16lb 10oz zander from tidal trent

THE Trent’s predator fishing potential has been highlighted this week with the capture of a
16lb 10oz zander.

The huge specimen fell to Lincoln angler Shayne Kearns, who legered a perch deadbait on a tidal stretch in North Nottinghamshire.

Amazingly, Shayne had only begun targeting zander three weeks before the life-changing session and his previous best was only 7lb. 

He only bagged the 16-pounder thanks to a bit of a hunch. Shayne told Angling Times: “The barbel fishing has been slow on the Trent recently but I had an inkling that zander would be in one of my regular stretches – it’s full of small dace and roach. 

“I had two knocks on the rod which I couldn’t really strike at. I think it must have been the same fish picking up the bait and spitting it back out. But then, just as darkness fell, it picked up the bait and ran with it like a train.” 

Shayne’s incredible catch, tamed on 12lb mainline and a small wire trace, wasn't too far off the biggest reported zander from the waterway. That stands at 18lb 10oz, caught by Graham Hunt in March 2014. 

“I initially thought the Trent record was 16lb 13oz and that I would have probably set a new record if the fish had swallowed my hookbait, a 4oz perch” joked Shayne. 

“It’s motivated me to go after zander more often. It just goes to show the Trent isn’t just about catching big barbel, but other worthwhile species too,” he said.

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