Test in form for magical roach

A flurry of big roach have been caught from the crystal clear waters of the River Test in the past few weeks Angling Times can reveal…

One of the best hauls came from match angler Aidan Bordiuk, who swapped his pole for a float rod during a recent session on the Hampshire river and took three roach over the 2lb barrier, topped by a fish of 2lb 3oz.

After spotting a group of big roach, Aidan spent over an hour feeding maggots to gain their confidence, and on his first run through connected with ‘the fish of a lifetime’.

“The float dipped straight away, and I was into a roach of over 2lb – I couldn’t believe it,” said Aidan.

“Over the next few hours I caught fish of 2lb 3oz, 2lb 2oz, 2lb and 1lb 14oz, as well as lots of other fish over the 1lb mark.

Aidan used 3lb line and a size 18 hook below an Avon-style float to fool the crafty specimens.

Angling Dreams boss Adam Fisher also struck silver recently when he swapped the beauty of the Wye Valley for the equally scenic River Test and was rewarded with this fine roach of 2lb 5oz.

Fishing with Fisherman’s Blues radio host Nigel Botherway, the pair shared a swim which required them to trot baits through a deep run for both roach and chub. 

Adam told Angling Times: “There was a hard and hacking upstream wind blowing, which made life tough even if it did help with our presentation. All the more reward to hook a fish like this!”

Adam fooled the fish on a single white maggot, ran through the swim under a float. The tactic also took a dozen other redfins over 1lb.