PACKAGE

Matrix Nemesis 1000 pole package (13m option)
Package: Three top-5 kits, Ethos holdall
Matrix Nemesis 1000 pole package (16m option)
Package: Four top-3 kits, top-4 kit, Ethos holdall

PAY AROUND

13m: £949.99
16m: £1,249.99

If you’re a fan of the commercial carp match scene, this latest Matrix Nemesis 1000 pole should definitely be on your radar.

The 16m model, available now following its pre-Christmas unveiling, is the second generation of Nemesis pole – and considerably cheaper than the original top-end model.

It is, though, built on exactly the same 10-sectioned mandrel as its flagship stablemate, which handily makes all sections interchangeable between the two. If you’re already a Nemesis owner, this offers cheap insurance against broken sections.

However, the Nemesis 1000 is not merely a cheap alternative to its predecessor. It’s a very decent pole which, just like its wallet-stretching big brother, is intended for out-and-out commercial fishery use.

Matrix front man Ricky Teale has a lifetime’s experience of match fishing to draw on and works with Matrix-backed commercial match aces Les Thompson, Warren Martin and Grant Albutt to design the very best commercial gear. Not surprisingly, then, every last inch of this pole is built with an eye to winning the coin. Starting with its slightly roughened, easy-grip finish that allows it to be shipped in and out fast, it simply oozes winning features.

It has linear build for section wall strength, and reinforced anti-ovalling joints to inspire confidence when unshipping and breaking the pole down under stress – this applies particularly to its most often used third and fourth joint areas.

I’d be fibbing if I said the pole performs as well at its full 16m as it does at 13m and 14.5m. But for a

sub-£1,000 model this is to be expected, and its overall performance is still very impressive.

At 16m it isn’t that quick to recover post-strike, but it’s more than usable and doesn’t show any signs of

top-heaviness. Its ample wall strength copes with margin work and it retains enough rigidity, even at its full length, to permit splashing a shallow rig or fishing tight up against an island with a very short line without the tip constantly hitting the water.

Just like its Nemesis flagship counterpart it isn’t the lightest pole ever built, nor should it be. It has been designed specifically for big fish and bagging-up tactics. In windy conditions you can really hang on to it, when its weight works in your favour, keeping the pole steady at all times. If you don’t believe me, just have a look at the poles used by some of the UK’s most respected big-fish anglers. It’s a fact that lightest is not always best.

Stiff without being top heavy, powerful yet sensitive, steady without being clumsy, the Nemesis 1000 ticks all these boxes. But best of all, it instils an enormous degree of confidence. There’s no question of sections splitting or wearing out.

What’s more, if you shop around carefully, the pole is currently available for under £850.

VERDICT

The new 16m Matrix Nemesis 1000 offers commercial match anglers of all abilities a powerful and reliable pole at a bargain price. Its performance is comparable with that of any pole in this price range. Unless you fished it at its full 16m length on every outing, you would find it very hard to find fault.

Mark Sawyer