Monster 5lb River Thames perch is caught while lure fishing

This is one of the biggest Thames perch ever at 5lb 5oz.

Justin Beale described the fight that the huge fish put up as ‘the most ferocious that he’s ever experienced’ when he fished a snaggy area.

Justin Beale's huge 5lb 5oz Thames perch was caught on a lure.

The experienced specialist certainly knows exactly where the venues big predators hang out when it’s carrying extra water and milder winter sparks fish into feeding.

After searching around areas among the sunken trees in his swim, he decided to cast his lure into open water and this is when he set his hook into the specimen.

“Big perch don’t spend all of their time around snags as they venture into open water to hunt and that’s where this fish was when it smashed into my lure,” said Justin.

“It was on my fifth cast on a really slow retrieve when I got the take and it came straight to the surface, shook its head and then I didn’t see it again for around 10 minutes. The fight was incredible.

It’s a capture that further proves Justin’s intimate knowledge of the vast waterway as this is the third perch over 5lb he’s banked as he’s previously landed fish weighing 5lb 9oz and 5lb 1oz.

The winning bait was a Keitech Swing Impact that was coupled with a light rod, 4lb braid and a fluorocarbon leader.

“Some anglers spend way too long on the bank,” Justin continued.

“I watched the weather charts and saw the warmer weather coincided with the influx of extra water and I knew exactly where the big perch would be. You only need to be in the right place at the right time and for me this is usually for an hour or two after work and this was the case on this occasion.