Second-ever pike breaks the landing net! - Matt King

“NOT having fished since my teens, I decided to take it up again and target barbel.
“As it got colder the fishing became harder, so I headed to a local stretch of the Trent to see if I could catch what would be only my second-ever pike.
“A few hours in I’d not had a bite so I moved to a point swim where I’d seen some lure anglers fishing earlier on.
“Out went my legered lamprey and half-mackerel deadbaits… and I only had to wait 10 minutes before something huge took off with the latter offering!
“This pike fought just like a barbel and took me all over the swim for 15 minutes before it surfaced at the net. It was the biggest fish I’d ever seen and as I scooped it up the net handle snapped as I shuffled it back!
“Thankfully, I was able to grab the net frame and pull it up the bank and on to my unhooking mat. It turned out that my second-ever pike went 28lb 7oz on the scales – I’m still giggling like a schoolboy now!”