Daiwa’s commercial sales manager Martin Greene (pictured right) remembers colleague and industry legend Ricky Teale (left), who has passed away aged 56.

Back in the late 1990s I was manager of Sportsman’s Lodge in Bedford, it was my start in the tackle trade and a lovely little shop situated in the town centre not far from the River Ouse.

I have a very poignant memory of having a visit from a sales agent called Peter Taylor who sold items from Octoplus and a few other brands. On this particular day Pete held a colourful order form containing a few ranges of pole floats, elastics and some pole winders plus a few other bits and bobs from a company I never heard of called Preston Innovations.

Peter was an enthusiastic bloke and it was always great to be in his company; on this particular day Pete was really on it and bubbling with energy about selling these new bits of kit. Of course I bought a few bits as I like Peter and, more importantly, I liked the products… he kept on mentioning this chap called Ricky and how he was now on board with the brand and knew his stuff.

I had a great relationship with Pete and the Preston items continued to grow on my shop walls and more importantly in customers shopping baskets… a new wave of fishing tackle was underway. That crest of a wave was being blown by Ricky Teale, a man I was yet to meet.

As I grew back into my match fishing after a stint at university, I started team fishing with Starlets, a Midlands-based team, and this took me all around the country and even Europe at certain points and my path crossed with Ricky on many occasions but I never really got to speak with him.

Fast forward and into the early 2000s and I was manager at J&K Tackle in Bicester, looking after their match fishing department. This time my Preston Innovations agent was another great bloke in Tony Moreton and finally I got to meet Ricky in person whilst he was calling in on the way to flying out to China.

He absolutely punished me that day, asking me so many questions on why we did this and that, especially merchandising and displaying certain products. It was done in a nice way though and yes; the questions were fired at me but you could tell he listened. He valued what I wanted to tell and share with him.

Fast forward a few more years and I was now at White Acres fishing a winter festival. On the last night I was invited out with Tony and a few other Preston agents and also Ricky. We spent the night playing pool and drinking a few beers. We are talking nearly 20 years ago but I can remember that night so well… a great evening and I felt honoured to be in their company. As the years passed by I remained in contact with Ricky and all the Preston guys – a great team. But, once again, the wall space of Preston-branded products grew and grew… and then grew even more.

I have another standout moment with Ricky. I was on the banks of Evesham on a Wychavon qualifier and Ricky was pegged above me. Chatting away after the match, I had been sitting on my box set up out in the river. I didn’t own a platform at the time. A week later a brand-new Preston Innovations platform was sent to me courtesy of Ricky. That was him all over.

I’ve mentioned the above because, as I’m thinking back, there are a few stand out points about Ricky. He surrounded himself with good people; people like himself that cared about fishing and the products. They wanted to use the same products they were selling and that still stands true to this day under the Preston brand. He cared what retailers thought and what they wanted to sell.

Ricky joined Daiwa in 2020, post-Covid, and I spent the last three years working alongside him. Nothing changed in our relationship and, to be honest, it felt quiet surreal at times that I was working with him. Along with that I also spent the last few years fishing with him at Loch Ken and, socially, we would grab a bite to eat and a few beers plus, ironically, we played a few games of pool.

He was always on the phone asking what was going on, as many people in the trade will have mentioned. Ricky knew what was going on far more than others; his questions were just trying to find the five per cent of information to add to the 95 per cent he had found out a week before. He was on the ball alright; he knew what young anglers were coming through in what areas and what brands they were involved with. His knowledge and experience was unreal, and I loved chatting with him about the trade and what was going on.

Business-wise I never saw Ricky change his manner with anyone. If he spoke, people listened. He never raised his voice to try and force his opinion or try and score points. He never cut anyone one off or tried to force an issue because he thought it was right. He wasn’t flash in anyway, he didn’t need to be.

A few months ago my mum spent a week in hospital before sadly passing away. Ricky was on the phone to me every day… maybe twice a day… checking in on me as he genuinely cared what was going on in my life. That was the side to Ricky that a lot of people didn’t see.

Many years ago I heard a great quote by a football manager: ” Its not what people say about you when you walk in a room but what they say about you when you leave.”

Reading the many Facebook posts and tributes to Ricky from match anglers, former colleagues and employees and retailers all across the UK and Europe is testament to that quote.

Rest in peace Ricky…

Ricky Teale – 1966-2023