Short sessions finally pay off

Over a year of hard work paid off for Brian Cox when he enjoyed the ‘roach fishing session of his life’ which produced a brace of specimens topping the scales at 2lb 8oz and 2lb 1oz.

After arriving at Stenhill Fishery in Collumpton, Devon, he set up two simple groundbait feeder rigs and went about targeting the fishery’s elusive stocks of big redfins that had eluded him for the past 12 months.

His luck finally changed, though, when just an hour after casting out his 10mm Marukyu Nori boilie hookbaits he received a classic drop-back bite and his biggest specimen was soon sliding over the frame of his landing net.

With his hands still shaking, Brian was setting up his camera to record his landmark capture when his other rod screamed off and he swiftly completed the brace that he’d always dreamt of.

“It’s been well over a year of short session failures, so it’s a relief to have finally caught some roach, especially a brace of this size,” he told Angling Times.

“As soon as the other rod went off I slipped my biggest fish back into the landing net and secured it in the margins and hit the bite. I couldn’t believe my eyes when I had two roach over 2lb on the bank.”

And to prove the catch was no fluke, Brian returned to venue to following evening and using identical tactics he promptly landed a third specimen over the 2lb-barrier weighing 2lb 5oz.

“I only have limited time on the fishery and a catch like this makes me wonder what could be possible if I had a few full days after the roach.”

Brian’s run of recent form at the venue hasn’t just seen him score with the roach as he used the same rig, constructed with 6lb mainline and a 4lb hooklink, to land a 30lb 8oz mirror carp and several tench to 5lb.

For more information visit: www.stenhillfishery.co.uk or call: 01884 33707