New Match Academy will unleash hidden fishing talent

A group of top anglers has teamed up with the nation’s most famous commercial fishery to launch an innovative scheme that aims to find the sport’s stars of the future.
Warwickshire’s Makins Fishery has signed a sponsorship deal with tackle giant Guru that will see the brand’s sponsored anglers involved in a new Match Academy in a bid to unlock hidden junior talent.
Angling Times columnist Steve Ringer and England Feeder Team member Adam Rooney are among the big names to have pledged to provide coaching during the project.
Youths between the ages of 12 and 16  have been given a major incentive, with Guru promising a year-long sponsorship deal to the most impressive prospect.
Scheme leader Adam Rooney said: “There are thousands of budding young match anglers out there and we want to give them the chance to make that step up to the top level.
“It will give us the opportunity to pass on the team’s knowledge and skills to the next generation and hopefully give them a real shot at becoming future household names.”
Makins owner Alan McDiarmid said: “By joining forces with Guru we are giving juniors a real opportunity to show just how talented they are.”
It isn’t the first time that major manufacturers have stepped up to the plate to benefit junior anglers, with Preston Innovations-backed stars including Des Shipp and Tommy Pickering previously sharing their knowledge during the nationwide Fish Camp series.

LEARN MORE
Staff are working on the format of the Match Academy, with dates set to be pencilled in at the complex next summer. For regular updates on the scheme visit www.tackleguru.com

Supercup 2016 is back!

Britain’s biggest club event – the Angling Times Bait-Tech Supercup – has kicked off again!
Fished by almost 300 sides last year, the Supercup is open to all club and tackle shop sides that are registered to the Bait-Tech Clubman scheme and works on a simple knockout system for local sides, culminating in big semi-finals and the final this summer where one name will go on the famous trophy.
The opening two rounds are fished through spring and early summer with teams drawn out of a hat to decide each tie. These six-a-side matches are to be fished on dates set by Angling Times on venues of the home-drawn side’s choice. Win through these and you’re in the regional semi-final, and if you finish in the top five of that special match the final beckons.
That will see 15 sides go at it hammer and tongs over five hours, all hoping to emulate last year’s winners Dersingham AC – and who knows, they may even be back again to defend the title!
“Supercup remains the club event to fish and as big team matches have dwindled down the years, this competition continues to attract healthy numbers,” said Angling Times Match Editor Richard Grange.
“The beauty is that any club can make it through to the final. The rounds are fished through spring, which with the variable weather and spawning makes for a great leveller, but normally the team that takes it seriously and gives its matches a bit of thought does best. So many clubs are put off fishing the big events because they think they can’t compete, but Supercup is on their level and something they can really get stuck into.”
Detailed here is all you need to know about the Supercup as well as relevant contact details for any queries, and you can find the entry form in Angling Times – good luck!

How it all works

The Supercup is a simple knockout competition run initially on a local basis with ties of two or three teams all local to each other. After two rounds of competition, the winning teams get through to their regional semi-final.
These are to be held at some of the country’s top commercial fisheries in July and August 2016 and draw together sides from all over that respective region (North, Midlands and South) to do battle for a place in the grand final.
These opening rounds are fished to section points, not weight, and MUST be fished on the dates specified by Angling Times. This is to stop arguments over which team can fish which date, which has blighted the competition since it started in 1999.
Fishery rules will apply, and the home-drawn side will have the choice of venue only and the rounds will be fished by six anglers a side.
Once the first round tie is completed the home-drawn club must send the result to Angling Times for publication using the Clubman match report card sent out with contact details for opposing teams after the draw has been made.
Teams that have made it through will go into the hat for the second round draw, which is typically made a week after all first round matches have been completed. These matches will follow exactly the same lines as the opening round, finishing in time for winning teams to get in some practice on their semi-final venue.
initial dates
All first round Supercup matches must be fished on the weekend of April 9 and 10 2016
Second round matches will then take place on the following weekend after the second round draw has been published: June 18 and 19 2016.

How to enter

To begin with teams must be registered to the Bait-Tech Clubman scheme. Don’t panic if you’re not, it’s free to do and only takes a phone call to 01733 395109 to get on board.
If you have fished the Supercup in any of the previous years, then you are already signed up so there’s no need to call!
Once you’re in, send the entry form from Angling Times to the address on the form along with your entry fee and a squad sheet of anglers wanting to fish. This list must have a minimum of 10 and a maximum of 20 names.
All entries MUST be received by Thursday, February 1 2016 to go into the draw for the first round, which will be published in the Tuesday, February 16 2016 issue of Angling Times.
If you’re a home-drawn club, you must contact your opposition to arrange the match as soon as possible – contact details will be sent out to home teams as soon as the draw is completed.
If you’re an away team, just sit tight and wait for that phone call.

Entry fee

It costs just £30 to fish the Supercup, effectively £1.50 per man if you enter a 20-angler squad – around half a pint of beer! This can be paid via cheque or Postal Order and then all you’ll have to pay from then on are the pools for each match you fish.

What you win

There isn’t a prize list in club fishing to match the Supercup and the lucky winners will not only receive the sparkling silver trophy but also commemorative medals as a memento of their day out, plus the £1,000 cheque from event sponsor Bait-Tech.
In fact, all teams competing will go home with something to show for their efforts, with a medal for every team member presented by England boss Mark Addy as well as a box full of Bait-Tech goodies to be distributed amongst the club. A free breakfast and evening meal for all anglers is provided by Bait-Tech.
You’re not forgotten if you come second or third, though, because medals and cheques for £500 and £250 are up for grabs for those teams as well as cash from the pools for the individual top five anglers and section winners and runners-up. Soo what are you waiting for? Enter now!

Decent nets of roach and skimmers on K&A canal

Sensas Commercial House Christmas Match
Kennet & Avon Canal, Garage Pond - Bathampton (27 pegs)

The canal fished extremely well, with the top 11 anglers all taking more than 9lb.
Martin Rayet, of Stand & Deliver Promotions, won from the Horseshoe Pond with an impressive 24-12-0 of roach taken on breadpunch at 5m, plus skimmers to 2lb on maggot over groundbait at 13m.
Jon Harvey was next with 14-9-0 of roach on punch and bloodworm fished at 5m and 13m and skimmers on caster from the Long Pond.
Result: 1 M Rayet, Stand & Deliver Promotions, 24-12-0; 2 J Harvey, Preston Innovations Thatcher’s Black, 14-9-0; 3 M Goodhind, M&N Electrical, 13-2-0; 4 K Dicks, Maver Bathampton Elite, 12-8-0; 5 S Townsend, Maver Bathampton Elite, 12-4-0; 6 A Britt, Maver Bathampton Elite, 10-5-0.

Harry Billing wins Garbolino Silverfish title

Festival season at Cornish complex White Acres was rounded-off with the Garbolino Silverfish event and the title went to a familiar name in the South West of the country as Harry Billing lifted the silverware. But only after the usual tallying-up of dropped scores when he ended up tied with three other anglers on a perfect 36 points!
The Garbolino man has tasted plenty of success at White Acres and surrounding fisheries, culminating in the 2012 Parkdean Masters, since he relocated to Cornwall from his native Manchester and silverfish are his game as Harry was a feared angler on the canal scene back in the North.
Racking up four section wins and dropping a four-point score from his worst day, Harry ended up clear of runner-up Adam Wakelin with Andy Power taking third, both men having poorer dropped scores.
Whereas previous Silverfish festivals have been fished on frozen lakes, this year saw mild and often wild and windy weather. That helped the weights, Harry kicking off on Day 1 with a section win thanks to 62-12-0 of skimmers, roach and a few F1s on maggot and caster over groundbait on the long pole from peg 7 on the Sycamore Lake.
It was a case of more of the same on Tuesday as he notched up 60-0-0 of F1s using caster in the margins of peg 6 on the Twin Oaks Lake. Day 3 gave him his midway section finish from the Trelawney Lake, which was ultimately to be binned.
It didn’t take long for him to get back in the groove though, Jenny’s Lake peg 15 seeing him work hard for 33-1-0 of roach and skimmers on maggot and caster to post another eight points and going into the final day, only a win would do – and Harry duly obliged.
The draw put him on peg 20 of the Pollawyn Lake and he won not only the section, but the lake as well, with 44-3-0 of skimmers using maggot on the long pole line.

Result: 1 H Billing, Garbolino, 36pts (dropping four points);
2 A Wakelin, Preston Innovations, 36 (dropping six points – 219-4-0); 3 A Power, Preston Innovations, 36 (dropping six points – 214-1-0); 4 M Godfrey, Pole Fishing Magazine, 36 (dropping six points – 195-2-0); 5 D Hammond, Drennan Oxford, 35 (dropping five points – 197-13-0); 6 C Hughes, Sensas/Rive, 35 (dropping five points – 196-3-0).

World angling champs set to return to home soil?

The world angling championships could soon be held on home soil for the first time in over 20 years if ambitious plans are given the go ahead.

In a secret meeting held by legendary former Drennan Team England manager Dick Clegg and the Angling Trust, officials from the Canal & River Trust (CRT) investigated the possibility of turning a section of the Aire & Calder Canal in Yorkshire into a venue capable of holding international matches.

The stretch being considered is the Boothferry Aire and Calder Joint Canal Committee-run section between Goole and Great Heck in East Yorkshire. It’s a waterway which is more than up to the job, according to Dick who is international events director for the Angling Trust.

“We have been working hard to get the world champs back to the UK for a while now. We (the Angling Trust)  have been looking at plenty of venues, but the Aire & Calder is one of the closest we have to making it happen as it’s wide and deep enough to satisfy international rules. We just need to sort out some of the issues and it could happen.”

The last time the world champs came to home shores was in 1994 at Nottingham’s Holme Pierrepont when Drennan Team England, led by Dick, not only secured team gold, but saw Bob Nudd crowned world champ for the third time.

“The stretch of the Aire & Calder we are considering is long, straight and full of fish, which makes it ideal for international events,” said John Ellis, national fisheries and angling manager for the CRT.

“The only problem is with access and facilities for spectators, but there are things which can be done to iron these problems out which we will work hard to do as we would love to see international matches held on our waterways.”

The project is just part of a nation-wide series of action plans recently created by the CRT to improve sport for anglers and encourage more people back to the towpath.

The initiatives, which were drawn up following numerous meetings with angling clubs, will see money being spent on improving facilities at venues, as well as increasing participation by holding events.

It’s a move that follows the recent revelation that the charity is being buoyed by a noticeable increase in anglers heading back to the canals in 2015.

“We have definitely experienced a rise in the number of clubs and anglers heading back to the waterways in recent years,” John continued.

“This has been helped by a big drive by us and other organisations and clubs to get people fishing natural water again, as well as an increase in competitions on waterways, which is encouraging match anglers to come back too.”

Events such as the CRT’s own Canal Pairs Championship have seen a remarkable rise in popularity, with record numbers of competitors taking part this year.

John believes this is a positive sign, but despite the increase the forward-thinking organisation is keen to continue efforts to get more anglers involved.

“We still have a long way to go to get back to the glory days when the towpaths were packed with anglers.

“The CRT will continue the drive, working with the other national organisations to help with coaching days competitions and events,” he added.

Connor Barlow beats the cold to take carp and F1s...

Partridge Lakes

Covey Canal Lakes (54 pegs)

Bitterly-cold conditions, coupled with a north-westerly wind, saw weights plummet, but the fishery still produced some consistent sport.

Top rod from peg 47 on Canal 2 was Connor Barlow, who started the match on maggot at 6m fishing in deep water, and then later switched to the margins fishing the long pole down the edge to take small carp and F1s to finish on 45-8-0.

Second place from peg 67 on Canal 3 was Jason Berry, who stuck it out on the long pole for most of the day, fishing single maggot to weigh in 40-2-0.

Result: 1 C Barlow, Daiwa/Guru, 45-8-0; 2 J Berry, Wigan Angling Centre, 40-2-0;

3 A Twist, Matrix Leigh Tackle & Bait, 38-11-0; 4 J Howarth, Tri-Cast Highfield, 36-8-0; 5 L Bamber, Matrix Leigh Tackle & Bait, 36-6-0; 6 T Madden, Sensas NW, 35-15-0.

Stu Conroy shows class in the freeze

Brookside Fisheries
Snake Lake (22 pegs)

Things were desperate in the cold, and scratching tactics came to the fore for many.
Former England man Stu Conroy relied on his canal fishing experience to take 49-0-0 of F1s and a few ide on maggot from peg 49, fishing light rigs across to the far bank at 12m.
Ross Wightman followed with 35-2-0 of F1s from peg 25, as he too used maggot across and down the middle into the deep water at 6m.
Result: 1 Stu Conroy, Kamasan/Sensas, 49-0-0; 2 R Wightman, Drennan NW, 35-2-0; 3 M Pleavin, Lionel’s Tackle, 24-8-0; 4 Steve Conroy, Drennan NW, 21-2-0; 5 N Rogerson, Ashton Angling Supplies, 20-2-0; 6 S Birchall, Challinor Sports, 14-2-0.

Hammond sees off stars to take Drennan/Rive Silverfish Festival

Drennan/Rive Silverfish Festival (Sat/Sun)

White Acres (84 anglers)

Oxfordshire angler Derek Hammond has beaten a star-studded field to claim the Drennan/Rive Silverfish Festival at the weekend.

He scored 14 points over the two days and had a weight aggregate of 48-5-0 to take the title ahead of Grant Albutt. He also scored 14, but could only tally 46-11-0 when the maths was done. Jon Jowett also scored 14 points.

Seeing off an 84-strong field that included top French anglers and much of the current Drennan Team England side plus a host of household names from the UK match scene, Drennan Oxford man Derek had a rousing Day 2 to thank for his £700 victory.

The Didcot rod weighed in 33-8-0 to win the match, added to his 14-13-0 net from the day before, which was enough to win him his section. Those victories put Derek on a perfect 14 points, alongside Grant and Jon.

Every fish really did count with such a narrow winning margin.

Skimmers formed the bedrock of Derek’s net as he drew a peg with form, 15 on the Pollawyn Lake. That’s where Andy Bennett had finished second in the match the day before, and Day 2 saw Derek go one better. He fished short at around 5m with caster and worm over groundbait to bank bank a 3lb perch on worm in the margins plus some roach. Second on the day was claimed by Drennan man Dan Varney with 27-8-0.

The festival started with a comfortable win for England star Callum Dicks on Day 1 with a superb 44-12-0 of roach and skimmers from peg 17 on the fancied high bank of the Pollawyn Lake. The Maver angler caught the bulk of his weight shallow on caster despite the cold and windy weather. Second went to Andy Bennett with 34-2-0 from next door peg 15.

Overall: 1 D Hammond, Drennan Oxford, 14pts (48-5-0);

2 G Albutt, Matrix/Bait-Tech, 14 (46-11-0); 3 J Jowett, Drennan NW, 14 (38-12-0); 4 C Dicks, Maver, 13 (56-1-0); 5 S Willsmore, Drennan/D&A Tackle, 13 (54-11-0); 6 A Bennett, Daiwa/Guru/Bait-Tech, 13 (51-12-0). 

Day 1 result: 1 C Dicks, Maver, 44-12-0; 2 A Bennett, Daiwa/Guru/Bait-Tech, 34-2-0; 3 S Willsmore Drennan/D&A Tackle, 29-7-0; 4 D Davies, Drennan/Van Den Eynde, 26-12-0;

5 D Harpin, Daiwa Dorking, 24-8-0.

Day 2 result: 1 D Hammond, Drennan Oxford, 33-8-0;

2 D Varney, Drennan, 27-8-0; 3 S Willsmore, Drennan/D&A Tackle, 25-4-0; 4 L Edwards, Garbolino/ABC, 25-4-0;

5 D Davies, Drennan/Van Den Eynde, 24-9-0. 

Team winners: Andy Power, John Harvey, Darren Davies and Teddy Lescure, 43pts.

Matchfishing's stars of the future

Matchfishing’s potential stars of the future took part in the Angling Trust’s autumn Preston Innovations National Junior League, aimed at increasing participation in match angling.
Over the past two months, more than 100 anglers between nine and 16 years of age fished in 32 competitions held across eight regions of England, and the verdict from competitors, parents and fisheries has been: “Please, can we have some more!”
“It was very encouraging to see new anglers entering the world of match fishing, many competing for the first time, and fishing alongside some of our existing young match anglers,” commented Ben Thompson, the Angling Trust’s Senior Competitions & Talent Manager. “The feedback so far has been overwhelmingly positive with requests to add junior specific Winter Leagues. We hope to build on the success of this year and attract even more anglers to get involved in 2016.”
The idea behind the competition was to provide local, low cost and easy access to quality fishing. Each regional league consisted of four fixtures with individual matches costing only £1 to enter and bait limits applied to ensure participation was affordable for all involved.
Commercial fisheries hosted the competition, which resulted in consistent catches throughout and excellent facilities for anglers and parents alike.
The top three anglers from each of the eight leagues received tackle from the competition sponsor Preston Innovations and all 24 anglers are now invited to spend a day on the bank next spring with the tackle giant’s consultant anglers.
Every angler that took part in the competition also received a goody bag, also provided by Preston Innovations.
The 2016 competition will begin in the spring with nine regional leagues and it’s still only £1 per competition for anglers to enter. To find out what’s on in your area and how to get involved visit www.anglingtrust.net/junioranglingleague

Tom Lane wins Riverfest after nightmare Day 1

Angling Trust RiverFest 2015 Final
River Wye, Hereford (72 pegs)

No matter how bad things are in fishing, you should never give up. That’s an adage
Tom Lane demonstrated in spades by winning this year’s final on a river that showed two very different faces to the 72 competitors.
Weighing in a total of 43-10-0, the Lane’s Bait rod from Coventry took the £12,000 first prize. You would have got very long odds on him doing that on Sunday morning though because the opening five hours of action on the Saturday saw the 24-year-old muster just 1-10-0 from a poor peg.
Day 2 didn’t promise much better as the river rose by several feet and was raging through. He stuck to his guns from his peg on the tennis courts section, making its debut in this year’s final, and calmly dismantled the field with nine barbel for 43-0-0 to win the day and the title.
But it was so close, with Garbolino Blackmore Vale man Richie Tomala turning in two great performances of small-fish work to reply with 42-0-0 and miss out by just one of the Wye’s famed chub or barbel. Lincolnshire’s Alistair Ogilvie finished third on 36-8-0.
Tom, grandson of late former World Champion Billy, got the family name back on a famous trophy with a feeder attack from peg 98 on the tennis courts. Ironically, that was one down from where Lee Edwards had won the Saturday match from, but in very different conditions.
Tom adopted a sit and wait approach, casting into a big slack a quarter of the way across the river to just do enough.
“Day 1 was a total write off,” Tom said. “I’ve been fishing the Wye in matches for five years and know how bad peg 47 is. It can be hit or miss, but is more often miss and I really struggled for 1-10-0 of tiny dace on the feeder.
“It poured with rain all day and I felt pretty deflated, especially as we all knew that the river would be up a lot on Sunday and could be almost unfishable.”
He was right on that score because the Wye came up over the rowing club HQ’s steps, forcing the rowers off the river and seeing onlookers think that the anglers setting up must have been mad! Trees were ploughing downriver plus a million leaves and the river was a filthy brown colour – not the stuff of legend!
Tom found himself heading to peg 98 where 18lb had been caught the day before, but Sunday would be totally different. He didn’t fancy it, but flooded rivers can spring all sorts of surprises.
“I’ve fished the Wye before with over 12ft of extra water in it and it was desperate, so I didn’t expect a lot,” he explained.
“I planned to fish the feeder into the slack looking for barbel because they do live around that area. I also put in a pole line using a flat float to catch some roach as a back-up. I began on the feeder and nothing happened, had a quick look on the pole without a bite and feared the worst.”
“I did know that next to nothing had been caught around me so went back on the tip and had my first barbel of around 4lb quite quickly on a bunch of five maggots,” Tom continued. “Another fish followed after 20 minutes and that was much bigger. After that it was a bit of a sit and wait job because the fish came in little bursts. They were moving around in the slack so I had to keep casting around to try and get a bite. Fortunately, I only missed one all day and never lost a fish, but I still felt as though I hadn’t done enough to win, and that was almost the case.”
After taking two fish on maggot, Tom changed to a hair-rigged lobworm to keep picking the fish off, ending up on two hair-rigged 8mm pellets. He packed his 4oz Kamasan Blackcap blockend feeder with 4mm halibut pellets and geared up with 10lb Pro Gold mainline to a 3ft hooklink of the same material and size 10 Drennan Super Spade or Specimen hooks.
“The peg was actually quite free of snags so there weren’t too many dramas getting the fish in, but all the while I kept an ear open to the people stood behind me. They reckoned there were a few big bleak weights taken that might beat me,” he reflected.
“I felt as though I would need one more barbel to really seal things, but it didn’t happen. It may have been close, but it’s a tremendous feeling, especially as I’m an out-and-out river angler and there aren’t many events like this around. Mind you, I was one who was questioning whether the match should even have gone ahead in the first place!”

Overall result: 1 T Lane, Lane’s Bait, 44-10-0;
2 R Tomala, Garbolino Blackmore Vale MG, 42-0-0; 3 A Ogilvie, Sensas, 36-8-0; 4 L Edwards, Garbolino/ABC, 34-8-0; 5 B Brown, Sensas, 30-12-0; 6 M Buchwalder, Preston Innovations, 29-8-0; 7 I Ward, Frenzee, 29-4-0; 8 I Dawson, Tri-Cast Calder, 29-2-0; 9 R Hoskins, Daiwa Gordon League, 28-15-0; 10 S Willsmore, Drennan/D&A Tackle, 28-13-0.
Day 2 result: 1 T Lane, Lane’s Bait, 43-0-0;
2 R Tomala, Garbolino Blackmore Vale MG, 23-7-0; 3 A Ogilvie, Sensas, 18-6-0; 4 J Summerson, Garbolino RAF, 13-2-0; 5 I Dawson, Tri-Cast Calder, 12-4-0; 6 S Ashby, Sensas, 12-7-0.

Bleak seal Wye festival for Whittle

Shakespeare River Wye
Festival 2015 (Weds-Fri)
River Wye, Hereford (60 pegs)

Despite the River Wye being low and clear, this midweek festival, backed by tackle giant Shakespeare, produced some cracking action.
Day 1 saw Jamie Robbins top the field from the Tennis Courts section. He had a great day feeding and fishing maggot on the waggler for a net of chub weighing 39-14-0.
The rest of the festival belonged to bleak king Hadrian Whittle as Day 2 saw him out in first place from Belmont with 41-4-0, the Kamasan Starlets rod catching from one of his favourite pegs on the river, peg 80. He had a strong half of the match on bleak and also topped up with chub for a section win.
The final day saw Hadrian in his element, bagging 1,300 bleak on the whip from the Ferry section to take first place with 38-0-0.
The win and better weights than his nearest rival Andy ‘Spud’ Murphy saw him take the honours with a four-point score over the three days.

Day 1 result: 1 J Robbins, Shakespeare, 39-14-0;
2 D Foreshaw, Cotswold Angling, 39-8-0;
3 D Ashington, Sensas/Kamasan Starlets, 35-8-0.
Day 2 result: 1 H Whittle, Kamasan Starlets/Woody’s, 41-4-0; 2 T Wales, DH Angling, 40-3-0;
3 M Lindsey, Surrey, 36-8-0.
Day 3 result: 1 H Whittle, Kamasan Starlets/Woody’s, 38-0-0; 2 A Murphy, Shakespeare, 37-4-0;
3 M Derry, Kamasan Starlets, 36-4-0.
Overall: 1 H Whittle, Kamasan Starlets/Woody’s, 4pts (superior weight): 2 A Murphy, Shakespeare, 4; 3 M Derry, Kamasan Starlets, 5; 4 B Rigby, Shakespeare, 6; 5 D Foreshaw, Cotswold Angling, 7.

Feeder Switch seals £1,000

A timely switch to the feeder secured England star Des Shipp the £1,000 Stafford Moor Silvermanic title at the weekend as he won by just 2oz on a wind-lashed Tanner’s Lake to pick up his second title on this silverfish-only event.
Weighing in 16-13-0 from peg 2, Preston Innovations-backed Des edged out Lee Farmer on peg 30 by that tiny margin, with William Raison taking third on 15-13-0. But it almost never happened for the Bristol man as his pole attack threatened to be scuppered by the wind.
However, seeing Zac Newton on the peg next door catch on the feeder as the wind got up, Des went back to the van, set a tip rod up and enjoyed a purple patch of eight decent skimmers and a crucian to do just enough, although he was quick to acknowledge the luck he’d enjoyed.
“If I hadn’t seen Zac catch on the tip I wouldn’t have set the feeder up and wouldn’t have won – as simple as that,” Des said. “I had planned to fish the pole as there was no wind at the start of the match, but within an hour it was blowing a gale and I couldn’t fish short, let alone long which is where I’d based my attack around.”
Changing to a small groundbait feeder and fishing worm or dead maggot, Des hooked three early carp on the tip but the skimmers settled and fish to 1lb 8oz saw him make his move after a slow start on the pole where he fished pellet long and maggot and worm short.
“The lakes had a lot of water going through them and were a dirty colour, which I think is why the roach didn’t feed, but in practice we’d seen the better skimmers caught long, so I fed pellet at 14.5m until the wind ruined it,” he explained.
“Even the short line only produced a few eels so that shows how hard the fishing was. I didn’t fancy the peg as it’s close to a corner and that normally means carp city but after those early fish, the skimmers fed.”
Worm was his opening hookbait, but Des found two dead red maggots to be much better, introducing just a few through the feeder on each cast.
Result: 1 D Shipp, Preston Innovations, 16-13-0;
2 L Farmer, Sensas, 16-11-0; 3 W Raison, Daiwa/Old Ghost, 15-13-0; 4 A Morrison, Browning West Midlands, 15-7-0; 5 A Power, Preston Innovations Thatcher’s, 14-9-0; 6 Z Newton, Exeter, 12-13-0.

Big canal win for wigan pair

Canal Pairs Championships Final
Birmingham & Fazeley Canal, Minworth (51 pairs)

A six month campaign to find the most talented ‘cut’ anglers in the country came to an end as Wigan’s Kev Clarke and Dave Edgerley bagged the coveted Canal Pairs Champs title.
Qualifying for the prestigious event started in April and after 11 hard-fought heats, 51 pairs battled on the Birmingham & Fazeley Canal in Minworth.
At the end of the rain-soaked contest it was the Wigan MG duo who bagged the silverware and the £1,900 cash prize.
Both of the eventual winners would need to put in a sterling performance to see off a highly talented field of canal anglers and Kev certainly did that as he won the individual match with 4-120 of silverfish. Dave chipped in with sixth in his 51 man section.
Although the pair had limited experience of the venue, inside knowledge told them that their pegs were capable of producing the goods and Kev said: “We knew that if we stuck to what we are good at we had a chance.”
“I caught a few roach short on bread, switched to casters for some better roach before a 1lb tench turned up.”
“A decision to feed worm over my caster line brought another decent tench and that effectively won it for us.”
“We will certainly be back next year to have a shot at defending our title,” he added.
A separate junior event was also run and it was Tom Clark who took the honours here. The West Sussex angler made the long journey more than worthwhile with 1-210.
Organisers from the Angling Trust and Canal & River Trust were delighted with this year’s tournament and revealed that next year will see qualifiers in Scotland, Wales and Ireland.
Trust official Dave Kent said: “The demonstrated how passionate anglers are about their canal fishing. We knew there was a gap in the big match calendar and this event has filled it.”

Pairs result: K Clarke & D Edgerley, 96pts; 2 R Marlow & D Guest, 92; 3 P Laughton & A Webster, 90; 4 S Bird & D Trafford, 79; 5 S Preece & S Mottram, 78; 6 R Yates & M Ellement, 77.
Individual result: 1 K Clarke, Wigan MG, 4-120; 2 D Clayton, Leics, 3-750; 3 A Jagger, Tricast Rochdale, 3-440; 4 R Guest, Maver Midlands, 3-400; 5 A Marsden, Wigan MG, 3-330; 6 N Evans, Garbolino Blackmore Vale, 2-850.
Juniors: 1 T Clark, Storrington, 1-210; 2 J Holloway, Evesham, 0-930; 3 L Roberts, Swindon, 0-870; 4 H Nicholls, Walsall, 0-860.

Big plans to revive the ‘Nationals’

The most iconic series of events on the match-fishing calendar could be set for a major overhaul after organisers revealed their determination to revive the ‘Nationals’.
More than 5,500 anglers used to compete over six divisions on rivers and canals in the heyday of the National Championships in the late 1980s, but that number has slumped to fewer than 1,000 people involved in the two remaining leagues this year.
A number of factors have been blamed for the demise, with the rise of commercial fisheries among the most commonly cited reasons.
Rather than allow the negative trend to continue, a committee has been formed to look into how those glory days of the Nationals can be resurrected.
In order to bring back the masses, officials at the Angling Trust is urging anglers to offer suggestions as to what changes could be made to boost the popularity of the Nationals. Competitions manager Ben Thompson said: “We are reviewing their structure and are committed to finding a solution that increases participation and is fit for purpose in modern-day match angling.
“We want anglers to give us their ideas as to how best to achieve that from 2017. We need to get to the root of why the popularity of the Nationals has faltered, and I am confident that the Trust and anglers can do that by working together.”
Daiwa Dorking are the current holders of the Division One title and key squad member Des Shipp believes that the system needs to be revamped to improve its fortunes. He told Angling Times: “You need a team of 10 anglers to enter the Nationals and a lot of squads struggle to put that many people together, so halving the number of competitors in each team could help.
“The venues that are used also need to offer great access, as the long walks put a lot of people off getting involved.
“Nationals are still very prestigious events and we need to do what we can to regenerate their popularity,” added Des.

England dominate a reinstated home nations international

Drennan Team England dominated the reinstated Home International on the Newry Canal with a seven-man team made up of youth and experience. They also had the winning individual in the shape of Matt Derry.
As you would expect, the likes of Alan Scotthorne and William Raison put on their usual world-class displays to entertain the crowds. However, it was perhaps the debut of three new ‘young lions’ that gave the most future promise.
Matt Derry, Cameron Hughes and James Dent are all still in their 20s and each showed why co-managers Mark Addy and Mark Downes picked them as future seniors in upcoming World and European events. James excelled in practice, and then went on to record the top weight of the weekend with a match-winning 11kg haul on Day 1.
The next day, Matt had the best weight with 6.88kg. A maximum two section wins and top aggregate weight also earned him top individual over the two days, just ahead of the ever-consistent

England win the World Carp Champs

England have won the World Carp Champs for the first time after a physically and emotionally draining battle in Spain.
New manager Rob Hughes and his eight-man squad erased memories of previous heavy defeats by wringing every ounce out of their pegs on the River Ebro. Rob, who was appointed team boss only in February, said: “If ever there were English lions it was these boys.”
The national team has long been in the shadow of countries like Croatia, who have been on the podium in nine out of the last 11 events.
“We stood toe to toe with the heavyweight champions of the world and slugged it out punch for punch with Croatia,” said Rob. “In the end, one fell over, and it wasn’t us.”
At the end of the 72-hour pairs match, England topped the 24-team competition ahead of Croatia, Serbia, France and Romania. Under standard international match rules, the result was decided by the section placing of each team’s three pairs. With a second, third and fourth in section, England beat Croatia by one point.
England’s Alexei Bygrave and Harry Charrington finished with 21 fish for more than 470lb and had been winning the individual event until the dying moments, but a quiet last morning pushed them into fourth behind Romanian individual winners Emilian Pripon and Bogdan Dragan.
Billy Flowers and Jamie Londors came fourth in their section, while Chris Holmes and substitute Mark Bartlett secured third in theirs. Big caster Mark had replaced Neil Rivers on day two in a crucial tactical switch as the fish pushed further out in their section. Ebro expert Paul Booth was the only squad member not to fish, but Rob Hughes praised his valuable local knowledge.
Rob, who won the World Champs with Simon Crow when it was a pairs event back in 1996, did not wish to give away the team’s winning tactics but said they “fished long with PVA bags over the top of bait, with a few tricks up our sleeves”. He added: “The only bit of luck we had was that it turned into a scratchy, technical competition and that played into our hands.”
The event was followed by thousands of fans on social media who tuned into Rob’s frequent video updates. The team boss was also aware that England needed to build some bridges with other countries after previous tournaments led to strained relations.
“If you Google the World Champs, one of the things that comes up is England accusing the Romanians of cheating in 2012 and I want to get away from that,” said Rob. “I think we’ve restored a lot of dignity and improved the way people perceive England and the match team.”
Rob also praised the balance of the squad and the way the anglers interacted with one other. He said: “All the lads are massive team players. I said when I came in that there would be no commercialism, no egos and no politics, and they have all just got on with it.”
He added: “At the end of the event we got changed into our smart clothes and, because our villa was a bit further out, we walked into the hall housing all the other teams a little bit late. As we walked in there was a ripple of applause, which led to a few cheers and then to a full-on standing ovation.”

£25,000 Parkdean Masters title for Andy Geldart

Andy Geldart followed up his success in last year’s Fish O’ Mania final with another major title to add to his belt – that of the Parkdean Masters at White Acres.

Leeds-based Andy demolished a high class field on Jenny’s Lake to lift the trophy and £25,000 cheque with a net of carp and F1s weighing 84lb 2oz. It was more than 34lb clear of the rest and was extra sweet for the Matrix and Dynamite Baits man, who missed out by just 3lb in the same match last year. That close shave came from peg 4, the adjacent swim to that of his draw in Saturday’s showdown, peg 3. This time, however, he made no mistakes to take some decent fish on Method feeder tactics towards the island point and out in open water.

“It’s just an amazing feeling! I really am over the moon to win this after coming so close in 2014, I think it just made me want it more! I can’t believe it only took me a year to put that result right as I thought it would be ages before I got in another final here, never mind get another peg with a chance in one. It’s hard enough just to get into the Parkdean final as there are so many top anglers competing for a place to qualify!” he said.

The 24 finalists had qualified by finishing highest in the 180-angler field from the Preston Innovations festival in the five previous days. On show were anglers the calibre of Steve Ringer, Alan Scotthorne, Lee Kerry, Callum Dicks, Steve Cooke, Andy Power and festival winner Matt Godfrey. It also saw three of the youngest finalists ever in Joe Kent, Tom Edwards and Sam Collett, none of whom were over the age of 17!

Sport was tough for most on a cold and windy Jennys Lake and after a few hours it was anybody’s for the taking. Steve Ringer on the unfancied end peg 23 had netted three decent early carp while competitors at the other end were taking small carassio F1 carp on small pellet and method feeders.

Andy Power was the pre-match favourite after pulling out peg 16 in the wide bay, a peg that has won multiple previous finals. However the big carp in this area were conspicuous by their absence which left Andy, and several nearby anglers, scratching their heads as to what to try next.

Watching crowds soon realised the battle for the big cash prize was quickly turning into a head-to-head between Andy on peg 3 and Callum Dicks next to him on 4, with Paul Holland also chipping-in with odd fish on peg 2.

“In the first few hours I caught 14 carassios and a few skimmers from the open water Method swim, for about 20lb,” said Andy.

“I didn’t actually fancy my peg at the start as I didn’t think I was far enough up the lake and not much was moving in front of me. Then my swim went quiet and I caught a small carp. Another half-hour went by and I got another. By this time Paul and Callum had also caught two or three each so I thought to myself that there must be a few in the area. I decided to change tactics by switching from a 4mm pellet on the hook to an 8mm. I also started casting into the shallow water near the overhanging bush on the island point where I’d be catapulting an occasional pellet,” he said.

That proved the point which changed his match and effectively won him the title as his first six casts resulted in six decent carp being landed, the biggest into double figures. There was no coming back for anyone else, despite Callum also panning a big fish of his own on the pole. Andy took a few more fish before a quiet spell and a late burst of three more in the final 15 minutes to put the result beyond doubt.

“I caught best by putting neat micropellets around my small 30g Method and I fished a 4ins hooklength. I started on 0.16mm Matrix Power Micro to a size 18 Carp Rigger hook but once I started hooking a few carp I upped this to 0.20mm and a size 16. I did have a couple of looks on the pole but I didn’t catch anything so I quickly binned it. It’s going to take a long while for this win to sink in, but I got married last year and had my first child this year so I’m sure my Mrs will think of plenty of things to spend the money on!” he laughed. 

Result: 1 A Geldart, Matrix/Dynamite Baits, 84-2-0; 2 C Dicks, Maver, 50-1-0; 3 S Ringer, Daiwa/Guru, 42-12-0; 4 R Wootton, Shimano/Dynamite Baits, 39-10-0; 5 P Holland, Guru, 39-6-0; 6 J Whincup, Frenzee/Bait-Tech, 36-10-0; 7 L Thornton, Middy/Bag ‘Em Baits, 34-6-0; 8 M Godfrey, Pole Fishing Magazine, 34-5-0; 9 S Cooke, Garbolino, 33-12-0; 10 A Power, Preston Innovations, 32-13-0; 11 A Hulme, Matrix Stapeley, 32-0-0;

12 J Dent, MAP/Sensas, 28-9-0; 13 T Edwards, Dynamite Baits, 28-6-0; 14 J Kent, Matrix Tameside, 27-14-0; 15 L Kerry, Preston Innovations, 26-1-0; 16 J Harness, Daiwa/Ringer Baits, 25-10-0; 17 S Collett, Dynamite Baits, 24-7-0; 18 S Barraclough, Doncaster, 22-3-0; 19 A Scotthorne, Drennan/Sensas, 22-1-0; 20 P Carnwell, Garbolino/Bait-Tech, 15-2-0; 21 J Arthur, Drennan, 15-0-0; 22 P Burton, Hilton Hotels, 12-7-0; jt23 B Fisk, Middy and A Higginbottom, Matrix Dynamite Baits Trentmen, both DNW.

Roach and dace seal Trent glory

Pole and maggot for winning silvers net

Frank Barlow Memorial (Weds)
River Trent, Burton upon Trent (62 pegs)

Sixty-two anglers lined the banks of the Trent to pay homage to the legendary Frank Barlow and other dearly departed anglers as the 19th memorial event moved to a new home in the Coors AC stretch of river at Burton upon Trent.
Winner was Andy Taft, who drew a swim with a shallow glide below a footbridge and targeting the slack water with pole and maggot over groundbait immediately below one of the bridge stanchions. He was rewarded with a great run of dace and roach.
As bites tailed off he then continued to plunder more fish to 10oz by running a light pole rig further down his swim, ending up with approximately 135 fish for an impressive 20-2-0.
Dave Jones was just behind with 19-0-0. After being faced with a really weedy swim, he elected to loosefeed hemp and maggot and fished a lightly shotted insert waggler over the top. By the halfway stage he had already amassed well over double figures, but a pike slowed sport down in the last two hours and scuppered his chance of lifting the trophy.
The donation of peg fees and raffle prizes helped to raise £643 for the cancer ward at Nottingham City Hospital.
Result: 1 A Taft, Nathan’s of Derby, 20-2-0; 2 D Jones, Coors AC, 19-0-0; 3 S Baker, 17-6-0; 4 K Rutter, Ferry Bridge AC, 16-4-0; 5 P McEvoy, Nottingham, 15-15-0.

Hope wins Ure festival on weight

Local knowledge proves the key to victory

Ripon Piscatorials Three Day Festival (Tues – Thurs)
River Ure, Streams (36 pegs)

Martin Hope ran out overall winner in this popular three-day River Ure festival with a superior weight of 22-2-0, against  Steve Newns’ 13-8-0, after the pair tied on three points.
Cold nights, clear water and bright sun made this a bit of a test for most and local knowledge was always going to be an advantage because,  after Day 1, the chub didn’t show in numbers.
Top weight on Day 1 went to Brian Sowerby on noted peg 7, where he banked 10 quality chub for 45-8-0.
The Day 2 honours went to the in-form Rob Pickles, who had won the Ure Champs the previous Sunday and drew the same peg on Wednesday to record 18-12-0 of chub.
Going into the final day Martin Hope and Steve Newns were tied at the top on two points.
RSPS river maestro Jim Taylor recorded the best barbel match weight of the season from the river to win Day 3 with 29-3-0.
Overall: 1 M Hope, Northern Angling Ripon, 3pts (22-2-0); 2 S Newns, KL Tackle, 3 (13-8-0); 3 N Proctor, Northern Angling Ripon, 4 (24-4-0); 4 K Weighell, DH Angling, 4 (10-6-0); 5 B Sowerby, Darlington, 6.

2016 Mega Match This Qualifier Dates Announced

Saturday 5th September marked the conclusion of the 2015 Maver Mega 'Match This' campaign. A gruelling five month qualification campaign starting on Saturday 4th April at The Glebe / Mallory Park in Leicestershire and finishing at Maver Larford Lakes on Sunday 16th August produced a truly fantastic final with twenty four of the UK's finest match anglers going head-to-head for angling's richest prize.
It was Middy rod Peter Upperton who secured victory on the day, thus placing his name firmly in the sport's history books alongside former Mega 'Match This' Champions Andy Power, Les Thompson, Zac Brown and Chris Cameron. Saturday 5th September 2015 will be a day Pete will never forget after winning UK match angling's richest ever prize, leaving Larford Lakes with a life-changing £65,000 - the largest sum of money ever awarded in a Match This Final and a further £5,000 over and above the prize awarded to Chris Cameron in 2015.
No sooner has the dust began to settle on the 2015 event, we now turn our attention to 2016's event, with January 1st marking the beginning of the next chapter in the Mega 'Match This' story. Twenty four qualifiers spanning seventeen different venues up and down the country begin on Saturday 2nd April in search of the twenty four 2016 Mega 'Match This' Grand Finalists.
The 2016 Maver Mega 'Match This' campaign brings with it the introduction of a brand new venue in Lakeview Fisheries, Leicestershire, as well as repeat qualifiers at the most popular 2015 venues including, Maver Larford Lakes, Mallory Park / The Glebe, Partridge Lakes and Heronbrook Fisheries. We are also proud to confirm a very welcome return to Decoy Lakes, Peterborough as part of the 2016 qualifier campaign.
Event manager, Ben Hughes commented: “The 2015 Mega Match This qualifier campaign was the most successful to date recording the largest number of tickets sold since the event was first staged in 2011, with an increase of just over 8 per cent on the previous year. It’s encouraging to see how the Mega Match This event continues to gather more and more momentum as times goes on”.
For the very first time, the 2016 Mega 'Match This' qualifier campaign marks the introduction of mid-week qualifiers taking place on Wednesdays. Mid-week qualifiers are scheduled to be held at Decoy Lakes on Wednesday 8th June and 10th August as well as Mallory Park / The Glebe on Wednesday 27th July.
“The event has grown year on year and we’re expecting demand for tickets to be high again in 2016 – especially with the inclusion of mid-week qualifiers as well now. Next year’s qualifier campaign also sees more repeat qualifiers at those venues that have proven popular in previous years”.
Expect demand for tickets to be high!

TICKETS GO ON SALE FRIDAY 1ST JANUARY 2016.

2016 Qualifier Dates:
Saturday 2nd April  Mallory Park / The Glebe  
Saturday 9th April  Woodland View   
Saturday 23rd April  Heronbrook Fisheries 
Sunday 1st May   Lindholme Lakes
Saturday 7th May  Westwood Lakes 
Saturday 14th May  Larford Lakes  
Saturday 21st May  Partridge Lakes 
Saturday 28th May  Gold Valley Lakes
Sunday 29th May  Mallory Park / The Glebe  
Wed 8th June   Decoy Lakes
Saturday 11th June  Lakeview Fisheries
Sunday 12th June  Larford Lakes
Saturday 18th June  Viaduct Fishery 
Saturday 25th June  Hayfield Lakes 
Saturday 9th July  Monk Lakes  
Saturday 16th July  Partridge Lakes
Sunday 17th July  Larford Lakes
Saturday 23rd July  Coleman's Cottage 
Wednesday 27th July  Mallory Park / The Glebe
Saturday 30th July  Heronbrook Fisheries  
Saturday 6th August  Hallcroft Fisheries
Sunday 7th August  Barston Lakes
Wed 10th August  Decoy Lakes
Saturday 13th August  Tunnel Barn Farm