Social session leads to elusive 50lb 10oz mirror carp

A social session with a friend produced a flurry of fish for Chris Oakley, topped by this 50lb 10oz mirror which had not been caught for more than a year.
The carp, which was 6lb up in weight, was part of a nine-fish haul at Grenville Lake in Cambridgeshire.
“Amazing fish, amazing lake,” said the Coventry angler after his three-night stay.
Recalling the session, Chris added: “This trip was a social event with a mate, and hopefully we would catch a few along the way. The rods were whacked out into a stiff north-easterly wind at noon, and all three of mine were back leaning against the bivvy within the hour, both of us having already landed a twenty!
“The flurry of activity continued through the afternoon with fish into the low thirties, including some stunning scaly ones.
“But the action halted on dusk and the fish deserted us for the next 48 hours.
“It wasn’t until the Friday evening that I was playing another carp against the backdrop of a hastily abandoned barbecue.
“It took 30 yards of line on the first run, but even the small ones in Grenville do that. 
“It did look surprisingly big as it went into the net, but we lifted it out together in the sling so neither got the measure of its full weight.
“On the unhooking mat it was ridiculously big. I don’t think either of us could believe just how big this fish looked.”
Chris used 25kg of Grenville boilies and fished at 104 yards to bank his fifty. 

Big surface rudd pair

Big-fish hunter Iain McDonald topped off what he called ‘one of his best summer’s rudd fishing’ by slipping the net under this fine brace of specimens.
Weighing 2lb 5oz and 1lb 10oz, both fish were tempted on breadflake fished up in the water during a session on Kent’s Stonar Lake.
The Canterbury angler, who has banked numerous specimen rudd over 2lb this season, also netted a 20lb 9oz carp during the same session using a float rig consisting of 4lb mainline and a size 12 Drennan Specialist hook.

Small fish dominate at Lough Muckno

IADA Irish Open Feeder Championships
Lough Muckno (90 pegs)

Manchester’s Lee Addy, fresh from the World Pairs event, took this two-day
festival on Muckno with a 23-310 tally to earn over 1,000 Euros in winnings.
The Bait-Tech/Drennan NW man weighed in 9-650 on Day 1 and 10-660 on Sunday to finish well clear of Dutch runner-up Leo Koot on 18-300.
Small fish were the order of the day, Lee netting hundreds of roach, plus the odd hybrid, on groundbait feeder and red maggot tactics over the weekend
Leo also employed the feeder for second, with third going to Michael Buchwalder, who totalled more than 600 roach across the two days for 17-560.

Result: 1 L Addy, Drennan NW/Bait-Tech, 23-310; 2 L Koot, Netherlands, 18-300; 3 M Buchwalder, Preston Innovations, 17-560;
4 B Hawkes, Sensas North, 17-000; 5 B Kelly, Tri-Cast, 16-740;
6 W Freeman, Preston Innovations, 16-000.

Top catfish at 70lb 12oz for Anglers Paradise

Teenager Adam May smashed a long-standing record when he banked this 70lb 12oz catfish from the famous Anglers Paradise complex.
The 14-year-old rod made the trip to the Devon complex and baited up at the bottom of a slope in a prolific peg on the Main Carp Lake.
Just after dark had his left-hand screamed into action and after a 15-minute battle the new venue best was in the net.
Adam said: “My 60lb scales instantly bottomed out and my dad had to go and borrow a pair. This is the greatest catch of my career to date.”

For more about the fishery visit: www.anglers-paradise.co.uk

Play a part in the future of your sport

Every angler in the country is being urged to get involved in fishing’s biggest-ever survey being carried out to help shape the future of our spot.
The Angling Trust has teamed up with Sport England and the Environment Agency to run the nationwide research project, which will take a detailed look into the views and experiences of UK anglers and enable them to play their part in making major changes to the UK fishing agenda.
It is hoped that the results will reveal what can be done to drastically boost the number of people that regularly go fishing, while at the same time providing the tools for improvements that could be made to tempt exisiting anglers to spend more time on the bank.
The Angling Trust’s Chief Executive, Mark Lloyd, is one of the brains behind the project, and he told Angling Times: “We want to hear from anyone who has ever been fishing – whether they have dabbled just once or twice, haven’t done it for some time, or are a keen current angler that fishes regularly.
“We want angling to remain one of the most popular activities in the country, and that can be achieved if everyone gets involved in this survey.
“The last survey that we carried out identified predation, poaching and pollution as the issues closest to anglers’ hearts, and we’ve acted on the results to address these key issues.
“Whatever anglers tell us this time round, we will get to work on their concerns immediately to ensure a stronger future for fishing,” he added.
As an incentive to take part, there will be a chance to get your hands on hundreds of pounds’ worth of tackle vouchers from Glasgow Angling Centre.
Anyone who fills in the survey can easily opt in to be entered into the prize draw.

Take the survey here: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/AnglingTrust2015

47lb 2oz common carp’s annual arrival

This giant common carp known as the Colonel is making a habit of arriving at the same time of year with almost military precision.
Lee Walters caught the 47lb 2oz fish, along with two twenties, during a weekend session on Roman Lake at Stanwick Lakes Fishery in Northamptonshire.
The 56-year-old knew the fish was due a visit to the bank. He said: “For the last three years it has come out over the August bank holiday weekend. Two years ago I had it at 40lb from the same spot in the same swim on the bank holiday, but this time around it was a week later – the lads said they’d forgive it being a week overdue!”
Lee, who fished from Friday until Sunday, added: “I chose a swim in the middle of the lake with plenty of open water to go at. I baited lightly with 20 or 30 baits and small PVA bags over the top.
“I had a 27lb 8oz common on the Friday and a 27lb mirror on the Saturday before the common arrived on Sunday morning. It was a real one-toner, and from the way it just plodded I knew it was big. When I saw the width of it I knew which fish it was.”
The Northampton angler used double 18mm KCF hardened hookbaits from Xcel Baits mounted on longshank blowback rigs made with Fox hooks and Thinking Anglers Tungskin hooklinks.

Derby angler edges Ivan Marks Memorial

Venue regular Dave Stokes topped a strong field of some of the country’s best feeder anglers at Cambridgeshire’s Ferry Meadows Lakes.
Held in memory of match legend Ivan Marks, the 80-pegger was a close-knit affair with only one decent bream separating the top three.
But it was the 67-year-old from Pinxton, Derbyshire, who took home the £300 winner’s purse and trophy with 44-5-0 from peg 122 on Overton Lake.
Said Dave: “It’s an area that has been consistent this season, although I’d rather have been a few pegs to my left.”
Casting regularly at 58 turns with a rocket feeder filled with groundbait and chopped worms, casters, chopped maggots and chopped corn, Dave waited 75 minutes for his first bite – a decent skimmer bream. He then took odd fish until an hour-and-a-half from the end, when he enjoyed a purple patch with six fish in as many casts.
He ended with three big bream to 6lb plus lots of skimmers on a variety of baits including worm, caster, fluorescent maggot and bronze maggot.
“I’d thought I’d blown my chances as I lost seven bream either in the weed in front of me or because the bait masked the hook, but thankfully I’d done enough,” he added.
Runner-up from peg 80 on Gunwade Lake was Leicester teenager Sam Collett, who used a small Method feeder with corn and maggot on the hook for 42-0-0.
The match was organised by Leicester Tackle Shop Match Catch and Ringer Baits, and raised £625 for Papworth Hospital and Macmillan Cancer Support.
Result: 1 D Stokes, Peg One Angling Centre, 44-5-0; 2 S Collett, Dynamite Baits/Match Catch, 42-0-0; 3 J O’Driscoll, Stalybridge Angling Centre, 40-10-0; 4 G Howie, Ringer Baits, 37-8-0; 5 I Didcote, Garbolino Bait-Tech, 32-0-0; 6 D Cooper, Sensas Mark One, 28-14-0. 

'Back to basics' for giant 53lb 12oz mirror carp

A small cube of luncheon meat on a size 10 hook accounted for one of the largest day-ticket carp in the country.

Jay Mills made a conscious effort to go back to basics to tempt Dave from Bluebell Lakes at 53lb 12oz.

The Cheshire angler banked the giant mirror, alongside a 23lb 6oz mirror and a 30lb ghostie, at Swan Lake on the Northamptonshire complex.

He told Angling Times: “It was a dream come true. It was real back-to-basics stuff, which I love. I kept hearing Dave would come out on small hooks and small baits so I used size 10s and small cubes of luncheon meat.”

The 37-year-old, who is a regular at Bluebell and has had fish to 46lb from the complex before, arrived at the busy venue at night and headed for the less crowded far bank.

After Jay had been baiting with particles and crushed boilies for two days the fish homed in on day three.

“I could see they had moved in and I was getting liners so I was expecting something to happen, but I didn’t think I’d catch that fish,” said Jay.

“The fight was a typical big-fish fight and it did most of its scrapping under the rod tip. I actually didn’t realise which fish it was until Kev Hewitt, who was fishing next to me, came over and said ‘you’ve got Dave’.

“It was just sheer joy at that point.”

The fish came 10 yards to the right of Jay’s baited area and picked up the luncheon meat presented in a small PVA bag of freebies.

Kev Hewitt himself got in on the action at Swan Lake last week with a 38lb 8oz common and a 32lb mirror in a two-night trip.

17lb 4oz barbel in amazing week for species

Rivers have hit peak big barbel form with a string of double-figure fish to 17lb 4oz.
Action stepped up a gear on countless popular venues as water levels rose, and it was Colin Hebb who slipped the net under the biggest barbel from the River Trent.
The Hull angler found his chosen stretch in perfect condition and used two rods with contrasting approaches. One swas baited with a boilie hookbait, while he took a gamble with a lobworm on the other – a wise decision as it turned out.
Just before midnight the alarm screamed into life, and Colin said: “The fish had taken the lobworm and instantly made four powerful runs. In the net it didn’t look that big, but when I lifted it out I realised it was huge.
“I couldn’t believe it when the scales went round to 17lb 4oz – a personal best and a fish that will prove difficult to beat.”
Well-known specialist Phil Smith continued his rich vein of form when he banked one of his biggest ever barbel weighing 16lb 12oz.
A simple running leger rig did the trick for the Coventry rod when the specimen took his hookbait an hour after darkness fell on a river in the Midlands.
“I got to the swim at around 2pm and introduced 10 dumbell boilies into the swim and then a further 10 just before it got dark,” said Phil.
“This is the first time I’ve ever used anything from MAD baits and it really did the trick, as this barbel is right up there with my very best.”
Further south, the River Thames delivered the goods to Adrian Eves when he banked his biggest-ever barbel from the venue.
It went 14lb and came during the Fox and Dynamite Baits-backed angler’s first session of the season. It fell to Crave boilies with a small PVA bag of four baits nicked on to a size 8 hook.
The Surrey specialist also landed a 4lb 14oz chub, which was beaten on a semi-stiff 15lb hooklink.
Bob Edwards took a pair he will never forget from the Hampshire Avon, fish of 12lb 7oz and 14lb 2oz. Having located numerous big barbel, he introduced a few home-made boilies and allowed the shoal to settle before lowering an identical hookbait over the top.
Bright sunshine enabled him to watch a double-figure fish slurp up his bait, and after a tense battle the smaller of the two was beaten.
Just days later he returned, adopted similar tactics and managed to go one better. He said: “I had to wait until dusk before the centrepin came to life and the fish ploughed straight into the weed.
“I applied plenty of pressure and thankfully things went my way and the second of a fantastic brace for the week was soon being held in front of the cameras.”
Korum-backed star Rob Thompson was another man who took advantage of the sudden improvement in conditions.
During three outings in the space of a few days he took six Derwent doubles to a best of 13lb 6oz.
Lesley Winks showed she had lost none of her skills after a 20-year break from the sport when a personal-best 13lb barbel fell to her Dynamite Baits Source boilie on the Warwickshire Avon.
The Birmingham angler’s first night session back bore fruit almost immediately, and she said of the capture: “I knew it was a big fish as it tore off and really tested my rig to the limit.
“I was over the moon once it was in the net and it’s certainly fed my appetite to get on the bank regularly from now on.”
A trial session with a new bait ended in fine style for Julian Barnes when the St Neots angler took a 13lb 7oz barbel from the Great Ouse.
A yet-to-be-released creation from MAD Baits was the offering that proved to be to its liking.

Big crucians hit for six!

A big crucian carp was top of Matthew Fernandez’s hit list – but he got a lot more than he bargained for when he smashed his personal best no fewer than six times.

While many anglers were  completing this season’s crucian campaign, the Southampton-based rod went in search of his first-ever 3lb-plus fish and struck gold during an incredible 24-hour stint.

Every single fish he landed at a southern stillwater was well over his target weight, with the best of the bunch taking the dial round to 4lb.

Setting up in a swim where he had noticed a number of fish break the surface, he soon located a flat spot around 30 yards out, where he introduced several spodfuls of groundbait and casters.

Plenty of tench found his Method feeder and fake caster hookbait combination during the opening stages of the session, but no crucians showed during the night.

But all that changed at first light when, in a manic morning, the 28-year-old slipped the net under fish of 3lb 2oz, a brace at 3lb 8oz, 3lb 10oz, 3lb 15oz and 4lb.

“The water is a famous crucian fishery, but while I was hopeful of beating my previous best of 2lb 15oz I never expected it to happen six times in a row,” explained Matthew.

“Once I had landed a couple over 3lb in quick succession I felt as though it was mission accomplished, but the big crucians kept coming right until the end.

“To land a 4lb fish was the real icing on the cake, though, and I think it will be a while before I up the bar again,” he added.

More than 40 tench and 10 small carp also fell foul of the approach, the successful set-up being a Method feeder rig made up of 6lb mainline, a 25g Drennan inline feeder and a

4.9lb hooklength to a size 16 Drennan Wide Gape Super Specialist Whisker hook.

Record pike venue opens doors again

The venue that holds the British current pike record has opened its doors to predator anglers for the first time in six years.
Anglers from across the country descended on the famous Llandegfedd Reservoir in South Wales – and it certainly didn’t disappoint. The first two days of pike trials resulted in 11 predators over 20lb, with the biggest fish coming in at 27lb 7oz.
The 430-acre trout fishing reservoir first hit the headlines in 1988 when it allowed pike fishing for the first time.
It produced four fish over 40lb, then two British record pike. The first was caught by Gareth Edwards in 1989 at 45lb 6oz, followed by the existing best of 46lb 13oz taken by Roy Lewis in 1992.
And last week, following six years of closure to predator anglers, some of pikefishing’s biggest names set out in search of monsters.
One of those was well-known piker Nige Williams, who not only landed a 22lb 7oz fish, but was accompanied by Dean Mastouras, who boated the biggest fish of the first two days weighing 27lb 7oz. He took it on a lure, and it’s a personal best he’s been chasing for more than 30 years.
“The atmosphere when Nige and I arrived at the venue was absolutely electric. Everyone was buzzing because it hadn’t been pike fished for so many years,” said Dean.
“Every time we got a run I thought ‘could this be the one?’ as no water is more of a magnet to pike anglers than this one.
“I’ve travelled all over the UK and Ireland in search of big pike, and to smash my personal best by 7lb 7oz at Llandegfedd is incredible.”
The second-biggest fish of the two-day trial, at 26lb 8oz, also fell to a lure and was taken by leading predator angler Dave Kelbrick, who backed it up with a 20lb 14oz fish and shared a boat with his son Luke, who also got among the big fish with a 22lb 2oz specimen.
“This venue is capable of throwing up a real monster. I had a fish that was in the low 30lb bracket follow my lure right to the edge of the boat, but it turned away, which was a real gutter,” Dave told Angling Times.
Respected all-rounder and Korum-backed specialist Gary Knowles echoed the sentiments of Dave. After making the seven-hour drive from his Cheshire home, Gary not only boated a pike weighing 21lb 10oz, but was left telling the tale of ‘the one that got away’ after his day on the record-breaking water drew to a close.
“You look out across this water thinking of what it might hold and it really sends a shiver down your spine,” he said.
“I hooked a fish that stripped 20 yards of line off the multiplier on the first run, but then it was gone.
“That was just one of a couple of big fish that I bumped off. I don’t mind losing a fish on my local canal, but when it’s on Llandegfedd and your next run could be a fish-of-a-lifetime it’s a different story!”
The incredible venue is now open to pike anglers fishing from both the bank and boats every Monday and Tuesday until the end of October.
Venue bosses have been pleased with the results of the first two days and share the excitement and enthusiasm of the anglers who now look forward to discovering what Llandegfedd has in store over the coming weeks.
“There have been many stories coming back from the guys on the boats of the loss and sightings of really big fish, which is great after the water being closed for six years and it being so early in the pike fishing season,” said area land manager Richard Poole.
“This venue covers 430 acres, with depths that run to 130 feet in some places, so the possibilities are limitless.
“One of our rangers who was fishing on Monday and Tuesday saw some really big pike on the fishfinder that he had on the boat.
“These are exciting times.”

New flavour boilie brings 44lb common carp

Despite the water’s tiny size, the fish in Strawberry Fields are tricky to tempt – as this elusive 44lb common carp demonstrates.
The fish, known as Cut Tail, had not been caught for more than a year before John Bartley tricked it on a prototype bait.
A two-night session at the intimate Kent water was the first time the East Sussex angler had used a new boilie from Nash Bait.
He said: “It’s something very different and I was keen to get out and try it out with low pressure and wind forecast.
“There was only one place I could think to test the new bait locally, and that was Strawberry Fields.
“This is known not to give up its fish easily. Over the years these carp have seen it all in terms of bait and rigs, but when I got there late on Monday I decided to bait up with half-a-kilo of boilies and a couple of handfuls of Carp Particles UK’s Ultimate Spod Mix along a marginal shelf.
“At about 9am the next day I had a single bleep and I could see the line pulling through the water. After a quick battle I had a common that I thought was a good thirty, but as I lifted the fish to the mat I knew it was bigger than I first thought.”

Third 15lb Trent fish

Timing proved to be crucial for Yorkshireman Dean Herbert, when he landed this personal-best 15lb 12oz barbel.
The 38-year-old, from Pontefract, timed his 24-hour session on a tidal stretch of the River Trent until the venue was carrying extra water. The ploy worked a treat, as within a couple of hours of casting out a feeder filled with 6mm krill pellets, his rod tip was bouncing forward as the huge fish made off with his single 14mm hair-rigged pellet glugged in tuna oil. The specimen set a new personal best for Dean and is his third fish over 15lb from the stretch.

14,000 join in to learn all about angling

The sport’s most important initiative for attracting new blood has been hailed a huge success after 14,000 people took part.
National Fishing Month is an annual event that aims to boost participation, with over 300 coaching and taster days being held at fisheries across the country during this year’s action-packed schedule.
Staged between July 18 and August 31, professional tutors and event organisers were inundated with enquiries from people who wanted to try out angling.
Staff at the Angling Trades Association (ATA) were once again in charge of its organisation.
Chairwoman Naidre Werner was full of praise for those who helped make it such a success.
 “The achievements of National Fishing Month are largely due to the enthusiastic, steadfast support of the voluntary organisers and coaches who plan the events every year,” she said.
“It’s down to their hard work that the sport reaches out to so many people. It’s now our responsibility to ensure that as many people as possible who enjoyed their experience take up fishing on a regular basis to become the anglers of the future.”
Numerous angling clubs and fisheries helped deliver the programmes, including Nottingham Anglers Association who provided a full session of coaching for just £1 at its Bestwood Ponds complex.
All juniors who participated in at least two events were given free membership for the rest of the season.
Secretary Dave Turner said: “Juniors are vital to the future of our sport and we are determined to do our bit to tempt as many children as possible to take up fishing.
“We have already seen those who earned a free membership at our waters with family or friends and it is proof that the activities that make up National Fishing Month are making a real difference to participation levels.”
Planning has already started for the 2016 effort.
Anyone wishing to get involved can find out more information by visiting www.nationalfishingmonth.com

Eric's Willows Lake hits form

Fresh from producing a new Yorkshire record of 58lb 12oz, Eric’s Willows Lake has thrown up another of its big mirrors.
This 47lb 6oz carp, known as the Tin Opener, fell to Michael Wesgarth and eclipsed his personal best by 13lb.
Michael, who fished with a friend in the area around pegs one to five during a
two-night stay, said: “The area we fished was around a shallow bar which is located around the middle area of the lake.
“North East Baits’ Reaper pop-ups were fished to these marks and a good lashing of 20mm baits were sticked out over the area.
“The first night resulted in six bites between us, then the action slowed for the day. The same tactics were used for the second night and we were confident that the bait would bring more action.
“At 10.30pm the right-hand rod signalled a bite and after a brief but spirited battle
I was the proud captor of the Tin Opener at a weight of 47lb 6oz, smashing my previous pb by 13lb.
“I had a great time and I can’t wait to get back for more.”

Drop shotting tempts big perch from the deep

The predator fishing season is gathering momentum and Ant Glascoe Jr got in on the action when he enjoyed a prolific session in search of big perch.
Targeting a local stillwater, the Manchester predator fishing fanatic banked countless fish over 2lb, along with some 3lb perch.
All his fish fell to Savage Gear 4Play Shads with 7g jigheads and were taken from a deep area.
“It was really hectic as the perch were hammering the lures. Drop shotting is such a devastating tactic for this species,” Ant told Angling Times.
“Most of the biggest fish took the bait on the drop as the shad worked its way to the bottom of a 13ft hole that we found.”

Derwent leads the way for barbel giants

The Derbyshire Derwent continues to demonstrate that northern rivers are fast becoming the go-to fisheries for specimen anglers following the captures of two huge barbel.
Chris Martin notched up a new personal best after landing a huge 16lb 8oz specimen from one of the popular Earl of Harrington’s stretches at Derby.
Feeding broken Mad Baits Pandemic boilies, the 27-year-old targeted a deep swim and got the run he was waiting for after casting out a running lead rig with a hair-rigged boilie.
“I must have cast that bait right on its nose as the line had barely settled when the alarm sounded. The rod nearly went in, it was incredible,” he said.
Scott Birkinshaw slipped his net under a 13lb 6oz specimen, his fourth 13-pounder from the waterway this year. The fish fell to a 14mm halibut pellet on a groundbait feeder rig, also on the Earl of Harrington’s stretch.

Phil Ringer fishes on alone to seal World Pairs title

Brothers Steve and Phil Ringer finally got their hands on the coveted World Pairs trophy after two near misses in previous years. They won the £10,000 first prize by over seven kilos from Lee Addy and Paul Keeley – but they were lucky to even be alive after a motor accident on the way to their pegs on the final day that saw Steve sent to hospital and Phil decide to fish alone, despite being badly shaken.
However, a five-star performance by the Ringer Baits boss saw him take the biggest weight of the whole week with a superb 28-800 of roach from Maghoo Lake, a performance England Feeder team boss Tommy Pickering hailed as the best he’d ever seen. It was a weight that saw the Ringers out in front and with a happy ending to what had started off in horrific circumstances. Phil’s big weight also saw him leap from nowhere to win the individual Daiwa Cup and add another £1,000 to the kitty.
“I’ve still got a sore head and a bad neck and the van is a write-off but we’re well aware that it could have been a lot worse!” Steve said. “The fishing has been almost secondary after what happened and it should make all match anglers realise that life is short and although we all moan about bad pegs, bad fishing and so on, they just aren’t important compared to life itself. We’re all in one piece but I can’t lie and say we weren’t relieved to get home.”
Having been second in the past two years, Steve and Phil had earmarked the Pairs as one to win in 2015 and after a slow start, they began to click from around halfway to move up the leaderboard and sit just a few hundred grams off the leaders with the final day to fish. They also proved that despite doing so well in the past, there were always things to learn and improve on.
“I think we adapted better this year as in the past we’d been very regimented using short hooklengths and piling the bait in wherever we went, but we thought about it this time around and in the clearer water used longer hooklengths but also fed depending on the species that would dominate,” Steve explained. “If that was roach then we fed caster through the feeder, but if it was skimmers and hybrids, that changed to worms.”
“Patience was also important as the hybrids would feed for little spells then go absent for half-an-hour so casting regularly, every 90 seconds or so, to keep the bait going in was crucial as was fishing stronger hooklengths as many of the venues had ledges that would cut you off on lighter lines. We went from 0.15mm to 0.17mm because when the fish were a good stamp, but there weren’t lots of them, you had to make every hooked fish count.”
Day 1 saw Phil at Bunerky Lake where he took seven kilos of small fish on feeder, Steve replying with nin kilos on the pole and feeder from Blackley Lake, but the way the rotation of counties worked out, the brothers knew they would be on one of the more prolific sections on the final day so the early matches would be all about keeping in touch with the leaders.
“If we could hang in and get a weight on the last day we felt we’d be there or thereabouts,” Phil said. “We weren’t too concerned about what was happening as long as we were within six kilos of the leaders on Thursday night. We felt we could catch 20 kilos from Maghoo and Rock Island on the Friday and be in with a great shout.”
Connolly’s Shore on Lough Garradice saw Phil take 13 kilos of hybrids on the feeder while Steve bagged 12.5 kilos of skimmers on the tip from the Churches section on day 2 to really begin to motor. Relatively short chucks of 40m with three maggots on a long tail proving the most successful approach as so many fish were being caught just as the feeder settled.
“Things got better on Wednesday as we were off to Killedeas and Horse Island,” Phil recalled. “I drew a legend peg on the pontoon at Killedeas and had 12-900 of hybrids on the feeder and Steve won Horse Island with 16-800 of skimmers and hybrids. That moved us right into contention and although we had a low weight count the following day, we were right where we wanted to be.”
“The draw gave Steve Lough Scur, which is a pole venue and suited him and he had 15 kilos of roach and a few skimmers, which was a blinding performance,” Phil continued. “My target from Kiltybarden Lake was five kilos and I had just over six kilos on the feeder so that was job done. That put us second behind Rod Scott and Michael Buchwalder by around 300 grams and I was all set and fired up for the final day.”
The draw gave Phil a belter in end peg 13 on Maghoo while Steve had an average peg on Rock Island and they agreed that 15 kilos for Phil and five kilos for Steve should do it. But then it all went wrong!
“One minute I was talking to Steve about how to fish and the next we were in a hedge 40 yards further down the road,” Phil said. “The van was ruined, Steve had to go to hospital and plainly couldn’t fish and even I doubted I could make it as I was so shaken, but I was passed fit by the paramedics. The lads travelling behind us took my gear to the peg, the match was put back an hour and I wanted to fish so off I went.”
“Phil Bardell offered to step in and fish Steve’s peg and I want to thank him for that, but we decided that Phil’s weight shouldn’t count as it didn’t sit right with us – if we were going to win it, then we preferred it to be from our own performances, if we didn’t win then we didn’t - as simple as that,” Phil explained. “I got to the peg, still not right and chucked 40m with three red maggots on a window feeder and had a golden day with 131 roach up to 1lb, plus a bream for 28-880 and the best weight of the week across all the venues. It was amazing fishing.”
That weight surpassed the target set in the morning and saw the lads home for a popular victory, but while Phil was fishing, Steve could only wonder about what was happening and if their chances of winning were unravelling.
“I wanted to fish, but wasn’t allowed. I had to go to hospital and then the police station. All day I felt as though I had let Phil down,” Steve admitted. “I went to see him with around 15 minutes to go but daren’t ask him how we getting on. He saw me and said ‘I’ve got 131 roach – it’s solid!’ so I thought ‘right then, I’ll leave you to it’. He then caught a 4lb bream just to rub it in.”
Pairs result: 1 S Ringer and P Ringer, 123-055; 2 P Keeley and L Addy, 115-785; 3 R Scott and M Buchwalder, 111-890; 4 B Nudd and D Davies, 103-800; 5 W Freeman and A Leathers, 102-325; 6 G Miller and C Vandervleit, 101-685.
Daiwa Cup result: 1 P Ringer, 68-330; 2 R Scott, 60-850;
3 L Addy, 59-560; 4 G Miller, 57-225; 5 P Keeley, 56-225;
6 M Pollard, 55-670.

Mirror carp 'Big Plated' hits bank at 47lb 3oz

One of the most coveted day-ticket carp in the country has been banked at 47lb 3oz.
Paul Westall slid his net under the mirror known as the Big Plated at St John’s Lake on the Linear Fisheries complex in Oxfordshire last week.
At the time of going to press, the 29-year-old from nearby Wantage was still fishing and, according to Linear general manager Chris Blunt, had caught a number of
other fish.
The Big Plated is the largest mirror in the 18-acre former gravel pit and was caught by Korda boss Danny Fairbrass during filming of his company’s Underwater DVD series

Fisheries turn to TripAdvisor to publicise their waters

Angling clubs and fisheries are using the world’s biggest travel website to publicise their flagship waters and bring the sport into the 21st Century.
TripAdvisor is used by millions of travellers to rate their experiences every year – it’s a free service that’s now being utilised by a growing number of fishing venues and organisations across the UK.
The site boasts over 200 million reviews of hotels, holiday destinations and restaurants and now anglers are rating their own experiences, as well as sharing photographs of their favourite venues.
Not only does it help each venue promote its waters, but also allows visitors to write honest reviews about their fishing, facilities and other experiences.
Day-ticket venue Arden Lakes Fishery, in Warwickshire, is one venue which has embraced TripAdvisor. “The site offers fisheries that are in an increasingly competitive market a great way of getting their name out there,” owner Hugh Mannall explained.
“It’s great publicity money can’t buy, especially for the lesser-known venues that don’t hold big matches.
“I very much support anglers being able to go on the web and review the venues they visit. It’s also a good way of providing feedback to us which we can use to improve,” he said.
It isn’t just fisheries that are utilising the award-winning site either – Todmorden Angling Society has posted some of its fisheries on the site.
Club secretary Ray Barber said: “We have posted details of four of our venues on there, some of which are day-ticket waters, as we think anglers deserve to get a feel for a venue before they visit. It’s also a great way of boosting our membership by increasing publicity.
“It won’t be biased either, as anyone can put a review on our waters not just anglers as we have bird watchers and dog walkers visiting our sites
too, so it will hopefully help to raise the standard of venues across the UK.”