5lb-plus eel... and he meant to catch it!

Big eels are notoriously difficult to catch by design – however, by adopting an unconventional approach Paul Scowen successfully landed this 5lb 4oz specimen. 

Targeting a 50-acre syndicate lake in the South East, Paul fished over a bed of dead maggots with hair-rigged worm sections or bunches of maggots, presented on a bolt-rig with a short hooklink and a 2oz lead.

This tactic proved highly successful, as it avoided the finicky bites and deep-hooked fish that traditional eel rigs often result in. 

Over the following weeks Paul continued to fish the same water, adding a 10lb 2oz tench and a bream of 12lb 7oz to top off an excellent run of form.