Winner of the 2018 Charles Farlow Trophy Announced

2018 was a tough year for salmon fishers in the UK but on those all–too–rare occasions when conditions were perfect, there were some excellent fish caught and returned.

The winner of the 2018 Charles Farlow Trophy is Thomas Chamberlain of Brecon, who landed a 28lb cock fish from the head of the Piles Pool on the Spreadeagle beat of the River Wye on 22^nd April 2018.

Catch Details and Tackle Used

Thomas hooked the fish in a clearing river at 1.30pm on a home-tied tungsten Black Francis tube with a size 10 double hook fished in conjunction with an Airflo Scandi 540 floater, Airflo intermediate polyleader and 16.5lb Riverge. It was tailed 100m downstream of where it was hooked and recorded at a length of 41.5in and girth of 23in before being released.



Thomas‘s name is the second inscribed on the stunning Sophie D’Souza-designed stained glass trophy, he also received a specially-engraved ‘Goliath’ bottle of Foxdenton Estate gin and a £500 Farlows voucher.

About the Charles Farlow Trophy

The Malloch Trophy is awarded annually to the captor of the best salmon caught in Scotland on a fly and safely returned to the water, with its main aim to promote the conservation of salmon through catch and release on Scottish rivers.

Recognising the importance of this trophy, both to anglers and indeed to the conservation of salmon in Scottish rivers. Farlows created a new trophy to be awarded annually to the captor of the largest fly-caught salmon safely released in an English or Welsh river.

Named after Charles Farlow who, together with his brother John King Farlow, established Farlows in 1840 the trophy is a specially commissioned stained glass panel of an Atlantic salmon, created especially for the competition by renowned stained glass artist Sophie D’Souza.

The stained glass panel remains on permanent display at Farlows iconic Pall Mall store, with the name of the captor, the weight of the fish and the river from which it was caught engraved upon the base.

To be considered for the trophy a fish must be:

• A wild Atlantic salmon
• Caught in a sportsmanlike manner from an English or Welsh river or beat
• Caught on fly and returned safely to the water in accordance with the rules of the beat
• Properly weighed and/or measured
• Independently witnessed
• Reported within one month of capture

Entries for the 2019 competition are now open - enter the Charles Farlow Trophy  »