Small Plated new best at 40lb for Sonny Chander

One of the least-caught carp on the Linear Fisheries complex has graced the bank at exactly 40lb.

The Small Plated, which is an infrequent visitor to the bank, fell to Sonny Chander during a 48-hour session on St John’s at the Oxfordshire fishery.

The 35-year-old gas fitter, who had five other fish to over 20lb, said: “I couldn’t believe it. I’ve been after a new personal best for a long time. The Small Plated at 40lb – what a PB, what a fish!”

The West Midlands rod arrived to a busy lake but found a clean spot at 75 yards and introduced 6kg of spod mix made up of Sticky’s Oily Hemp, Proline Tackle trout pellets, Dynamite Baits’ sweetcorn and Mainline Cell boilies.

The Small Plated arrived at 4am and caused chaos during a 20-minute fight that wiped out Sonny’s other rods. He said: “The battle with the fish was out of this world – one to remember.”

Sonny used a blow-back rig featuring 25lb Gardner Sly Skin, a size six Fox Armo Point hook, a Solar Contour leader and a 3.5oz lead on a drop-off system. The successful hookbait was one of his own hand-rolled Planet Wafters.