Is a tidy tackle box always the key to better catches?

OUR excuses for not catching are legendary, and there are many of them. We’ve all cursed ourselves for fishing the wrong spot, taking the wrong baits to begin with, or even losing fish because of a rig, rod, elastic, or even hook being too heavy or light.

But some of these schoolboy errors can easily be solved with a bit of planning and preparation, and my goodness, most of us have the spare time to do it these days!

There’s something to be said about having your gear in tip-top condition, and most anglers will tell you that it’s time well spent.

I’ve seen some incredibly well-stocked seatboxes and tackle bags over the years, and many of them belonged to some of our finest match and specimen anglers whose records speak for themselves.

I guess there’s also a pleasure in having dozens of immaculate, shot-perfect rigs, organised feeder and lead systems, and hooks sharpened to stand up to microscopic scrutiny. I do believe that all these things boost your chances of catching.

Of course, there are always exceptions to this. I remember an Angling Times feature with the late, great Ivan Marks on the River Nene many years ago. By his own admission, Ivan was never the tidiest of anglers and at the start of the session he was hunting around in his box for a quivertip to replace the one on the rod which he knew was too light for the conditions.

Unable to locate anything suitable, he snapped the top few inches off the existing tip and set up to fish. I have to admit to being a bit open-mouthed at this point.

But this was Ivan, and I needn’t have worried. A few hours, and many bream, later, I realised that the presentation under the water was much more important than how tidy the tackle looked above the surface.