“Stop the snobbery over our record lists” - Des Taylor
Angling’s never been the most organised of sports, and even after 50 years of doing it there are still things about it that really confuse me.
Take our rod-caught record list. On it we have pumpkinseed, golden orfe, brown goldfish and bitterling. All these are from overseas and about as non-native as you can get, but new records for these species can still be accepted. Yet Wels catfish and grass carp, which have been here at least as long and in some cases far longer, are treated very differently. The records for both are frozen, and no further record claims will be accepted. Does that make sense?
I love fishing for catfish – they’re great sport
I know lots of serious anglers who spend thousands of hours trying to catch catfish and grass carp and have landed numerous fish over the frozen record – and yet neither the fish nor their captors get any recognition. I don’t know anyone who intentionally fishes for pumpkinseed and the other foreign imports. I suspect that any future record contenders will have been caught accidentally, yet these captures will be officially recognised.
There’s only a handful of anglers – me included! – who seriously fish for golden orfe, and yet these are also active on the record list. To add to the stupidity, that list includes zander, so why are the EA and many angling clubs still trying to eradicate the species from their waters? You couldn’t make it up.
I love fishing for cats. They’re a great sporting fish, and even though I know some have been stocked at huge weights I know of others of 100lb or more that have grown on from doubles.
Let’s draw a line under what’s happened in the past. These fish are here to stay, so let’s accept their presence and their right to a place on the record lists.
Exactly the same can be said of grass carp. Grassies are beautiful fish, and the big ones some of us are targeting in this country should get due recognition.
And while I’m at it, why zander are still being removed from some waters I have no idea. You only need to look at the Lower Severn at Upton to see that a healthy head of big zeds can live in harmony with the silverfish. Anyway, many specimen predator anglers in this country now rate a big zander as highly as a big pike, and rightly so.
This 18lb 11oz zander from the River Severn is as much a prize as a big pike
I think we should just revert to the original rules governing any record fish, which are that it has to be caught by fair means on rod and line. For me that’s it. Whether it’s been living in a wild water and never been fished for, or stocked the day before capture, it still has to be caught!
There’ll always be the knockers who try to devalue record fish. We need to be very careful we don’t allow the coarse fishing record list to become the same as that of the game world, where we have ‘wild’, ‘natural’ and even ‘cultivated’ records, and where many records, for whatever reason, have been frozen out until further notice.
Too many fish are being caught at the moment that are being lost to angling history, and that’s not good at all.
This 21lb 2oz trout was taken the day after it had been stocked, but I still had to catch it
Record ide...from a river!
ALL-ROUND angler Colin Hebb has landed what’s believed to be Britain’s largest ide, this clonking 8lb 6oz fish.
The 37-year-old from East Yorkshire took it on quivertipped lobworm by a moored boat on his local stretch of the River Hull.
Ide, also identified as orfe, are usually found in commercials, but Colin has targeted them on the River Hull for the past eight years. He said:
“In 2013 I was tipped off about an area that held big roach, but all I could see there were huge ide basking on the surface.”
Colin’s capture beats the current British ide best by 1oz, and pictures of his catch have been sent to the British Record Fish Committee for verification.
Colin Hebb’s record ide, a new best – by just an ounce!
Fishing's BIGGEST challenges!
WE recently reported the capture of a sensational 3lb 8oz river roach, a feat widely regarded the angling equivalent of scaling Mount Everest. But what other angling achievements can compare? We asked our columnists and readers…
Winning the world champs
For Rob Hughes there was one challenge that stands above all others, and that’s claiming a gold medal at the World Champs.
“You’re not just competing against the fish, but against a raft of very talented people who are at the top of their game,” he said.
“There’s no room for error, as you can guarantee that some of the other competitors won’t make a mistake. You only get one chance.”
The process starts with just getting a place in the England team which, as current England International Rory Jones confirms, is no easy feat in itself.
“The number of different skills that an international level angler must master is unrivalled. There is no hiding place on the international stage – the angler must be truly multi-skilled,” he said.
“There is no hiding place on the international stage”
Tracking down a double-figure eel
The reaction to Steve Pitts’ capture of a 10lb 2oz eel last summer showed just how much of an accomplishment this is for any angler. The magnitude of the catch was certainly not lost on renowned specialist Neill Stephen, who said:
“Big eels can’t be seen, they are rarely if ever recaught, and they are usually solitary one-off fish, so by definition you have to fish for them where there is no record of them ever existing!
“They can turn up anywhere, from a tiny garden pond to a huge gravel pit, and they are notoriously elusive, with some anglers putting in hundreds of nights before they even get a run. There are also many instances of huge fish being netted or electrofished out of lakes, put back and then, despite every effort by anglers, never being caught again. Put simply, you have to be a total nutter to fish for them, and most eel anglers are!”
Steve Pitts with his giant 10lb 2oz eel
Landing the Burghfield Common
Only 14 men in history have banked this impressive carp. Topping out at over 60lb, it is one of the country’s biggest commons, and the challenge starts with just getting a ticket for the 96-acre Burghfield Lake near Reading. Once you’re there, you then have to deal with the labyrinthine nature of the lake itself, a vast amount of which is inaccessible. You’ll soon be questioning your sanity!
Scott Lloyd, who banked the highly-sought after fish in April 2017 said:
“It takes about two hours to walk around Burghfield, and it’s blood, sweat and tears because it’s so overgrown in places. You have to go through brambles to get to the water’s edge. I soon developed a passionate hatred of brambles! Unless you’ve been there you will never have enough respect for that lake or that fish.”
Scott Lloyd with the incredible Burghfield Common
Boating a giant shark
AT columnist Martin Bowler knows more than most about tough fishing challenges – after all, he wrote an acclaimed book all about tracking down some of the rarest fish in our waters called ‘Catching the Impossible’!
For him the ultimate angling challenge is to target truly wild fish. He said:
“In the UK that is far from easy, but there are a few fish I’d still like to tempt onto my hooks! The sea offers the epitome of wild fishing, and with only two mako sharks ever having been caught since I was born in 1971, I think this isn’t just the ultimate challenge, but an almost impossible one!
“Failing that, catching a sixgill shark would also be fabulous!”
“This isn’t just the ultimate challenge, but an almost impossible one!”
Win one of the ‘big three’
For match anglers there are three main big money events – Fish O’Mania, Match This and the Golden Reel. Match ace Jamie Hughes believes scooping just one of these Blue Riband events deserves a place amongst angling’s toughest challenges.
“Your reputation means nothing,” he said.
“First of all, you need to qualify and that means fishing unfamiliar venues miles from home against talented anglers, many of whom are often local experts. Once you get through, then there’s the final itself and those you’re up against will practice intensely for it. Then, on the day you need to draw a peg that gives you half a chance, and then you need to pray it fishes to form. I’ve drawn some belting pegs in finals that have turned out to be rancid! You also need to remember that the match can be won and lost in the last 10 minutes!”
“On the day you need to draw a peg that gives you half a chance, and then you need to pray it fishes to form”
Catching a 30lb-plus pike from a non-trout water
Any pike over 30lb is impressive, but fish of such size are far more common in trout reservoirs than they are in rivers, canals or any other natural venue. Reigning Drennan Cup champ Rich Wilby believes catching a ‘thirty’ from such a venue is right up there.
“I spend a lot of my piking time on the Norfolk Broads and can count on one hand the number of known 30lb pike that have been caught there in recent times,” said Rich.
“Predation has a lot to do with their demise, as the larger ones are an easy meal for otters in the spawning season, and cormorants have all but wiped out the prey fish in many places, which big pike obviously need to sustain their weight.”
Huge pike like this are more common in trout reservoirs
7lb-plus UK perch "on the horizon" say experts
LATE last autumn the angling world was rocked by the capture of a record-breaking 6lb 4oz perch, the latest in a long line of huge stripeys to be reported over the past few seasons.
During that time specimens over 4lb have become relatively common, with two- and three-pounders barely getting a mention in despatches. As impressive as this ‘new normal’ for the species has become, experts believe that even larger specimens prowl in our waters, thriving on a perfect storm of environmental conditions and a ready supply of food.
Experts believe that even larger specimens prowl in our waters
Thriving populations
Perch are arguably the most accessible of our native coarse species, found everywhere from vast open lakes to muddy canals.
Scroll back 50 years, though, and the situation was far different. Ravaged by a virulent disease, they were pushed to the brink of existence. So how have they made such a remarkable recovery?
Kye Jerrom, Senior Fisheries Officer at the Environment Agency, revealed that a number of factors have contributed to their success. He said:
“We’ve been monitoring perch populations since 1975, and since then there’s been a substantial increase in not only their numbers, but also their size.
“Many of our coarse fish populations have flourished in recent years, aided by excellent spawning success due to the recent long, warm summers.
“As a result, there’s plenty of food for perch, and in the correct environment they can display exceptional growth.”
This ‘correct environment’ ideally features – alongside an abundance of prey fish – a lack of other predators for competition, little angling pressure, and good water clarity. When all these factors come together, alarming growth rates have been witnessed, as Kye went on to reveal.
“Analysis we’ve done in such conditions showed that perch can grow to over 15cm in their first year and to over 3lb in weight in less than four years. For a species that lives for around eight years, this leaves plenty of time for them to reach record proportions.”
Perch can grow to over 3lb in weight in less than four years
All the rage
But there are other reasons why we’re seeing so many big perch being caught today, as Andy Cheetham, chairman of the Perchfishers club, told us.
“It’s been many years since they were wiped out by disease, so right now they’re at the peak of their recovery, resulting in bigger fish and larger populations. Add to this the fact that lure angling has soared in popularity, with thousands of anglers now at it, and that lure fishing is a great way to single out the biggest perch, and it’s little surprise that we’re seeing so many big fish being caught. Perch have also become quite a ‘trendy’ fish, with ever more carpers fishing for them over the winter months.”
Andy Cheetham with a fine 5lb 11oz perch from a Midlands river
A rosy future
Nobody can fail to be impressed by pictures of Matt Atkins’ potential new British record of 6lb 4oz, banked in October 2020, but Andy Cheetham believes even bigger fish are on the cards… if they haven’t been banked already.
“I certainly think there are bigger fish on the horizon, and have actually been told of fish to over 7lb having been caught in this country. You have to remember that many anglers don’t report catches nowadays, especially from a water that’s on form. Perch are cyclical and may fade from a venue for years before suddenly reappearing, so people like to make the most of quality fishing while it’s there – without competition from other anglers.
“The best perch fishing I ever experienced came from a stretch of river most people had given up on. I hit on a small group of very big fish, and over a five-year period I landed 11 four-pounders and five fish over 5lb,” Andy added.
Matt Atkins’ potential new British record of 6lb 4oz
Overseas example
With the average stamp of perch in the UK on the rise, the question remains whether one day the nation’s specimen hunters could be catching fish of five, even six pounds, with some regularity.
Across the North Sea in the Netherlands, fishing like that is already on offer, and Dutch specialist Tim Janssen firmly believes the UK could one day witness a similar level of sport because all the necessary foundations are in place.
“One of the reasons we have big perch is because of our big river systems connected to large gravel pits,” Tim explained.
“These are filled with clear, healthy water as well as loads of small bait fish for the perch to hunt, as well as a fish we call the ‘donal grondel’ (a small freshwater goby), and millions of crayfish.
“The UK has gravel pits with a good balance of food and clear and healthy water, so perhaps one day the perch should reach a similar level to ours.”
Whilst Britain does indeed have large gravel pits, they’re not on the same scale as those found in Holland, and most are not connected to rivers. Perhaps the closest we have to this model is the Norfolk Broads and, interestingly, that is a county that was geographically connected to Holland some 10,000 years ago. With the Broads already known to have produced perch to over 5lb in recent seasons to publicity-shy anglers, and with a rising number of crayfish and an abundance of bait fish in our waters, who knows what the future might hold?
One thing’s for sure: it’s an exhilarating time to be a British perch angler!
This huge Dutch perch of 6lb 11oz fell to Tim Janssen
Record crucian carp! - Will it be claimed?
MOST anglers pit their wits against perch, pike or chub in December but not Matthew Wright, who fished through freezing 30mph winds and heavy downpours to slip his net under a potential new British record crucian at 4lb 11oz.
Matthew Wright’s potential new British record crucian carp
The fine specimen was the larger of two 4lb-plus fish taken by the 37-year-old during an overnight stay on a Surrey stillwater – where the terrible conditions at one point left him questioning his sanity… and clinging to his bivvy!
Reassurance that he’d made the right decision targeting the quintessential summer species finally came at 11.30pm, when a positive run resulted in a 4lb 4oz stunner that smashed his 3lb 9oz PB.
This 4lb 4oz crucian also found its way to Matthew’s net
But before he even had chance to bask in the glory of his achievement, an even larger fish tore off with his hookbait.
“At first I thought it was a carp, but then I felt the tell-tale nodding on the rod-tip, and when the fish surfaced in the beam of my headtorch I caught sight of the flank of a gigantic crucian,” Matthew said.
“As I guided it in, I just kept saying ‘oh my God, don’t fall off’, and I was shaking like mad when it finally went over the net cord – the size of the fish was just ridiculous.”
Matthew weighed the crucian three times on his Reuben Heaton digital scales in the presence of three other anglers, each time registering a weight of 4lb 11oz.
Despite making the Angling Trust aware of his catch, Matthew – who works as a fishery bailiff – remains unsure about whether he will yet submit a claim to the British Record Fish Committee, and said he was just happy knowing he’d caught a potential record.
He added:
“A lot of the credit goes to my missus, who finally gave me permission to go fishing after a couple of months of helping to look after our newborn baby!
“For 30 years I’ve targeted crucians and have caught them in -3°C before, but I never ever expected to break my personal best twice in a single December session.”
Both Matthew’s crucians fell to Method feeders and double fake caster hookbaits fished over a bed of hemp and mixed 3mm pellets at 30 yards range.
Was this giant bullhead a record breaker?
LURE fishing fanatic Nick Firth reckons he banked a British record bullhead – but we’ll never know because he slipped it back, thinking it wouldn’t register on his scales!
The 52-year-old from Holmfirth was drop shotting a dendrobaena worm next to a lock gate on the Huddersfield Canal when he received a tentative bite from what he suspected was a small perch.
“When this jet-back thing popped out of the water I couldn’t believe what I was looking at,” Nick said.
“In 40 years of fishing I’d never seen one, let alone caught one, but I recognised what it was and posted a picture on Facebook.
“Comments poured in saying that the record was just 1oz and that I had a decent claim, but it was too late. I reckon mine was around the 2oz-3oz mark!”
The mini-monster that could have broken a record
River Severn barbel record smashed!
AN ANGLER from Birmingham has etched his name into the history books after slipping his net under a new River Severn barbel record weighing 18lb on the nose.
Dean O’brien with the new Severn record barbel of 18lb exactly
Dean O’brien was fishing a day session on a stretch of the lower river when at 6pm his luncheon meat offering was picked up by the powerful fish, signalling the start of a nervy battle.
It’s thought to be the third time in two months that the huge specimen, which has been given the name Red Spot due to a distinctive red colouration above its anal fin, has graced the bank.
“As soon as I picked up the rod the fish just hugged the bottom and powered off – I couldn’t stop it from charging towards an overhanging tree and snagging me up,” Dean told us.
“My mate Spencer Thomas caught her a couple of weeks ago at 17lb 4oz and mentioned that it felt like a heavy weight that just stayed deep like a 25lb carp, so there was no doubt in my mind what fish I’d hooked.”
By manoeuvring himself next to the tree, Dean managed to guide his quarry out from the underwater obstruction and recommence the battle in open water, before netting his prize 15 minutes later. By this point, three other anglers including Spencer and a member of the Barbel Society arrived to witness the weighing on Dean’s 60lb-rated Reuben Heaton scales. He said:
“When the needle read 18lb none of us could believe it. The fish had obviously been feeding up ahead of winter.
“It was only weighed once as I wanted to get this precious fish back into the water as quickly as possible, but we were all in agreement with the weight.”
Over the last three months the two previous captures of Red Spot have received scrutiny on social media over the proposed weight of 17lb 4oz, although Dean believes his catch will put all the doubters to rest.
“Having it weighed wrong once could be a coincidence, but it’s now been weighed three times over 17lb,” he added.
Current official River Severn record
16lb 11oz, Kevin Gittins, October 2014
Biggest confirmed Severn barbel in 2020
17lb 4oz, Andrew Hadfield, September
17lb 4oz, Spencer Thomas, October
18lb, Dean O’brien, November
WORLD record brown trout!
A COLOSSAL brown trout eclipsing the current world record of 42lb 1oz has been recorded from a canal in New Zealand.
The incredible fish measured 44lb 3oz on the scales and was taken on a spinner from the Mackenzie Hydro Canals, located near to the South Island town of Twizel.
Its captor, who’s requested to be referred to as Seamus from Turangi, decided to keep the prized trout and donate it to the local Razza Bar and Bistro to be stuffed and hung up proudly next to the bar’s other mammoth catches on display – including trout of 38lb 2oz and 38lb 9oz.
The world record brown trout at 44lb 3oz - what a monster!
New barbel record on the River Anker
THE River Anker barbel record has been beaten following the capture of this 16lb 2oz specimen. It fell to Warwickshire all-rounder Adrian Busby, who battled the impressive fish for nearly 20 minutes after it picked up his trout pellet hookbait.
It beats the old best for the waterway by 4oz.
“I’m blown away by this fish because it’s so rare for this river,” said a delighted Adrian.
“In seven years of fishing the Anker, I’ve only managed to catch 11 barbel, but this catch has made all that effort worth it.”
Adrian Busby and the new River Anker record barbel at 16lb 2oz
UK anglers call on record captors to "submit claims" and "ignore the trolls"
THE VAST majority of anglers believe that Matt Atkins and Wayne Mansford, captors of record-breaking perch and carp respectively, should submit official claims for new British bests.
Not long after making the extraordinary captures, both anglers admitted they were having second thoughts about applying for records for a range of reasons, chief among which was the amount of online abuse they received from ‘trolls’ – individuals who use the internet to mock and discredit fish.
Matt Atkins was not sure if he would submit a claim for this record perch of 6lb 4oz
One man who’s fully aware of the unwanted attention that can follow a big fish capture is Neill Stephen, current joint holder of the British records for perch and chub. He’s adamant that the two anglers shouldn’t let the trolls get their way.
“I have every sympathy for those on the receiving end of negativity,” he said.
“These are two incredible fish and the captors should only be congratulated.
“I don’t see how applying for a record makes any difference. The catches have already been publicised and the application process is just one simple form. The fish either do or don’t meet the criteria.”
Neill has noticed more negativity about Wayne’s 75lb 2oz carp, and while he laments some of the changes in carp fishing over his lifetime, he believes that people should be allowed to enjoy whatever form of the sport they choose.
“We’re living in a world where more people like to target big fish,” he added.
“It’s a different type of fishing to what used to be around, but why shouldn’t people enjoy it? Choose what you enjoy, and let others do the same!”
Wayne Mansford with a massive 75lb 2oz carp - will he claim the record?
The trolling of catches online seems to be a growing problem, and it’s not just specimen anglers targeted either. Browse Facebook for any length of time and you’ll see young kids right through to veterans having their catches ridiculed, with one of the main accusations being that the fish ‘don’t look the weight’ or that computer software has been used to make them look bigger.
This latter accusation was levelled at Matt Atkins soon after pictures of his amazing 6lb 4oz perch were published. However, it appears that anglers as a whole are now becoming fed up with the online critics and their baseless claims.
Angling Times reader Michael Bilbie said:
“They’re just jealous keyboard warriors, who probably don’t know one end of the rod from another - pathetic! People should be congratulated for catching records and PBs. I saw the photo of the potential record perch and it looks the size stated all day long.”
These sentiments were echoed by fellow reader Ross Hunter, who said:
“Claim the record, forget the haters, because they’re just that – haters who wished they could have caught the fish themselves.”
The controversial subject of fish ‘not looking the weight’ in catch photos is as old as the hills, and it remains the main bone of contention in the digital era too. Yet, as legendary angling photographer Mick Rouse points out, images can be misleading. Mick, who was head of photography at Angling Times for decades and ‘snapped’ countless famous fish, said:
“By using computer programs like Photoshop or wide angled camera lenses you can make fish look bigger, but it’s not as simple as that because it can be difficult to make smaller species look their true size.
“Take roach for example. It’s tricky to make a fish of 3lb look the weight, and the same goes with perch. If you put their dorsal fin up, they look much larger, but with the fin down, as was the case with Matt Atkins’ fish, they look smaller.”
Mick added that while we do occasionally get anglers who lie about fish weights, these are generally known ‘individuals’.
“In the end, they’re only lying to themselves,” he added.
“I like to think that truthful anglers are in an overwhelming majority.”
Photo quality seems to be all important when it comes to silencing online fishing trolls
New British record perch landed! - But will it be claimed?
Matt Atkins became the envy of perch fanatics nationwide when he landed this phenomenal 6lb 4oz stripey during a dawn raid at a southern stillwater.
Matt Atkins 6lb 4oz perch beats the current British record by 1oz
The 43-year-old and his friend Chris Hewett had already enjoyed a successful morning’s sport, with each landing a four-pounder, when Matt received a take just after 8am and struck into another hefty fish.
Chris and Matt had already had a dream morning with a brace of fours
He told us:
“As soon as I set the hook I could feel the heavy headshakes and said to Chris that if this wasn’t a pike, it would be a truly huge perch. After a short scrap we saw it surface and were just both speechless.
“The next few moments were a bit of a blur as I tried to keep my focus and ease the largest perch I’d ever seen over the net. That moment still hasn’t sunk in.”
The duo weighed the perch on two sets of Reuben Heaton digital scales, with each registering a weight of 6lb 4oz.
The country’s biggest perch
Despite his catch beating the official British best by 1oz, project manager Matt revealed that he won’t be submitting a claim to the British Record Fish Committee (BRFC).
“At the end of the day I’m content just knowing I’ve caught a fish of this magnitude, but ultimately I want to safeguard the venue because it has so much potential. Over the last few seasons I’ve enjoyed what’s possibly the greatest perch fishing in the country there – landing 15 fish over 4lb, of which three have been 5lb-plus.
“Now I’ve seen what it’s capable of I want to try to protect the venue more than ever.”
Matt Atkins won’t be claiming the record for this 6lb 4oz perch
Although worms and prawns are the most popular baits for big perch, Matt has enjoyed success using small roach deadbaits and a unique rig, which he explained.
“The biggest I’ve taken have all fallen for two to four-inch roach, which I pop up 2ft off the bottom using foam inserts,” he said. “The baits appear almost alive as they waft around in the water.”
Top three ratified perch records:
1 Ken Brown, 6lb 3oz, Wilstone Reservoir, September 2011
1 Neill Stephen, 6lb 3oz, Stream Valley Lakes, March 2011
3 Ricky Hilliday, 6lb, Cotswold Water Park, March 2010
Neill Stephen and his 6lb 3oz record perch in 2011
“I’m going to apply for the British record chub"
A claim for the British record chub will be submitted after an angler fishing the River Severn caught a large specimen weighing in at 10lb 11oz.
“I’ve caught chub to 6lb 15oz from the River Severn before, but the one I landed on a recent session was in an altogether different league.”
These were the words of captor Kam Srih, who whilst stunned by what his scales were reading, checked the weight six times to make sure.
He told Angling Times:
“I was fishing at Coalport, a Rowley and District Angling Society water, and had been loosefeeding boilies for a while before casting out in a bid to get the fish competing. A short while later I had a few bangs on the tip and then the rod hooped over. Straight away the fish snagged me.
“It wouldn’t budge, so I slackened off the line and eventually it moved back out into the main flow.
“I could feel a heavy weight plodding around, but then it snagged me again, so I gave it more slack line, which did the trick once more. Suddenly, it leapt out of the water and I thought I was attached to a salmon – it had such a big tail. Once I’d eased the fish towards me and into the net I stood there shaking. It was a chub, and a huge one at that.
“I calmed myself down, and after weighing the fish on my digital scales they registered 12lb 2oz. I thought ‘that’s not right’ so I weighed it again.
“In total, it was weighed six times, and on each occasion the scales showed 12lb 2oz. I released the chub and then weighed the net, which I knew weighed 1lb 7oz, and the scales registered this exactly, which means my fish weighed 10lb 11oz.
“I’m going to apply for the British record, but whatever the outcome, to me it’s one very special chub.”
Kam Srih weighed this chub at 10lb 11oz
We will keep up to date with Kam’s claim, but with no witnesses, it will likely be rejected by the British Record Fish Committee.
River Dearne barbel record smashed!
There is a new barbel record on Yorkshire’s River Dearne in the shape of this cracking 16lb 12oz specimen caught by Liam Bishell.
The keen barbel hunter told Angling Times how the record breaking fish was caught, he said:
“I’ve been fishing the same spot on my local River Dearne for the last three seasons and over the last 11 sessions I’ve blanked…
“Me and a mate decided on a three-hour evening trip on this occasion and were just about to leave when my rod screamed off with this giant 16lb 12oz barbel.
“It tried its hardest to drag me towards a snag but after a mighty 20 minute battle she was safely in the net.
“I was absolutely buzzing with this fish as all the effort and the hours I had put in had finally paid off.
Upper Trent barbel record broken!
DESPITE stormy conditions anglers fishing the River Trent have just enjoyed a prolific week of barbel action with multiple specimens to a record-breaking 18lb 10oz landed.
40mph-winds battered all corners of the UK over January 11 and 12 but that certainly didn’t hamper the spirits of the nation’s army of Trent barbel fanatics…
One of them was Staffordshire-based specialist James Ufton who won the battle against this upper Trent barbel record at 18lb 10oz – a fish that he described as being ‘a breezeblock across the back with pectoral fins as big as his hands!’
Like most anglers James had his wife to thank for the remarkable catch after she gave him a pass to go fishing for a couple of hours before dinner.
He didn’t require the full allotted time however as his rod-tip signalled a gentle-pull round just 15 minutes into his session.
He added:
“Straight away I knew it was a good fish so I just took my time – adjusting the clutch when I needed to.
“It didn’t dawn on me that it could’ve been a PB breaker until it surfaced for the first time, and I remember thinking, ‘bloody hell, that’s a massive barbel.
“It was a fantastic catch I’ll never forget as I never dreamed I’d come close to beating my previous personal best, which was the current River Dove record of 18lb 6oz.”
James’ successful rig included a running cage feeder loaded with damp pellets and chopped boilies, complete with a single boilie hookbait cut in half and hair-rigged back-to-back.