yahoo account within the next 3 weeks. League Chairmen in particular were to provide soft-copy details of their committee members and fixtures list for the forthcoming season as a minimum.

3. European Military Championships As this was an expensive event to be involved in, and had not developed as expected, it had been agreed at the last meeting to withdraw from this event. However, recent evens had resulted in a reversal of this decision. The event had now been revitalised with renewed vigour on the part of other nations, now totalling 7. It would still require a large personal contribution from competitors, but the RAFCAA would look into ways of assisting with finances for those Squad members who would find it difficult to take part. The venue for this event was in Holland, and the advance party for the Overseas Challenge would investigate the water. The date for this event is 21 to 26 Sep 04.

4. Eastern Region Shield The RAF had not competed in the event last year however; they would be fielding a team for this year’s event. The venue is the River Cam on 02 Oct 04.

5. RAF Inter Unit Championships The Match Sec had booked 300 pegs for this event, with the Railway Inn at Lodham being chosen as the Match HQ. The paperwork is to be issued by the first week of July, with returns being with the Match Sec by 06 Aug 04. These dates are to be strictly adhered to. The cost for this event would be £13 for RAF entrants and £6 for HM&OL.

6. RAF Inter-League Due to a date clash with the European Military Championships, this match has been moved to the 15 Sep, all other details remain extant.

7. RAF v Old Lags Phil Foster, the HM&OL Rep has decided to fish this match on the River Wensum at Riverside Road, Norwich on 27 Oct. Due to the size of the venue, teams would consist of 16 anglers. There is good access to all pegs, and the Ferryboat Inn would be available as a match HQ.

8. Decisions It was decided that:

a. The Clubman Championship would coincide with the RAFCAA AGM.

b. A team of 8 would fish the 5 Services at Woodland View on 07 Oct.

c. The RAF would continue to participate in the European Championships.

d. The RAF would compete in the Eastern Region Shield on the River Cam on 02 Oct.

e. The RAF Inter-unit Championships would cost £13 per RAF and £6 per HM&OL angler, with timings for paperwork being critical.

f. The RAF Inter-League would move to the 15 Sep.

g. The RAF v Old Lags would be fished on the River Wensum at Norwich.

2. The Chairman reminded League Chairman that, if required, money could be made available to leagues in support of initiatives that assisted in increasing the interest in angling in their areas, such as coaching events.

a. CAL. The CAL had nothing to report however, the last League match was due to take place the following day with the winning station yet to be decided.

b. EAWL. The EAWL had undertaken its AGM, with changes made to the league system, in future years both A and B teams would be competing against each other.

c. EMAL. The EMAL had nothing to report.

d. SWAL. The SWAL had nothing to report.

e. WMAL. The WMAL had completed their AGM with little change. The average number of anglers attending matches was 10. This was low but still remained a viable number.

f. VOYL. The VOYL returned last years NATO Trophy. The Chairman also made it known that Tex Sutton, a Squad Member, had been detached to the Falkland Islands and would be unavailable for the next 4 ½ months.

g. SCAL. The SCAL had no representative at the meeting

2. The Chairman thanked the League Chairman for the updates, and reiterated the importance of the work they carry out in informing the Committee of events in RAF angling in general. While he was content with the league construction at the moment, numbers attending matches would have to be carefully monitored and, if necessary, league boundaries may have to change.

2. The NFA Rep would be attending the Eastern Region meting on 20 Mar.

3. The Chairman thanked the NFA Rep for the work he was doing in this area and asked that he provide the Match Secretary with the pegging details as soon as they were confirmed.

2. Everyone was reminded that the tackle deal is open to all fishermen in the RAF and not just Squad members; this was to be given the widest publicity.

3. The Sponsorship Rep stated that the work done with Trabucco by himself, and Steve Perham had gone a long way to fostering the good relations, he asked that Trabucco be invited to the Team Challenge and be asked to provide a stand at the RAF Inter-Unit Championships. He also asked that others be prepared to assist Tek-Neek Trabucco at other events.

4. The Chairman agreed that the sponsorship deal was now going well and that everything should be done to continue to nourish this.

2. To increase interest he has decided to replace the carp angler list with three separate lists for carp, pike and other specimen fish. He would also like League Secretaries to provide him with unit contacts so that he can communicate with them directly.

3. The specimen Rep is also introduced the idea a specimen fish award. The committee considered this a good idea and the Rep has been asked to cost this so that the Committee can consider supporting this financially.

4. Finally he gave details of the World Carp Championships that he would be entering again this year. This is a prestigious event with 600 anglers taking part. It has television coverage, and was an event he felt that the sponsors would be happy to be associated with. In future years he would like to see an RAF Specimen Team enter this event. The Chairman asked the Team Manager to provide Tek-Neek Trabucco ‘T shirts’ to any RAF participants.

2. The Chairman stated the RAF Challenge would be fished at Burton Joyce on 09 Jul, with the Lord Nelson being used as match HQ. The match would be for 72 anglers and fished between pegs 200 and 320. The Chairman would write letters inviting the following teams: Tek-Neek, Daiwa Trentmen, Lincs County, Old Lags, Army/Navy, Hansworth Angling, Goldthorpe, Matchmen Supplies, Barnsley, Goldthorpe and 2 x RAF Teams.

3. Progress had been made on the presentation of Colours to Squad Members; the Chairman would be receiving them on 26 Mar. This is a very important aspect of being chosen to represent the RAF and as such the Chairman would be issuing the Colours through the individual anglers Station Commanders.

4. The Team Manager asked that a Team Managers Update be a permanent subject for the agenda. The Team Manager had produced an update, a copy of which is attached to the minutes, and he went over the salient points. A 20 man squad for the 04/05 season has been chosen from 29 applications, the new format applications forms were of great benefit in helping to decide who would form the squad, and these forms will be used again next year. The Team Manager has also introduced more competitive matches to the calendar in place of some lesser events. All in all the season promises to be an interesting one for the squad.

5. The Team Manager asked for ideas for ways to recognise the contribution that anglers had given to the squad in the past. Anglers such as Tony Randall, and Andy Johnston had left the squad after carrying out sterling work for a number of years in high profile positions and yet once they left seemed to disappear. The Team Manager felt it was important that contact was maintained.

6. Finally, the Team Manager mentioned the squad team building sessions. The first had taken place at the NECs Go Fishing Show; the next would be in Oct. This would take the format of a two-day continental style fishing event with invitations to potential future squad members as well as the current squad. The Team Manager would carry out the organisation for this event.

7. The HM&OL Rep stated that the membership now numbered 65 anglers, this was a good number as most of the members are still keen fishermen. This was demonstrated during the Old Lags Championship, where 41 anglers took part. He asked that if anyone knows of any HM&OL who had moved house without letting him know, they ask the individual to make contact.

8. The HM&OL Rep also asked what had been the uptake of the League Associate scheme, this had been running for 2 years and yet he had only heard on one individual who had made use of the system; could League Chairmen let him know of the uptake at the next meeting.

9. The STC Rep wanted to propose that Mark Law be accepted as an HM&OL, but as he now resided in the EMAL area was unsure who would be responsible for proposing him. It was decided that the STC Rep would forward the details to the EMAL Chairman with a covering letter so that they could put his name forward. He had also been in touch with Dave Hollingworth whom he considered would be ideal for Associate League membership. As Mr Hollinworth now lived in the WMAL area he would pass on the details.

10. The STC Rep asked if a change could be made to the constitution, which allows for 12 matches per year plus a Fur and Feather, as EAWL fish 14 matches plus a Fur and Feather. The Chairman stated that is was not the policy to restrict the number of matches and would change the wording accordingly.

11. The CAL Rep wished to invite the RAF to a teams of 4 match on the Aylesbury Arm of the Grand Union Canal. This was a 100-peg match in aid of a local cancer charity and would be held on the 29 Aug. The Chairman stated that the team would be happy to accept a place in this competition.

12. The CAL Rep asked if the RAFCAA(Coarse) had considered joining the ACA as Corporate Members. It was decided that the financial implications of this would be looked into

13. The Match Secretary wished for confirmation as to who would be running the Clubman’s Championship. The Chairman confirmed that the Match Secretary would run this event.

14. The NFA Rep asked that future meetings were not scheduled for a Tuesday as this could, as happened on this occasion, conflict with League matches. He also felt that if the conflict had been with a larger league the meeting would have been rescheduled. The Chairman agreed that the choice of date was not ideal but was the only one available, he would ensure that where meetings did not coincide with RAF matches Thursday would be the first choice with Tuesdays and Wednesdays only used as a last resort.

15. Finally the Chairman sought the approval of the Committee to send a letter of thanks to Jonathan White. Jonathan was leaving the RAF after serving on the RAFCAA(Coarse) and the RAFCAA main committee for many years, and the Chairman would be putting him forward for Honorary Membership. The Committee unanimously agreed this.