West Sussex Catch Report - 15th March 2026

Report by David Lewis

Good evening, after being spoilt the previous week with both great weather and fishing last week reverted back to brisk south west winds plus with the smallest tides of the year the water has been choppy and coloured and as a result the fishing has not been as good although there are still some superb Rays being caught throughout the region and with a promising weather forecast and big tides next week hopefully it should see a return of the good fishing experienced before so why not get out and give it ago. 

Here are Worthing high tides times for the week ahead:

• Monday 16th March: 10:36 (5.5m), 23:04 (5.7m)
• Tuesday 17th March: 11:14 (5.7m), 23:40 (5.9m)
• Wednesday 18th March: 11:50 (5.9m) 
• Thursday 19th March: 00:17 (6.0m), 12:26 (6.1m)
• Friday 20th March:  00:52 (6.1m), 13:01 (6.1m)
• Saturday 21st March: 01:28 (6.2m), 13:38 (6.1m)

The weather has been mixed over the past week with brisk winds and plenty of cloud and spells of rain with the occasional glimpse of the sun. Small tides with wind meant the sea conditions changed from calm and clearing to choppy and coloured. Hopefully the predicted weather and increasing tides should mean the sea state calms and clears towards next weekend. 

For whatever reason Dogfish have been around in huge numbers throughout the region during the last few months with fish of mixed sizes and again during the past week plenty have been caught especially as the sea returned to being choppy and coloured. Dogfish will be caught to almost all baits and have been seemingly hard to avoid. The occasional small Bull Huss has also appeared in amongst the Dogfish.

The last fortnight has seen Rays increasing in catches with Small Eyed, Thornbacks and Undulates being reported although they do seem localised. Venues worth targeting Rays include Selsey, Pagham, Bognor, Hove and Eastbourne with nighttime tides likely to increase your chances. 

Small tides, strong winds and coloured seas meant conditions for Plaice fishing was not ideal unlike the previous week where they showed in numbers whilst the sea was calm and clear. Big tides next week and offshore winds at the end of the week should see the water begin to clear again and hopefully see a return of Plaice in good quantities. Venues including Hove, Brighton and Seaford should produce Plaice in the right conditions with worm baits casted long distances likely to improve your catch rate. There are still Flounders being caught randomly mainly to worm baits and Dabs are still frequently showing from East Sussex. Surprisingly a few Turbots have been caught lately and even some early Sole from Shoreham and Hove. 

Bass are still being caught with mainly Schoolies plus the odd sizable fish in amongst them. Beaches have seemingly produced better catches with fish caught in shallow water when there has been a decent surf. Remember for the remainder of March the Bass ban is still in place and ALL BASS must be returned alive so at present it is catch and release only for Bass. 

Congers are still a worthwhile target especially at night or daytime as well whilst the water is coloured. Once the winds ease Brighton and Hove beaches could be worth targeting them during darkness and this area has produced the larger fish caught most recently although they could appear anywhere locally.

There are plenty of other species featuring in catches including Whiting, Pouts, small Smoothounds, chance of an odd Codling, Rockling and Silver Eels. 

Prime Angling usual opening times are 8am till 5pm Monday to Saturday and 8am till 4pm Sundays. We are located at 26 Marine Parade, Worthing, BN11 3PT, just to the east of Worthing Pier with limited customer parking available at the front of the shop. For bait availability it is advisable to phone us on 01903 821594. We also stock a large variety of frozen sea baits as well as a wide range of freshwater baits and tackle. 

Visit our online website at primeangling.co.uk with plenty of new stock regularly added so keep an eye on our Facebook page for updates. 

Please send us pictures of your recent local catches via our Facebook page messenger or email and we will aim to publish them for you in the weekly report. Please note we DO NOT claim ANY FISH used and mentioned in our reports are caught on our baits or tackle, it is a report to show what has and is likely to be caught locally. 

Good luck & Tight Lines!