Cold relief arrives with a 46-pounder

Wading into the water in just his pants gave John Claridge a heavy cold, but the perfect tonic in the shape of this 46lb 3oz mirror.

After forgetting his waders during an earlier prebaiting visit to the Sand and Gravel syndicate in the Cotswolds, the 43-year-old was forced to brave the chilly water in his underwear.

But all John’s discomfort was soon forgotten when he banked the mirror known as Look at the Length at an all-time top weight.

The Swindon rod, who manages Tackle Den in South Cerney, said: “I was nursing man-flu – probably something to do with having to prebait in my pants in cold water up to my thighs as I’d forgotten my chesties – but I got the rods out relatively easily as I’d already put on hookbaits and clipped the lines up to the precise distance. Full of cold, I turned the alarms up a notch and hit the sack early.”

At dawn the next day John received a positive bite after a
few subtle liners and pulled into a big fish.

“As the carp neared the bank,” he said, “the carbon throbbed under my hand and I knew what I was attached to was a lot heavier that anything I had caught so far this season. A back then popped to the surface and, quickly adjusting the net position, I stepped forward and engulfed my prize.

“The depth of the beast was immense and I summoned all my strength to heave him safely up to the awaiting mat. A very special carp from a special lake.”

Two big roach from tiny river

Specimen fish often occupy the smallest waterways, as proved when Mike Townsend banked this impressive pair of roach.

The fish – weighing 2lb 2oz and 1lb 6oz – were caught on the float when the specialist from Doncaster, South Yorks, fished a tiny local river.

They were backed up by 40 roach over 1lb and all were all taken on a 2lb mainline, a 0.08mm hooklink and a size 20 hook baited with a single caster.

Syndicate rod adds 44lb 8oz common to impressive tally

Jamie Peacock completed a quartet of target fish within six months with the capture of this 44lb 8oz common.

The fish, known as the Cut Tail Common, follows on from the capture of Clarissa at 53lb 4oz and the Long Common at 38lb in Jamie’s first full year on Deepings One in Lincolnshire.

The Peterborough angler said: “This year was my first full year on Deepings One, having only joined last summer.  

“I’ve managed to land a few nice fish, including Clarissa at 53lb 4oz on my birthday weekend in April, which was a great present! A couple of weeks later I had Black Scar at 48lb 12oz.

“In August I had the Long Common, slightly down in weight at 38lb. This fish had to be one of the hardest-fighting I have ever caught and it went mental for about 15 minutes.  

“After picking up these fish fairly quickly I thought the Cut Tail Common would take me a long time to catch, so when I had it at the weekend I could not believe it – I was blown away.”

Jamie added: “I turned up on Friday at around 3.30pm and saw the swim I wanted was free. I chose the swim because I had been regularly catching from it for the last month. 

“There are two islands to fish to and they gave me shelter from the easterly wind which was blowing all weekend, so I was convinced there would be a few fish gathered in the area. 

“I got the rods out on the spots at around 80 yards and Spombed out about a kilo of Nash Key Cray boilies on each one.

“The next morning at around 8.30am I had a single bleep and noticed the line was moving. The fish was kiting but not taking any line off the spool, so I hit into it and started to bring it back, but it didn’t really do much until I had it under the tip, when it gave a few powerful runs. 

“At first I thought it was a small fish, as it was shaking its head, but when I saw it boil up on the surface I knew it was a good one.”

Huge perch highlight of a wonder week

This 4lb 6oz 8dr perch topped an amazing week for Nigel Kennard.

His new best from the River Lea in Hertfordshire topped a list of fish, including a 6lb 5oz chub and an 11lb barbel from the idyllic Hampshire Avon, plus another pb – a 3lb 11oz 8dr crucian.

“I began on the Avon, where the big chub was backed up with three five-pounders, all on boilies,” Nigel said. “I then drove to a lake in Surrey where I beat my crucian pb on the first day.”

Adding six others over 3lb, he then turned his attentions to the River Lea perch where stripeys of 2lb 8oz and 2lb 1oz backed up his four-pounder, all caught on a link leger rig baited with a lobworm.

Huge nets in amazing Wye champs

RESULT

1 Pete Goulding – 125lb
2 Lee Pritchard – 90lb 12oz
3 Matt Maginnis – 88lb 15oz
4 Steve Rowen – 86lb 11oz
5 Colin Harvey – 83lb 3oz   

WYE CHAMPS IN NUMBERS

84 Pete Goulding’s winning peg number in Eign A section
55 Number of double-figure weights recorded
230 Number of fish in Dave Harrell’s catch
2,159lb Total weight shared by the field
136 Number of anglers that fished the event

The River Wye has produced one of the greatest matches ever as competitors in the latest event shared in a massive 2,159lb weigh-in.

The annual Wye Champs is the first event of a hectic winter schedule on the prolific stretches around Hereford, and the season got off to a breathtaking start with a series of huge weights that were topped off by Pete Goulding’s incredible 125lb 6oz winning catch of chub.

Backing weights were equally impressive, with just shy of 60lb good enough to only sneak into 10th place.

The champion put his name into the history books thanks to an impeccable display of waggler and maggot fishing. Pete told Angling Times: “I have been trying to win this event for over 40 years and to do it in this fashion is just incredible.

“I drew a peg that can produce a few fish, but never in my wildest dreams was I expecting to land a three-figure catch from it. 

“The annual three-day festival is coming up this week, and that was a sellout within days. I could probably have sold double the number of tickets on offer – that’s how impressed people are by the Wye right now.”

Angling Times columnist Dave Harrell could have been forgiven for thinking he’d taken the glory with a 60lb bag of dace, but it turned out to be only good enough for ninth place. 

He said: “The river is really low, and while that always leads to big weights, none of us expected it to fish to this high standard.

“I’ve had a bite every chuck all day and that has only been good enough to win my section. The angler next to me had over 40lb of dace and didn’t win a penny!

“There are colossal numbers of small fish in the venue now, with loads of bonus barbel, chub and perch. It really was one of the greatest-ever river matches.”

Organiser John Pembridge believes the result is just the start of another golden period on the waterway, and he told Angling Times: “I have been running this event for 10 years but this is definitely the best one yet. Last year the entrants shared 1,400lb, so the fishing has clearly been much better this time round.

“The weights were just phenomenal and it wasn’t just one species that dominated – there was a 90lb barbel bag, dace catches over 60lb and hundreds of chub landed... on a low river.”

Massive rod licence shake-up will see kids fish for free!

The new rod licence charges from March 2017

Every season the new rod licence goes on sale on March 1 and expires the following year on March 31. 

Type of licence – Full (April-March)
Current price: £27
New price: £30

Full (concessionary) senior and disabled
Current price: £18
New price: £20

Short-term 1 day
Current price: £3.75
New price: £6

Short-term eight-day
Current price: £10
New price: £12

Junior (12-16)
Current price: £5
New price: Free

Three- rod licence
Current price: None
New price: £45

Three- rod licence (concessionary) 
Senior and disabled
Current price: None
New price: £30

Children will fish for free and carp anglers will save money as part of a massive shake-up in the rod licensing system.

These are just two changes in a raft of new measures announced by Environment Agency bosses this week in a bid to offer anglers more value for money and encourage more youngsters to fish.

The changes,which come into force next March, include a special price for those using three rods, and scrapping the current £5 fee for under-16s. They will also see 365-day rolling licences from day of purchase.

The move comes in response to a recent Angling Trust survey in which the nation’s anglers criticised the current licensing system. Big-fish hunters claimed they were being overcharged for fishing three rods by having to buy two full annual licences. 

The EA Head of Fisheries Sarah Chare believes the changes reflect feedback from anglers nationwide: “We hope that a 365-day licence, a three-rod licence and a free junior licence will all play a part in getting more young people fishing and securing the sport’s future,” she said. 

“All money raised from rod licence sales is ploughed back into England’s fisheries, and is used to fund a wide range of projects to improve facilities for anglers.”

The announcement was also welcomed by Angling Trust Chief Executive Mark Lloyd. 

He said: “We lobbied the Environment Agency to make these changes to the rod licence system, as many of the carp and specimen anglers we represent had complained about the need for them to buy two separate licences for four rods, when they wanted to fish with three.

“We also wanted a free junior licence, as this removes a significant barrier to participation for young people considering taking up the sport. Well done to the Environment Agency for listening and taking anglers’ concerns on board.”

Meanwhile carpers were also celebrating, including Korda boss Danny Fairbrass, who has piled thousands of pounds into various projects aimed at boosting junior participation. He believes the latest move can play a big part in halting the decline in youngsters on the bank. He said: “This is absolutely brilliant news, and the EA deserves a lot of credit for listening to anglers and changing the system to provide free rod licences for under-16s.

“This was needed to help get more kids hooked on angling and I hope this news gets out beyond the angling world so that people who have never even considered fishing before are given still more reason to get involved.

“The three-rod licence will also be well received,” Danny continued. “Carp anglers have accepted the old rules of having to buy two licences through gritted teeth for many years, but this amendment represents the modern angling scene. All these changes can help provide an even brighter future for fishing.”

These sentiments were echoed by Current Fish O’Mania champion and professional coach Andy May, who tutors dozens of juniors each year. He agrees that the historic news can provide a springboard to getting more juniors on the bank. He said: “Our sport needs a regular influx of children if it is to continue to grow and the decision to give them a free rod licence is a fantastic way of achieving just that.

“We all know how addictive fishing is, and if we can tempt more kids into trying it out you can guarantee they will get the bug and become keen anglers.”

• Millions of anglers will be adding extra support to the EA’s continued work to improve fisheries following the announcement that the price of the rod licence is to increase by 10 per cent from March 2017.

In the light of this the Angling Trust is calling for the government to halt and reverse the annual cuts to Grant in Aid to the EA for fisheries management, monitoring and regulation.

Neil’s 300-hour barbel payoff

After nearly 300 hours without a fish, Neil Wayte struck gold with this 17lb 4oz Thames barbel. 

The big-river specialist fished 14 consecutive weekends on his favourite stretch of the waterway before his perseverance paid off and the specimen took his single 18mm Pandemic boilie hookbait. 

“The take was an absolute flyer,” Neil told Angling Times.

“It ran upstream for 40 yards and under some nearside bushes, but thankfully I pulled it free and into the net. It was the fattest barbel I’ve ever seen!”

Margin magic for a venue best carp

The old saying that ‘the margins are the best feature on the lake’ rang true for Mark Tucknott, who landed a new personal best and venue record last week.

The 55-year-old from Romford, East London, was fishing at Long Lake in Reading when he banked the water’s first-ever forty in the shape of this 41lb 2oz mirror.

It came from a marginal stalking spot that Mark had kept topped up with bait since beginning his session at the 8.5-acre venue.

He said: “I spread a kilo of mixed 12mm, 16mm and 20mm boilies over a spot not far from the bank and kept a close eye on it. On the first day a number of fish visited it, but none of them dropped down to feed. 

“I checked the spot the following morning and all the bait had gone, so I put in another five handfuls and placed my hookbait among them – a critically-balanced Manilla boilie made from a cut-down pop-up.”

Mark then endured an agonising couple of hours watching a succession of fish continuing to visit the area and feed on his spot, before eventually his buzzer screamed into life. 

“After half-an-hour, two fish drifted in and took a bait each before moving off. Twenty minutes later another good fish came in and did the same,” Mark said. 

“This continued for the next two hours, before an upper double-figure koi wolfed down most of the remaining bait.

“I introduced another two handfuls of 12mm boilies, and about an hour later I had a screaming take. A monumental battle followed before I slipped the net under the huge mirror known as Lead Head. It was an incredible session, and to bag the lake’s first forty was a huge bonus!”

Chidgey snaps up a pike best

Personal bests have tumbled in another incredible week’s pike fishing at Chew Valley Lake.

Julian Chidgey was delighted when he boated a huge 34lb 14oz pike thanks to the use of an underwater camera that he attached to his rig during a prior visit to the Somerset venue.

“I used a Waterwolf camera and I saw pike investigating and picking up my bait without giving me any indication at all,” said the local angling consultant.

“So this time I scaled down my hooks and baits to give a more delicate presentation and it worked a treat.”

Matrix man takes the win at Coleman’s

Coleman’s Cottage Fishery
Wood Lake (32 pegs)

Tight pegging on the lake knocked weights back, but Richard Bond still needed 88-8-0 to win.

Fishing the pole with pellet and maggot at various distances from peg 17, the Matrix angler kept a steady run of carp and F1s coming throughout the session.

MAP’s Richard Chapman came second with 74-8-0 from peg 9.

Result: 1 R Bond, Matrix, 88-8-0; 2 R Chapman, MAP, 74-8-0; 3 T Curd, MAP/ Bait-Tech, 55-0-0; 4 T Martin, Colemans, 54-8-0; 5 J Fensom, Harlow Angling, 52-8-0; 6 D Smith, Colemans, 51-0-0.

A 2lb Thames roach milestone

This is Martin Salter’s first-ever 2lb roach from the River Thames.

The National Campaigns Coordinator for the Angling Trust fished a stretch of the tidal Thames at Chiswick, West London, and used a groundbait feeder with worm and maggot on a size 12 hook.

He started picking up a few bream before the roach put in an appearance. Then, after switching to a lighter feeder and three red maggots on a size 14 hook, he began to connect more easily with the tentative bites and took a pair of specimen redfins topped by his first Thames two-pounder. 

“I’ve been lucky enough to have caught 2lb-plus roach from eight different rivers, but never one from my beloved River Thames,” he said.

Champ is back in final after Severn match

Angling Trust RiverFest qualifier
River Severn, Shrewsbury (55 pegs)

Reigning RiverFest champion Tom Lane has made it into this year’s final after clinching his zone on the Severn at Shrewsbury. 

Lee Harries won this one from peg 4 on the County Ground section, the DH Angling man taking a big chub on the feeder and plenty of dace on the waggler and maggot for 17-9-0.

Second, and also qualifying, was Scott Geens with 16-3-8. His catch included a 9lb barbel.

Joint third-placed Tom Lane weighed in 14-1-0 to secure his spot in the big-money contest.

Result: 1 L Harries, DH Angling, 17-9-0; 2 S Geens, Preston Innovations, 16-3-8; jt3 T Lane, Lane’s Tackle and E Warren, Preston Innovations, both 14-1-0.

49lb Mike’s Pet from day-ticket lake soon to go syndicate

Alex Woodcook realised a long-held ambition to catch one of the biggest carp in the historic Wraysbury North Lake when he slipped his net under this stunning 49lb mirror.

Alex landed the fish, which is known as Mike’s Pet, on the second morning of a two-day session at the famous fishery in Berkshire.

It was a timely capture too, because Alex had been hoping to catch one of the day-ticket lake’s biggest residents before the venue switches to syndicate status in April 2017.

He told Angling Times: “Conditions couldn’t have been more perfect, with a band of low pressure making its way over the lake. I thought to myself ‘this has to be the time!’ 

“The swim I was in, called Springate’s Point, covers a lot of water in front of an island, and running along the front of this are a number of coves created by the overhanging trees. 

“Some of these were clearer and deeper than the rest, and I figured that these were areas that had been fed on recently.”

To begin with Alex went easy on the bait, introducing around 10 Spombs of groundbait, pellets and chopped boilies. 

Over the top of this he cast a rig comprising a 5ins hooklink and a size 4 hook carrying two half sections of wafter boilies mounted blow-back style and tipped with plastic red corn. 

After receiving a bite on the first evening that ended in a hook-pull, his fortunes took a turn for the better as the second day of the trip dawned.

Alex said: “I had three bleeps on one of the rods that was locked-up to the island, struck, and found myself connected to what was clearly a powerful fish. It kited away towards open water, staying deep, and I knew it was a good fish, but it was only when I got it into the margins I realised just how big it was. 

“When I finally slipped it over the net cord and saw its huge shoulders, I knew that I had at last achieved what I’d set out to do – catch a Wraysbury chunk! 

Nick speeds to a win with 114lb Willows catch

Garbolino Lindholme Lakes Winter League (rnd 1)
Laurels, Willows and Bonsai Lakes (49 pegs)

The first of the Lindholme’s popular Winter League opens saw victory for prolific venue regular Nick Speed. 

Shimano/Dynamite-backed Nick was on peg 7 on Willows and fished the pole, both long and short on the deck with pellet, to take 114-10-0 of F1 carp to 2lb. 

In second place and heading a trio of
low tons was Barnsley Bait Co’s Les Marshall on Laurels 65, who recorded
101-9-0 of F1s and carp to hard pellet baits. 

Result: 1 N Speed, Shimano/Dynamite, 114-10-0; 2 L Marshall, Barnsley Bait Co, 101-9-0; 3 M Owen, Garbolino Lindholme, 100-12-0; 4 P Wright, Bag ‘em Matchbaits/Halkon Hunt, 100-10-0; 5 S Mazza, Garbolino Lindholme, 96-3-0; 6 B Fisk, Garbolino Lindholme, 90-9-0.

Thousands bid at Bob Church’s tackle auction

Bob Church admitted to being ‘shocked and ‘overwhelmed’ after a collection of his prized tackle sold for thousands at auction.

Angling Times joined the legendary angler and his wife Jeanette during the recent Sporting and Country Pursuits sale at JP Humbert Auctioneers in Northants, which saw more than 50 lots of Bob’s gear go under the hammer.

Auctioneer Jonathan Humbert had a tough task keeping up with the number of bids as vintage rods, reels and collections of hand-tied flies turned heads in the busy saleroom full of collectors looking for their own slice of angling history.

But it was the volume of online bids from as far away as Australia and Switzerland that surprised and excited both Bob (MBE) and theon-site auctioneers.

The most popular lots included a gold-plated Mitchell reel made specially for Bob, an Avington
Mk II 9ft fly rod, and a three-tier fly box containing around 1,000 flies – which together made £1,160.

Speaking exclusively to Angling Times on the day, Bob explained his emotions during a memorable afternoon in the auction room.

“Funnily enough this is the first auction I’ve ever been to, so it was very exciting to watch and hear what was going on,” Bob said. 

“Although there weren’t that many in the room, those on the internet were constantly trying to outbid each other and Jonathan did a fantastic job keeping up with them. 

“This made the bidding very exciting, and I was overwhelmed to see the amount of interest in my tackle – which played a huge part in my angling career. 

 “It’s tackle that I would never use again so I’m just happy it’s going to help other people with their own fishing.” 

Auctioneer Jonathan Humbert wasn’t surprised at the amount of interest in Bob’s tackle, which made a total of £3,140.20, and believes it’s his reputation as one of the world’s most influential anglers that led to such frantic bidding. 

Mr Humbert said: “Bob obviously has a huge presence in the angling community. This was highlighted when we started to receive bids from people in Canada, Sweden and Tasmania. 

“All his items are unrepeatable rarities that are a must-have for any fly-fishing follower.

“My personal favourite was the three-tier fly box which is simply fishing gold and was the party-piece of the sale. They’re flies that Bob used all over the world throughout the last 60 years so it’s no wonder they sold for as much as they did.” 

The fly box held more than 1,000 flies – some of which caught championship-winning fish – and was purchased by a local Northamptonshire man for £880. 

Speaking anonymously, he said: “I bought the fly box for my son – who has not long taken up fly fishing but spends many hours at Pitsford.

“I’m sure these new, exquisite imitations will give him an edge during his next visit, and he’ll never have to buy a fly again!”

Bob has suffered from Parkinson’s disease for the last 19 years and is donating part of the money raised to the Parkinson’s UK Charity, which has been helping to combat the illness for 50 years.

Bob concluded: “I want to put something back into the charity that has been fighting the disease I’ve been living with for nearly 20 years.

“My wife Jeanette has aided and put up with me throughout that whole time, too, so I would like to buy her something for her garden – she truly deserves it.” 

Big payday in Ireland for match ace Mark Pollard

Mark Pollard finished a mammoth month-long Irish festival campaign almost £10k better off after claiming a quartet of top-four finishes on a wide range of venues across the Irish Sea.

The Matrix/Dynamite Baits angler, one of the most consistent matchmen in the UK, stayed on after the recent World Pairs in mid-September to fish the Horseshoe Festival, Fermanagh Cup, Cootehill Festival and Muckno Autumn event, weighing in with a win, a second and two fourths.

The fishing was far from easy, with clear water and cagey fish presenting the ultimate test.

‘Polly’ kicked off with fourth place in the 65-peg Horseshoe on the Erne system around Enniskillen, and the same venue then hosted the 120-angler Fermanagh Cup, where he took second. Next Mark headed south to Cootehill and won the 105-peg event, before signing off with fourth at Muckno.

“The fishing was diverse,” he said. “The Erne system is a vast expanse of wild water with migratory fish, whereas the southern lakes are landlocked and a little more like what we’re used to in the UK.

“On the Erne the fish came in spells and when you caught two or three you were rubbing your hands thinking ‘here we go’, only to then not get a bite for half an hour! The clear water made the roach and hybrids cagey, while in the south, once you caught you kept on catching all day.” 

Tactics across the four contests were varied, and Mark revealed how one day the waggler worked best, while on another it would be short lining at 13m on the pole, followed by fishing the feeder 24 hours later.

“The bait bill wasn’t cheap and when you’re fishing for wild fish on big lakes, you need a lot of it to keep them in the peg,” he explained. “I’d feed up to four pints of casters and six bags of groundbait, but if you want to win big money on these festivals, you can’t do it on the cheap.

“It was also important to make the right decision on when to change methods. Typically I’d start on the feeder to let me feed up the pole line and then come off the tip after 40 minutes unless I was catching well. That was the good thing about the venues – the fish told you what would work and what wouldn’t.”

‘Carp Wars’ will have all anglers ‘glued to the TV’

A bumper year for fishing on TV is guaranteed with the launch of a brand new show.

Big-name stars from the world of specimen angling will feature in the highly-anticipated Carp Wars series, to be shown on Sky Sports every week starting from December 1.

Carp fishing legends Dave Lane and Ian Chillcott are two of the big names on show as the anglers battle it out in a host of action-packed, head-to-head matches. 

Dozens of aspiring carp anglers also entered an online competition to be one of the six involved in Carp Wars, with teenager Harry Pratt winning the opportunity to compete in front of the cameras.

Points will be awarded for the biggest fish and largest overall weight in each contest, and the scores will be totted up after 15 rounds of action to decide the two finalists.

The second series ofThe Big Fish Off and Monster Carp are angling shows that have won rave reviews after they hit our screens earlier in the year, and Fishing TV, the creators of Carp Wars, are confident their latest project will be equally popular. 

Commercial director Ed Burgass said: “There is nothing else like this out there, and we believe the unique format will have anglers glued to their TVs.

“We approached Sky Sports to see if they’d be interested, and within minutes of watching an episode they agreed it was a great show that was perfect for their channels.

“It will give anglers an insight into the minds of some of the greatest carp anglers in the land and the battle to become champion is certain to go right down to the wire.”

The series will run weekly until the end of March, with the final being staged in France at the famous Etang le Fays fishery where the champion will walk away with £3,000.

Even at this early stage, discussions are already underway for a second series of Carp Wars. 

Britain’s first 70lb carp banked

This is the picture of the UK’s first 70lb carp.

The record-breaking specimen, known as Big Rig, tipped the scales at 71lb 4oz and was caught by Robby Harrison from The Avenue Fishery in Shropshire.

It’s the same fish that recently beat the current British best of 68lb 10oz at a weight of 69lb 3oz, meaning that it’s put on 2lb 1oz since it was caught by Tom Doherty just over six weeks ago.

It’s Robby’s first year on the syndicate and he made carp fishing history when he smashed his own personal best that stood at 41lb with Big Rig that took a balanced 16mm Mainline Hybrid boilie.

“This is like the angling version of winning the lottery,” said Robby, from Liverpool.

“One of my fellow anglers helped me net the fish, but he nudged it with the frame twice and it powered off on both occasions.” 

“I told him to sink the net, but neither of us knew which fish it was so it was the sheer depth of its body that was colliding with the net.

“I didn’t have a head torch, so I didn’t see it straight away, but when I did I was blown away…I’ve never seen anything like it.

It’s a specimen that has been hand-reared by Avenue owner and boss of RH Fisheries Rob Hales, whose intentions of growing record-breaking fish have caused controversy within the sport.

But Robby agrees with others who believe that what Rob does is provide ‘ordinary’ anglers with the chance of catching the carp of their dreams without going abroad.

“I’m just a normal angler who wants to catch the biggest fish that I can,” Robby added. 

“I don’t care what people say because I’ve caught a fish that filled me with emotions and excitement that made me feel like a boy again. Anyone who’s got a problem with that has to remember that it’s just fishing at the end of the day.”

Vote for the best of 2016!

The prestigious Angling Times National Angling Awards are back, and the power is in your hands to decide the winners for 2016.
It’s been a great year, with countless incredible catches, huge match fishing achievements and historic TV moments.
In a bid to reward the best in the business for their sterling contribution to fishing in 2016, Angling Times is now calling on every reader to vote for their favourites in 28 categories.
It’s been a tough job to decide the shortlists in each fiercely-contested category, which include Match Angler of the Year, Specimen Angler of the Year and River of the Year – but now it’s up to you to decide.
Editor-in-chief Steve Fitzpatrick said: “I’ve been blown away by how good this year has been for our sport. Every day I come into the office I find out that something new and exciting has happened.
“Sometimes it’s a giant fish that’s been landed, or a brilliant TV show that’s been released. 
“So much hard work has been put in by people, but now’s the time for you to vote and give them the national recognition they deserve.
“The National Angling Awards has been running for several years and, while there are other similar schemes, none of them has the prestige that this one has.
“All the nominees are excited to be in with a chance, but now it’s all down to our readers to make them the winners.” 
It’s been an equally impressive year in the tackle market as well. Hundreds of innovative products have hit the shelves, with new poles, rods, terminal tackle and baits from the biggest names within the industry.
Tackle editor Mark Sawyer has been gauging the mood within the industry ahead of the awards, and said: “I have been incredibly impressed by the quality of tackle released by the top manufacturers this year and now is the time to reward those who have gone above and beyond with their innovations.
“I have spent a lot of time talking to staff from each company in recent weeks and there is a lot of excitement about the National Angling Awards. They are all determined to win and gain the trophies that go with that success.
“If you’ve bought a piece of tackle this year that has transformed your fishing, make sure you vote to give it a great chance of becoming a 2016 champion.”
Readers who register to vote will be instantly entered into a draw that will provide them with a chance of winning one of four £100 vouchers to spend with tackle shop giant Chapmans Angling.

Have your say below!

Switch of swim leads to mirror carp ‘Scar’

James Butcher has continued his memorable autumn on Kingsmead One lake by banking the big mirror known as ‘The Scar’ at 47lb 10oz.

Just a few weeks after making a bumper ten-fish haul from the Berkshire venue, the East London rod again got among the bigger mirrors in the 30-acre lake on the second night of a four-day session.

Once again, keen observation played a key role in the capture.

“On the first night I fished a swim where the fish had been showing when I arrived, but by the morning they had done the off. I saw a few shows in another part of the lake, so moved my kit round and, as I knew the spots, I flicked the rods out and put out 10 baits around each,” said James.

“After three hours I decided to give it some bait, introducing 1.5kg over each rod to get the fish grazing. As it got dark the fish began to show again, and I sat up listening. Eventually I crashed out, only to be woken by liners on my right hand rod. The tip soon pulled down but when I struck, there was nothing there,” he added.

“I recast a little shorter and got back into the bag and the next thing I knew the right hand rod pulled up tight and I was playing a really heavy carp. It beat me up big time for about 15 minutes or so before I could net it. On the scales it went 47lb 10oz. Happy days!”