Angler catches 4lb 12oz perch from Southern river

A perch of 4lb 12oz tops a list of big stripeys this week as rivers and stillwaters hit top form for the species.

Gary Truelove’s session on a Dorset river produced the giant to the 55-year-old from Hampshire. He was trotting maggots down one of his favourite stretches when his float disappeared and he set his size 18 hook into the jaws of what he assumed was a chub.

A rig made from 4lb mainline and a 3lb hooklink was enough to subdue the lunges of the impressive specimen.

“I caught a chub of around 3lb 8oz first cast then everything went quiet,” Gary told Angling Times. 
"When I saw the huge head break the surface I was shocked, because I expected to see the silvery flank of a big chub. For the last minute of the fight I just gritted my teeth and prayed that the hook would hold.”

Gary’s prayers were answered as he was rewarded with a fish just 5oz short of his personal best