Dan Clifton with large 2kg specimen from the Swan River in Tasmania while testing the Cranka Shad prior to it release in April 2010.

 

Dan Clifton started fishing at the age of 4 with his dad in the Bega river in the heart of the sapphire coast in NSW.

As a young lad I would spend my holidays consumed by fishing the Bega River or the Tathra Wharf no matter the weather, as I grew older I started to explore the waterways closer to home and found great pleasure in catching the elusive Murray cod.

My passion for trout and bream came as an early teenager when an lady in the caravan park by the name of Daffney took me under her wing and taught be all about fishing as a sport.

I learnt invaluable lessons over the next 4 years from Daffney and experienced a whole new appreciation for fishing.The new knowledge I had been given was quickly transferred to my fishing in the Murrumbidgee and the Tumut river when chasing yellow belly or trout.

In my final years of high school I spent my time either fishing or working with Steve Kovacs at custom crafted lures, producing some of the finest hand made cod lures in Australia.

After school I got a trade and continued my adventures around NSW chasing native species and eventually left home to move to Tasmania to study Aquaculture at the University of Tasmania.

Although I still continued in the building trade after if finished my studies I couldn't get past the truly impressive fishing in Tasmania.

perfect example of the quality of fish that can be found in Tasmania.

As a hobby I started importing fishing rods after my best mate Tal McGowan stood on a favourite rod of mine I had built as a kid with my grand father and started looking for a new blank to build a rod again.

From here one thing led to another, I was importing rods and doing some writing for the Tasmanian Fishing and Boating News.

During my first year competing in the bream qualifiers I met Steersy and soon became best of friends and started looking into other avenues other then rods, the excitement and time factors involved in creating Cranka soon left the rod venture buried.

I currently reside in Tasmania enjoy spending time with 2 children Jayden 12, and Fletcher 17months old. (upcoming fisher people both of them)

Jayden currently has a 40cm to the fork Bream as her PB pretty impressive i think took me till i was 30 to get mine that size lol

I compete in the ABT tournaments as time allows and have some good results in the short period of competing.

 

2007

St Helens ABT Qualifier – placed 8^th / Non boater

Derwent River ABT Qualifier – placed 2^nd / Non boater

St Helens Classic – 1^st place with team mate Nick Martin

Nick Martin and I after our win at St Helens in 2007

Lake Macquarie Grand Final - 13^th place / Non Boater

2008

Attended the Tasmanian ABT Bream Classics as MC for the 3 rounds series

2010

Tasmania Spirit of Tasmania Bream Classics - Swan Round 14^th place with team mate Kim Harris