Twelve of us, prepared for rain in the morning and wind all day, met with hope in our hearts, and I hoped I would get a low number near the car park end of Cedar. After re-reading my blogs of Cedar in March and April I plumped for Peg 5 as a banker, but would have been happy with any of the first half-dozen swims used - we used 2 to 13, with the fierce wind behind us.
Nine names out of the bag and "Mac C" was still inside, together with pegs 4, 5 and 10. Would my stars align at last, as forecast in the astrology column of the Daily Mail (I just happened to notice it)? I had a 66% chance of a peg I fancied. Next out was Trevor Cousins...Peg 5. No matter, 4 and 10 were left, 50/50, and I was due some luck. Next: Mac C - Peg 10. Bugga - a bit of a walk and the platform would probably be underwater...
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| Peg 10 - my fish came from the reeds just to the left of the platform opposite and to the right of my swim. |
Not that I'm complaining, 😟, but actually that awful wind did me, and the others, a favour by drying out the platform so that quite soon it was almost dry. Once set up I felt great, with a day's fishing ahead, and back wind. "Blow, Blow though Winter Wind" (Shakespeare, not Daiwa); conditions looked OK and it wasn't freezing.
I found I could easily polefish at 13 metres, but put in bait at 11.5 metres before starting on a maggot feeder cast 40 yards across to reeds on the far side, expecting barbel because I know those swims can hold them. Within one minute the tip wrapped round but there was nothing there. A liner.
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| Peter Barnes had a big barbel we estimated at 5 lb - bigger than mine. But why is the water sloping down while Peter is kneeling upright? |
Hooklength broken, probably by a big fish diving into the reeds. Hooklength renewed and next cast the tip went round and a barbel over 3 lb came into my waiting landing net. Next cast I hadn't had time to tighten the line before the rod flew round and a slightly smaller barbel came in. What a start, particularly as Martin Parker on my left and Peter Spriggs on my right hadn't had even a bite on their poles.
Then there was a gap and I went out to the long pole line with expander, and then corn, but never had a touch. A look on maggot on an inside line brought a 6 oz roach. So it was back to the feeder and in the next hour three more barbel of 2 lb-plus came in, one of which tangled in Peter Spriggs' pole rig, but he came over, disentangled the mess, and I landed the fish. Apart from that I was enjoying it.
Inevitably the bites dried up and two hours later, after testing the pole lines, I was back on the feeder. Peter had had a carp on the pole but was now on the feeder himself. And to my right I could see fish being caught in the low numbers, all on feeder. To my left the three anglers hadn't had a fish. On one occasion as I was reeling in I hooked a fish which gave me a real run-around. It turned out to be a carp about 7 lb hooked in the tail, and it came off just as I was about to net it. I sighed aloud.
Bob Allen, on the right, is always up for recording
the match weights, thankfully. His writing is immaculate.
The next hour saw three more barbel over 2 lb, all on four live red maggots on the feeder, followed by a blank spell and then a couple more fish, quite out of the blue, though I did have one or two pings on the line. Meanwhile Peter had had a barbel on feeder, but Martin, who also tried feeder, had not had a single bite. The wind was a real pain, blowing my cushion off my seat every time I stood up (and I kept forgetting, and doing it again and again. Eventually it ended up in the water.).
To his left Mike Rawson and Shaun Buddle had both had a couple of fish on feeder, but a few more had been landed in the low numbers. With an hour to go I was about to change to a hybrid feeder with micros and a yellow wafter, hoping for a carp, which would probably be much bigger than the barbel, when the tip went round again and a 3 lb-plus barbel came in on maggot. At that point I simply had to walk to my van and drive round to the toilet. Peter Harrison on 2 told me he had 50 lb, so I was obviously not going to win.
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| Winner Peter Harrison with 81 lb 2 oz from Peg 2. |
Peter Harrison won the match with 81 lb 2 oz, mainly on feedered pellet or worm, Joe next door, suprisingly didn't catch a fish, although he would have feedered in those conditions. He's over 90, but can still catch. Bob Allen on 4, Trevor on 5 and Alan Porter on 7 took the next three places.
I weighed in nine barbel and that roach for 24 lb 10 oz, with Mike Rawson just behind me and Shaun Buddle in the corner peg 13 just in front, with his fish taken on a feeder cast to the end bank, not the far side. So I was out of the frame, but to be honest, how many other anglers in the country caught nine barbel on that horrible blowy, cold Monday morning?
My day was made when Joe (90-something), without saying anything, helped me carry my net bag with the three wet nets inside back to my van. Compared with him I'm a spring chicken at only 79! But on a more serious mote, for all my mates who know I can struggle at times, my latest diagnosis is that the anaemia which has been slowing me down needs no more investigations, because the cause is almost certainly the damage done by the prostate cancer radiation (as I had assumed), and all I have to do is to Carry On Taking The Tablets. And I'm happy with that (that's Iron tablets, not Ecstasy).
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| Shaun Buddle had his four fish for 25 lb late in the match. |
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| Shaun makes himself useful after the match holding the results so I can photograph them. He has had to have his name embroidered on all his clothes, including his nice new Halkon Hunt jacket, fleece and bib and brace, in case he forgets it. Bob Allen is pointing out his name tag in case you missed it... |
Next match possibly Friday in the Over 55s at Decoy, if I can sneak out without She Who Must Be Obeyed noticing. If not, then Sunday on Willows, in the early numbers, in Fenland Rods' first match of the season. Peg 15 is the banker there.
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