3lb 12oz roach earns place in history books

The only bite of a five-month campaign to catch a huge redfin resulted in Josh Fisher banking one of the biggest river roach ever caught.
Weighing 3lb 12oz, it’s a fish that the experienced all-rounder has spent four years targeting. In that time he has dedicated thousands of hours in his quest to bank a roach over the magical 3lb mark.
All the Norfolk specialist’s hard work and dedication paid off when he targeted an ultra-tough southern river that he’s been visiting for the last five months without a single bite from a big roach.
“The fact that I hadn’t had a bite for so long just proves how tough these fish are to locate, let alone catch,” Josh told Angling Times.
“To catch this roach has been an ambition of mine for so long I can’t believe I’ve actually done it, and when I first saw the fish in the fading light I thought I’d hooked a big chub.”
The tattoo artist baited his swim with mashed bread before returning later in the day to flick a small feeder filled with the same bait out into the river.
He didn’t have to wait long before a sharp pluck on his quivertip signified that the fish of a lifetime had taken a piece of breadflake folded around a size 14 hook tied to 3lb line.
It’s a fish that beats his previous personal best for the species that stood at 2lb 5oz. He said: “I’ve always wanted to catch a 3lb roach and a 3lb rudd from running water and I’ve done it in one season, which is one hell of an achievement.
“I’ve had experts look at the picture, and they all reckon it’s a roach, but there are some out there who claim it could be a hybrid.”