Canal Pairs qualifier dates revealed

The Angling Trust/Canal & River Trust Canal Pairs Championship returns for 2017 with qualifiers taking place across the UK including Scotland, Wales and Ireland as anglers team up to go in search of the big cash prize at the culmination of the event.
Launched a couple of years ago, the competition has now firmly established itself as a bespoke big money competition exclusively for canal anglers with many qualifiers selling out and over 100 rods turning out for the final, won in 2016 by Sensas Black Country duo Simon Nickless and Steve Dudley.
There’s 13 qualifiers in total, taking in established match venues including the Grand Union, Gloucester, Leeds-Liverpool and New Junction Canals plus the Llangollen in Wales, Newry in Ireland and Forth & Cylde in Scotland, which will allow anglers a shot at making the final wherever they are based.
Tickets are priced at £40 per pair with an online booking system in operation once the event goes live on Monday March 13 and an entry-dependent £16,000 will be on offer in the October grand final to be shared between the top four pairs. Depending on how many anglers fish each heat, up to five pairs will qualify from each match with anglers each fishing a 50 peg mega section, top weight scoring the maximum number of points available. Then, the combined totals will be added to decide the qualifiers.
“The aim of the competition was and still is to inspire match anglers to experience the great fishing that can be found on their local canals,” said National Fisheries and Angling Manager for the Canal & River Trust John Ellis. “The 2016 event was a great success and proved really popular with anglers from across the country and I’m expecting 2017’s Pairs to be just as big a success.”
To find out more about the Canal Pairs Championships including how to enter, go to www.anglingtrust.net
 
Dates, venues and host clubs for the qualifiers are as follows:
Saturday 1 July - Leeds-Liverpool Canal Liverpool AS waters
Saturday 15 July - Forth & Clyde Canal Scottish Federation for Coarse Angling waters
Sunday 16 July - Basingstoke Canal Basingstoke Canal AA waters
Saturday 29 July - Grand Union Canal (Aylesbury Arm) Tring Anglers waters
Sunday 30 July - Newry Canal Edenderry AC waters
Saturday 5 August - Shropshire Union Canal Hodnet AC waters
Sunday 13 August – Shropshire Union Canal Hodnet AC waters
Sunday 20 August - Kennet & Avon Canal Reading DAA waters
Monday 28 August - Aire & Calder Canal Boothferry Joint Angling Committee waters
Saturday 2 September - New Junction Canal Doncaster AA waters
Sunday 3 September -Trent & Mersey Canal Pride of Derby AA waters
Sunday 10 September - Gloucester & Sharpness Canal Winget AC waters
Sunday 24 September – Staffs/Worcester Canal Wolverhampton AA waters
Saturday 30 September - Grand Union Canal Northampton Nene AC waters
Saturday 7 October - Llangollen Canal Hodnet AC waters
Sunday 8 October - Trent & Mersey Canal Middlewich DAA waters                
Grand final: Saturday 21 October – Erewash Canal Long Eaton Victoria AS waters