Big perch landed in Dog Lane Fishery event

A single bite can turn a dour outing into a memorable affair as Justin Ashby found out when he netted a 3lb 4oz perch during the latest event at Dog Lane Fishery.

The Banbury Gunsmiths ace decided to fish worm after drawing peg 34 at the Warwickshire complex and struggled to tempt a single indication in the opening stages.
But his frustrations were soon put to one side when the specimen provided his only bite of the day.

Despite managing to win his section, he was unable to make his way into top spot overall, with Keith Taylor taking the honours with 4lb 8oz of bread punch roach.


Dream start to winter campaign

Leon Bartropp has got his winter campaign off to a flying start with this 41lb 7oz mirror caught on his first session on an Essex stillwater.

The Fox International and Sticky consultant set up in a swim which allowed him to target a small island where he thought a few carp might be present. The first night of the trip passed without event but he put a bit more bait out as a south westerly wind started to pick up the following day. With the conditions looking good and the wind getting even stronger and pushing directly in to the island where his middle rod was positioned, it was no surprise when he received a screaming take on the final morning of the session.

“The fish did its best to get around the back of the island, but after a spirited scrap I had her in the net,” Leon told Angling Times. “I shone the torch into the folds of the net and was surprised to see a big old mirror laying there. At 41lb 7oz I couldn’t have asked for a better start. I always love beginning a new campaign, but I was a little concerned I’d left it so late in the year and I was hoping I hadn’t missed the boat with regards to getting a bit of bait in and sussing out any likely looking areas for me to concentrate on. I’d also been given a new bait to test for Sticky, so to have a forty on it the first time I used it was a right result.”

As he was fishing over an area of dark silt, Leon put his faith in an 8ins 25lb Fox Black Cortex hooklink and a size 5 SSC hook. On to this he mounted a snowman hookbait presentation consisting of a 16mm bottom bait and a 12mm Sticky Buchu-Berry pop-up.


Brace of double figure zeds landed from Cambs pit

What started as ‘a short social session’ with a friend ended up being Simon Layt’s best-ever zander trip, with the 36-year-old landing four fish for more than 41lb in just six hours, including a new personal best of 14lb 2oz.

He was targeting a pit in Ely, Cambridgeshire with legered dead roach tactics when he made the memorable haul, which also included fish weighing 10lb 14oz, 9lb and 7lb 8oz.


Running rig fools 32lb 9oz Catch 22 common

Lee Nobbs has caught his twelfth Norfolk 30lb-plus carp of the year in the shape of this 32lb 9oz common from the day-ticket lake on the Catch 22 complex.

The venue bailiff did a week of 12 hour overnight sessions and landed five other carp using Mainline Baits New Grange dumbbell hookbaits on running rigs incorporating size 7 Nash Fang Twister hooks.

He said: “I have only recently switched over to these baits and so far the results have been fantastic as the carp seem to love it. This is now the twelfth thirty I’ve had this year from the region and my thirty first over the last two years. Hopefully there’s still time to sneak another one out before the end of the year.”


Dabrowa smashes Headfen Lakes record

Tempting a few bites can be tough enough in the winter months but Tim Dabrowa shocked his rivals during the latest pairs event at Headfen Lakes by breaking a lake record!

The venue regular drew peg 37 on Trev’s Lake at the Cambridgeshire complex and put his faith in the Method feeder cast tight to the island and was into fish around the 6lb mark from the off.

By the end of the five hour period he had won the lake with ease, taking 92lb 8oz.
The achievement also helped him and his teammate Richard Bond take the overall victory on the day with a four point score.


Swim change leads to 40lb 1oz mirror

Following two changes of swims, Ted Bryan was rewarded with a three fish catch topped by this 40lb 1oz mirror.

The Sydenham-based specimen hunter had to brave torrential rain and gale force winds during the trip, but on the final night he received a fast take which resulted in the chunky specimen.

He hadn’t been back in bed long when he was woken by a second bite which ended up with a 25lb common sat in the net.

He then rounded off the session in style in the early hours of the morning with a second mirror weighing in at 30lb 8oz.

All of Ted’s fish were taken on 15mm Nash Amber Strawberry pop-up hookbaits fished on 12lb Bullet hooklinks and size 8 Nash Fang X hooklinks over a scattering of 10mm and 15mm free offerings.


Massive perch falls to rudd livebait

Just a week after catching a massive chub from the Dorset Stour, bang-in-form specimen hunter Jamie Stanley switched his focus to perch and came up trumps when he landed this superb 4lb fish from a small clay pit not far from his Bournemouth home.

After initially struggling on lobworm hookbaits, Jamie changed to small livebaits presented on low-resistance leger rigs to take the impressive perch, along with another of 3lb 7oz.

For the full story and tactics lowdown, see next week's double-edition of Angling Times, on sale Tuesday 13 December.


Suffolk Water Park carp record broken

The Suffolk Water Park record has been broken by James Potter with the capture of this 41lb 3oz mirror from the complex’s Specimen Lake

Targeting a clear spot at 50yds range in an area of the day-ticket lake which he knew the carp liked to reside in during the winter, the Woodbridge-based venue regular offered a snowman style hookbait consisting of a Premier Baits Quad bottom bait and a bright 10mm pop-up with a small PVA bag of pellets.

On the first afternoon of the 24 hour session he landed a 29lb 8oz mirror and at midday the next day he beat his old pb of 38lb 14oz when he slipped his net under the lake’s biggest resident known as 4.3.

He said: “My mate and I decided to fish different styles, and he went for chod rigs over a bed of bait while I chose to just use small bags. He landed three smaller fish and I managed to catch the two bigger carp.”

James’ winning presentation consisted of an 8ins ESP Strip Teaze hooklink and a size 8 ESP Curve Shanx hook on a helicopter setup with a 2oz lead.


Cod PB smashed in fine style!

“When it first came up I thought I had caught a baby dolphin!”

Those are the words of delighted sea angler Kevin Bailey-Green after he had landed this fat 22lb 8oz cod while fishing from his own boat at a mark in the eastern Solent.

Kevin, who lives at Cowplain in Hampshire, tempted his new personal best with a squid hookbait presented on a pennel rig, and beat it using 30lb braided mainline and a 50lb leader.

“The weather was calm and sunny, and I hooked the fish right at the bottom of the tide. I’ve only ever caught four cod before, and this is by far the biggest – my previous best was 14lb 8oz,” he said.


Monk's Pit lake record caught at 51lb 8oz

On only his fourth session on Monk’s Pit in four years, James Vincent landed this lake record 51lb 8oz mirror.

It was the first time elusive specimen had visited the bank of the Cambridgeshire venue since September last year and it was fooled by the 38-year-old JRC consultant who followed his instincts and used a simple but effective rig which virtually guarantees to hook any fish which picks up the hookbait.

When he arrived he soon found a few fish breaking the surface fairly close in and he wasted no time getting set up in the swim.

“Most of the anglers on the lake all fish towards the middle, but I always try to do my own thing because if you do the same as everyone else you’re only ever going to have the same results,” said the Suffolk-based rod. “I didn’t have a clue what was out in front of me so I cast out three single hookbaits while I had a chuck around with my marker rod to see what I could find. After about 15 minutes I discovered a small spot which was just screaming out for a bait. The lake is very weedy but I got a really firm drop and when I dragged the lead back a few feet it pulled into the weed. It wasn’t just a clear silty area, it felt really hard as if carp had been feeding on it and I just knew I had to put a hookbait on it.”

With the light starting to fade,  James decided to position two rods on the spot over around 50 – 60 freebies and leave the third where it had landed earlier as a single.

The all-important bite came just four hours later and a typical big fish fight commenced. “It just plodded around and I eventually landed it in the moonlight. At this point I had no idea which carp I had in the net but I went to get the bailiff who was fishing a couple of swims down to give me a hand with the weighing and pictures. It was only when we lifted the net out of the water that we realised how heavy she was. When the scales pulled round to 51lb 8oz it set not only a new English PB for me but also a new venue record.”

James’ winning presentation consisted of a 16mm Berkley Gulp Tuna and Spice boilie mounted on a long hair with a coated braid hooklink and a size 8 JRC MBT 1 Connect hook setup as a line-aligner rig. This was fished in conjunction with a 3oz zip lead on a safety clip system.

“This is a rig which I have the utmost confidence in. The line-aligner style tubing guarantees that the hook flips over and grabs hold when the carp picks up the bait. The long hair of about an inch helps with the separation between the hook and hookbait and makes it much more difficult for the hook to be ejected as it automatically drops down towards the bottom lip.”

The huge mirror was originally stocked in 1999 by Mark Simmonds at three-years-old and weighing only 5lb, but was actually feared dead by some members because it hadn’t been out for over a year. “I hadn’t fished the lake since September 2009 due to concentrating on other venues and work and family commitments. To catch this fish on only my fourth session was incredible. It just goes to show that if you do your own thing and follow your instincts and not what everyone else is doing you can have some great results,” he added.


Margin spot produces 45lb 12oz mirror

Mark ‘Spike’ Harrison has caught his eleventh UK forty and a new personal best with this cracking 45lb 12oz from an undisclosed venue.

The Northants-based Richworth consultant had been pre-baiting a marginal swim for a couple of days with just over 2kg of Pineapple Hawaiian boilies.

“When I climbed the tree in the morning I could see there were three fish on the spot in 3ft of gin clear water,” he said. “I had seen the big mirror regularly visiting the spot over the previous days and
it had been taking a few baits. On the day, though, it was feeding really hard and I had the bite within 15 minutes.”

Mark mounted his hookbaits on 6ins Kryston Snakebite hooklinks and size 6 ESP hooks.


Des Shipp on this week's Tight Lines

This week’s episode of Tight Lines has a match fishing flavour about it with England International Des Shipp in the studio to reveal his latest winning tips.

There’ll be some bankside tips from fellow matchman Grant Albutt as he demonstrates a simple but effective approach using casters, while Keith enjoys some superb river sport on a recent session he spent on the beautiful Hampshire Avon at Britford.

The winners of November’s Young Angler of the month photo competition will also be revealed during this hour long extravaganza.

Catch all the action on Sky Sports 4 at 7.00pm on Friday December 9.


Quick overnighter results in 38lb 8oz mirror

This 38lb 8oz mirror was the highlight of a three fish catch for Jordan Dicks during a quick overnight session after work on a local stillwater.

The 25-year-old manager of Bristol Angling caught the chunky specimen from a silty area on the far margin at 130yds range using a snowman hookbait consisting of a 20mm Nash Monster Squid bottom bait tipped with a 10mm Rainbow pop-up over a spread of freebies.

Jordan mounted his hookbaits on 12ins, 25lb Nash Missing Link hooklinks and size 4 Fang X hooks with a 4oz distance lead on a Weed Safety Bolt Bead, and also landed two commons of 22lb and 18lb.


Small deadbaits used in big perch haul

This 3lb 11oz perch was the pick of a dozen fish landed by Norfolk-based rod Gareth Goldson during a hectic day session at a local gravel pit.

Gareth, from Cromer, put his faith in small roach deadbaits fished on low resistance leger rigs made from 6lb fluorocarbon and size 8 hook, and also banked one other perch over 3lb as well as a further 10 over 2lb.

“It was a real red letter day with several of the bites coming on the drop. I have found regular recasting to be a real edge when fishing this method as bites often come within minutes of a recast,” said Gareth, who used Hardy Ultralite Avon rods and 8lb mainline.


Dicks notches up hat-trick of White Acres wins

England Youth international Callum Dicks showed exactly why many consider him to be the most exciting prospect in match fishing by notching up another festival win at White Acres.

The Maver backed ace saw off a strong field during the Garbolino Silverfish Festival at the Cornish complex to land the coveted trophy for the third time in his career.

Over the five day event, Callum was able to land almost 200lb of roach, skimmers, tench and F1s to beat a strong challenge from the likes of Adam Wakelin and Darren Cox to seal victory and the £1,000 cheque that went with it.

For more details on the tactics that helped Callum succeed, pick up a copy of this week’s Angling Times, on the shelves from Tuesday December 6.


Seventh UK fifty for Terry Hearn

Following what has been one of his longest campaigns of his illustrious career, Terry Hearn has landed his seventh UK carp over the magical 50lb-barrier with this 51lb 4oz mirror from CEMEX Angling’s Chertsey Lake.

The south London-based legend has been chasing the elusive specimen for the last 18 months, and eventually made contact with his prized target fish on what was his 52nd bite on the tricky low-stock pit which contains fewer than 30 carp.

Terry, who is a consultant for both Dynamite Baits and ACE, had come close to achieving his goal on several occasions throughout his time on the Surrey venue.

“I'd come close a number of times, but one way or another it would always manage to get away with it,” Terry told Angling Times. “Either it would prove too clever for my rigs, or one of its mates would nip in at the last minute and get caught instead. It's possible that I lost it last April as well, after a line breakage.”

He finally slipped the net under the stunning fish, bringing his time on Chertsey to an end in the process, after it picked up his home-rolled 15mm Dynamite Baits Red Fish cork-ball pop-up which he presented on a hinged-stiff rig using a size 6 prototype ACE hook.

“The take came in the very early hours of the morning and I had a fair idea which fish it was as soon as I picked up the rod,” he explained. “I’d already caught all the others and this one felt completely different. It was very weighty and I could feel my line pinging off its fins so it was obviously a long fish. It kited left away from where I hooked it at around 60yds range, and once I got it in close it made the sanctuary of a snaggy corner where I could feel the mainline rubbing against some branches. With steady pressure it came free, and from there I managed to keep it coming until eventually it was rolling around beneath the tip. It was pitch black, but by this stage I was almost certain what it was. Even so, it wasn't until I got it in the net and flicked on my torch that I knew for sure.

“I can't tell you how much of a relief it was to finally catch it! I've enjoyed my time on the pit, but the noise from the nearby M3 is enough to drive you mad, and after catching everything else I'd pretty much had enough of fishing the place anyway. I certainly wasn't looking forward to going back for yet another go next spring. Instead, I can now have a nice fresh challenge somewhere else. For now though it's time to do a bit of perch fishing I think!”


Maher takes glory in River Wye Team Champs

Running water expert Steve Maher added another piece of silverware to his already bulging trohpy cabinet by landing the individual glory in the coveted Wye Team Champs.

The professional float maker was pegged against 101 other top class anglers and showed his class by winkling out 66lb 8oz.

After drawing at Bartonsham, Steve decided to use traditional wag and mag tactics down the middle of his peg and was able to fool chub to 4lb at regular intervals.

Backing weights were equally impressive with runner up Dave Rutter weighing 48-10-0, while on the team front Woody’s recorded 37 points to top the table and nudge out WB Clarke who were on 39 points.