When the ball of weed came free...

Coming in covered in a ball of weed, it wasn’t until this common carp was on the unhooking mat that Tim Rowland realised how beautiful it was.

The 34lb 8oz fish fell during a weekend session on Christchurch at Oxfordshire’s busy Linch Hill complex.

The 35-year-old had a quiet Saturday, but the lake switched on when cloud rolled in on Sunday. He said: “At 6.30am the left-hand rod pulled tight. The fish weeded me, but after putting waders on and getting a fresh angle on the fish it came free.”

Tim, from Lutterworth, Leics, fished Sticky Krill boilies soaked in Amino Liquid.