The Magpies' first match this month happened to coincide with whitebait season's opening week.
And so far, as I'm a fan of both pursuits, the respective seasons have been patchy.
There have been some good runs, a small taste of better things to come and much frustration on the sideline.
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Like McLean Park's embankment, rivermouths are social places. At the weekend a chap fishing opposite me at Esk River's mouth shook his head at his empty net and said, "It's a mug's game".