Freelined bait lures 1lb dace

A quick change of tactics to prevent a finicky shoal of silverfish being spooked worked a treat for Robin Woolnough when he fooled this 1lb dace from a River Thames tributary.

The professional angling artist started the session on the stick float but noticed that the commotion of the rig landing in the water was forcing the fish to back away.

To solve the problem, Robin decided to freeline his maggot hookbait with just a No8 shot on the line for casting weight – and the move gained an almost instant response from the specimen dace.