44lb 8oz pb carp is followed by Red Belly at 41lb

In-form Darren Hilton continued a recent run of good form with two forties in just half-an-hour.
Having recently banked a 43lb mirror carp in a four-fish hit at Kent’s Darenth Tip Lake, the Carp Couture boss was back for more with the same fish at 44lb 8oz and an elusive 41-pounder.
Arriving at the weedy venue on a Monday morning, the 44-year-old found three clear spots in a swim known as the Pallets and got his first bite at 4.30pm.
“On picking the rod up it felt a very good fish, and after a battle of about 10 minutes the fish was weedbound. However, after it slowly moved towards me through the thick surface weed help arrived, and I was grateful of the assistance to get the fish in.
“As it went over the net cord it looked familiar and on clearing the weed and unhooking it it was indeed a fish I’d had before, this time 1lb 2oz heavier at 44lb 8oz and a new pb mirror for me.”
After Darren had recast, he picked up his catapult to bait up but was interrupted by one of his other rods “exploding into life”.
“The fish broke the surface and showed that it wasn’t happy. It was heading for a weedbed further to the right before I even had a chance to grab the rod, even though I was only 2ft away!”
Another weedy battle followed and Darren was given another surprise when he was able to identify the fish.
“I couldn’t believe it, it looked like another serious fish, and it was confirmed it was the one known as Red Belly, uncaught for about 12 months, and at a weight of 41lb.”
Darren fed Mad Baits Wicked Whites and The Nutz boilies and presented Nutz pop-ups on hinged stiff rigs.