Rules for Blue Circle (Sittingbourne) Sea Angling Club

Rules of the Club

The following rules have been formulated and refined over the years and, so far, have stood the test of time. If you think that your club could benefit from using any of them, feel free to apply them as neccesary.

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General Membership Conduct
Competitions Trophies

General

1.The object of the Club is to further and promote the advancement of the art of sea angling.
2. A Committee consisting of The Club officers and four committee members shall manage the affairs of The Club. Those members present at the A.G.M. shall elect the Club Officers
3. The Club year will run from 1st January to 31st December.
4. The Club is also the parent body for The Kent Casting Club, which is run for the benefit of the Club.
5. Four Club members decided upon by The Club members will run the Kent Casting Club affairs.
6. The Chairperson has no voting rights, but has the casting vote in the event of a tie.
7. Any major decision concerning The Club must be made by a vote of at least 51% of the membership.
8. An extraordinary A.G.M. may be called by no less than 33% of the membership requesting in writing to the Club secretary. Such E.A.G.M. must be held within 14 days of receipt of said request.
9. The use of an adequate shockleader is mandatory in ALL Club competitions and matches.

Membership.

10. There will be two classes of members: (1) Full Members and (2) Associate members.
11. Full members enjoy all the benefits within the Club, but Associate members are only allowed The Kent Casting Club benefits and social benefits of the Club.
12. Membership of The Club is by election of members and by payment of an annual subscription. Such subscription, and the subscription for the K.C.C., shall be set at the Annual General Meeting.
13. The Committee members who run the Kent Casting Club allow membership of the Kent Casting Club.
14. A junior member is defined as a person being aged under 16 years old on January 1st of The Club year.

Conduct

15. Every angler has a duty to ensure the safety of other anglers and bystanders, any infringement of this rule must be brought to the attention of a Committee member as soon as possible.
16. In the event of any member doing any act or thing contrary to the rules of The Club, that member shall be referred to the Committee to be dealt with by them.
17. If anything arises which is not provided for in the Rules it shall be laid before the Committee who shall have full power to act in the matter and their decision shall be final. The decision will thereby create a precedent.

Competitions.

18. Venues will be decided upon by using a knockout voting system, i.e. all venue suggestions are voted for, with the venue attaining the least votes being removed and then further voting until there is an outright winning venue by majority.
19. The venue may only be changed under extreme circumstances.
20. The Committee has the power to make competition and festival rules as from time to time may be found necessary for the proper working of The Club.
21. No member shall be allowed to compete for The Club competitions unless their subscription renewal for the year is paid in full by the 1st April, unless by prior arrangement with the Treasurer.
22. All competitions are governed by the rules of The National Federation of Sea Anglers (NFSA) unless varied by The Club rules.
23. A competitor shall use one rod only with not more than three hooks
24. Minimum fish size limits are to be used in all competitions, these are provided by the NFSA as amended by dispensations given to clubs belonging to the South Eastern Division of the NFSA.
25. In all competitions, the greatest length of fish decides upon the winner, but only half the length of Eels will count. Measurements will be rounded up to the nearest half centimetre.
26. In all competitions, if there is a tie, duplicate trophies will be awarded.
27. Each competitor may only register their first three Mackerel.
28. All sizeable fish that are to be kept should be stunned as soon after capture as possible.
29. The weighing -in scales should be available on the beach in all competitions.
30. All competitors must register their fish no later than 30 minutes after the end of a match. Any fish brought to the register point after this time period will not be registered.
31. A competitor may cast for another angler who is, or is deemed to be, incapable of casting for theirself due to physical disability, provided that such arrangement is agreed by the Committee before the competition.
32. Assistance may be given to land a fish, but only the member may handle the rod and reel. A drop net or gaff may be used by another angler to assist, as may hand lining, as long as the fish is lifted, not dragged through the water towards the competitor.
33. Any member found leaving litter or throwing litter into the sea during, or after, a competition will be disqualified.
34. As well as the aforementioned rules, the rules of fair play will apply. Members must conduct themselves in a manner within the spirit of the sport.

36. The Senior and Junior Angler of the Year are decided by attaining most points through the year on the basis of the following :-

* The Harold Hammond Winter Trophy was presented by his family in memory of Harold Hammond

** The Pieman Pat Trophy is named after Patrick Hugh Carroll, a member of the club who died from cancer in 2000. The trophy was presented by his wife Elsie in memory of Pat who had won the trophy, with his partner, two years running.