A slow start but a good finish for third spot – Lou’s, Decoy

Peg 10

Eleven of us fished this Fenland Rods match, with Peg 6 the favoured draw, as it has form, on feeder, pellet waggler, and pole – the Spratts match was won there a month ago.

But Peg 10 stuck to my fingers, which is on the other corner, and I wasn’t unhappy with that as it offers a feeder to the corner, and lots of spots on the far bank. I put up my feeder rod first, fully intending to start on it, but as I tackled up carp could be seen moving in my right margin, and sipping the surface. A small gaggle of other competitors eventually built up behind me, all telling me how lucky I was to have carp already in residence, but experience has taught me that when that happens they hardly ever drop down and feed there.

 

My swim, giving lots of options to the far bank. In fact most
of my fish came from the tiny area between the platform and the irises.

On Ten Mile Bank, which I used to fish a lot, if roach and bream were rolling and splashing before a match the chances were it would be dire in that area; and I feel that the same applies to carp. But I couldn’t resist the chance of being proved wrong, and put some pellet and corn out at top two plus one, and  some cat meat into the right margin. Within seconds I was playing a 1 lb bream from the longer swim, but then nothing. Cat meat in the right margin produced only roach nibbling at it, and a couple hooked – about 2 oz each.

A couple of roach came long on corn, and eventually a 3 lb carp from the right margin on meat. But things were very slow – though Wendy Bedford on peg 12 to my right had had several in the first hour on a feeder cast about one third of the way out. Two or three bream to almost 2 lb then came on corn from the left margin, only about 18 inches deep. I hadn’t thought this would be very good, as the cover here is a bunch of irises, while I would have preferred reeds.

John  Garner took fish on both pole and
feeder to Wendy's right. At the end he pushed
my trolley up the hill back to my car!

Wendy started off really well using her usual
feeder tactics, and was well ahead of me, but she
 then  had a poor spell in the middle of the match. 

I was about to swap to a feeder when I had the bright idea of dropping a rig down beside the platform – so close my pole was actually touching the platform. Amazingly this produced an 8 lb mirror first drop! Then a smaller carp some ten minutes later.  But by now almost two hours had gone and when John Smith came over, saying he couldn’t catch, I estimated I had about 15 lb.

I try pellet waggler for 15 minutes

Fish were moving under the surface near the corner about 50 yards away, so I took a pellet waggler rod out of the holdall and rigged up a 7gm waggler, set about two feet deep. Just as I did this the wind got up a little and the fish disappeared! Fifteen minutes casting to towards the corner saw not a take, so I put that rod down, though I was still prepared to use the feeder if I had a blank spell.

Dick Warrener was on my left. I
thought he had me well beaten!

The rest of the match saw me move round the three pole swims, with the left margin only a metre away from the platform yielding occasional carp from 2 lb to 5 lb, on meat over corn and hemp and some 8mm pellets, but the right margin still apparently holding only roach (I tried paste here which the roach couldn’t dismantle, but no carp came either). The longer swim would produce two or three bream or carp and then nothing.

John Smith, our secretary, struggled
on peg 1, which was calm all day.

Dick Warrener, next to me, started his second net while I still had about 30 lb on my clicker, and very soon afterwards Allan Golightly went for a THIRD net. Wendy had had more fish on a feeder, but was now getting fewer and fewer, while Kevin Lee to my right had also slowed.

I get a good ripple

Worm brought a couple more bream from the left margin, and then a switch to corn saw several more carp. By now I had started my second net, and the wind had got up and given me some ripple.  I then had a good spell on meat, losing just two foulhooked, and Allan Golightly went for a fourth net. 

The new Coshida is fine

At one point I opened a fresh tin of Coshida cat meat which I kept in its own cool bag, so the meat was firm. I, and every other angler I know, stopped using Coshida about three years ago because it floated. But I am happy to say that the Coshida currently on sale is as good as the original stuff! 

Dave Garner (R) waits for his total.

My fish seemed to be dropping down into the deeper water from the margin. Wendy had now started to catch fish again and yet again putting her feeder close-in. I thought about swapping to feeder, but whenever that had happened a carp obliged on the pole!

I go for a third net

With 25 minutes left I had 35 lb on my clicker for the second net but felt that I probably had more. We had brought some spares down, but they had all gone, so if I wanted a new net I would have to drive back to HQ for one. Unsure, I thought for half a minute and decided to go, in case I suddenly had a double-figure fish.

The winner by just 10 oz - Allan Golightly.

When I got back and settled there were 16 minutes left, and in that time I managed three carp on corn around 4 lb from the left margin in about a metre of water, and lost one, which actually snapped my elastic. I can’t remember when that last happened. So I really had the fish going at that point. It had been strange during the last couple of hours – a good spell on meat, then a lull, then a good spell on corn, so back to meat.

The weigh-in

John Smith had really struggled in peg 1 next to the reeds. His swim was flat calm in the North-Easterly wind. Tony Nisbet had caught well, but his fish were on the small side and he weighed 95 lb 7 oz, followed by Dave Garner with 126 lb 13 oz. Then came the excitement as Allan Golightly weighed in his four nets. He’d erred on the safe side and each net held just over 30 lb – the final total was 127 lb 7 oz – his first win with Fenland Rods...by just 10 oz!

Runner-up Dave Garner, 126 lb 13 oz.

Allan told me he had started at top two plus two feeding maggot but baiting with 4mm hard pellet. Later he put maggot into the left margin and he saw fish come in to take them. He then targetted them with an 8mm hard pellet. I think I should have tried that in my right margin, where the roach were. Maggot would undoubtedly attracted carp, but the roach could not devour an 8mm pellet, and probably wouldn’t even try.

Me, third with 113 lb 4 oz.

My first two nets went over 50 lb (again!) and the last three fish weighed 13 lb 4 oz, total 113 lb 4 oz for third spot, but even with the extra weight of about 3 lb it wouldn’t have made a difference to the result. However, the nine minutes I spent getting the third net might have given me another couple of good fish...we shall never know. And I am delighted Allan has chalked up his first win with us.

The result - pegs 2, 5, 14 and 15 were left out.

Welcome back, Joe (he's well into his 80s).

Happy with third

I was happy with third spot as I really fancied the swims 3 to 7 before I started, because there were fewer fish swimming around near the surface, and none in the margins, and the reeds there give really good cover.  I had Kevin Lee to my right, who has won the club championship more times than anyone else, and was rweally chuffed to beat him.

Welcome back, Joe

Peg 7 saw Joe Bedford weigh only 14 lb 14 oz – but he’s had an 18-month lay-off and he is in his mid-80s! I hope he enjoyed his return to the bank, and am sure his weights will rise during the season as he gets back into the swing of it.