I blow it on Six-Islands, Decoy

 Peg 14, Sunday, May 29
Eighteen fished John Garner's Annual Invitation match, and with a very cold, strong breeze from the North, and with previous winner Tim Bates drawing Peg 20, downwind of an island, where the water was sheltered from the wind, I made him favourite in my own mind to win. It was only later, just before the match started, that I heard he had accidentally left his five pints of dead maggots in the freezer. Oh dear! 😢

John, with the draw bag gets the draw underway while Bob Allen makes a note of our pegs
 (we have been known to forget!)

My draw on 14 put me, and three others (10, 11 and 12), right in the face of the wind but at least I assumed it would be too cold along our bank for the fish to be spawning. Actually I have happy memories of Peg 14 as it was where I once took what was then my best match weight - about 176 lb from memory - and I could remember where most of the fish came from. They came from the left margin, which was, and still is, much shallower than the area to the right, which drops down to almost four feet against the tree, which is only about five feet from the platform, meaning there's no long fishable margin that side.

A cool facing wind greeted us, and later I had to put on my fleece and my waterproof jacket as it became even colder, and rained.

I just wanted to beat Shaun
I had Shaun Buddle on 12 to my right. Shaun can't stop catching fish this season, and I thought I would be happy to beat just him, as I didn't fancy the swims on our bank compared to those which were more sheltered. The wind meant I gave up the idea of fishing long, though I had a feeder rod made up beside me. 

First probe was at three sections in front of me, in the deepest water, less than four feet, where I put in micros and corn. In the next 90 minutes this produced a carp of 6 lb, a smaller one of 3 lb and a couple of small F1s around 1 lb, as well as some roach, several of which dropped off. It looks to me as if the new owners have stocked the lake with F1s, as I don't remember seeing fish that small before, and they don't breed.

Mussel does the business
With 12 lb in my net I then walked up to Shaun, who said he had 18 lb, and he was fishing mussel right in the side almost under a small bush. That had been my next move anyway, so when I arrived back at my box on went a mussel. The next hour was frantic - first a foulhooked carp from the left margin which came off; then a fish around 14 lb, followed by about three more big fish around 10 lb and a couple of F1s, as well as one or two more lost. 

My big mistake

Shaun Buddle, next to me, was among the fish yet again.

I then made a massive mistake - because I was getting liners and what looked like proper bites (all of which I missed) I stayed there for another hour. Eventually I saw some sense and went into the deep water just to my right, where another good fish and a 3 lb F1 came in quickly. A little over half the match gone and I had over 60 lb. But yet again I stayed too long in that swim before changing back.

The switch to the left margin saw another carp, around 3 lb, and an F1 on corn and I stayed there far too long...again! The wind became colder, and we had some rain, and things were not looking good now that those big fish, which were still in the swim (I could see their vortices in the water), would not feed properly. Every time I fed corn or pieces of mussel they came in, swirled, and gave me liners. So frustrating,

Back to the righthand swim and I had about one more F1, another fish or two lost, and then the match ended. In the last half of the match I probably had about 12 lb.

A right Wally
I should, of course, have ignored both margin swims for a time and gone back to the first swim, where at least I had had fish early on, which was probably on a par with the rest of the field. I should also have tried switching baits - a worm produced just a gudgeon, and cat meat was ragged by roach, but I had paste with me, and maggots, and pellet, none of which I tried on the hook in that swim. Or I could have tried the feeder.

I also found that one or two fish had come from just beyond where I had fed, but didn't try a little farther on, next to a tree on my left, even though I had plumbed up there and marked it as a likely-looking area. Frankly I fished that second half like a Right Wally.

The weigh in

I assumed there would be many weights over 100 lb so was astonished when my fish, weighed at 85 lb 12 oz, was second best weight up to me, beaten only by Shaun with 88 lb 13 oz, who told me later that he had had three-quarters of his fish on paste. Obviously that cold wind had affected the fish all over the lake.

Mel Lutkin, who does so much for the Fenland Rods club, was third from Peg 25.

Round to the pegs from 16 onwards, who had a side wind (except for 24 and 25 which had back wind) and both Kevin Lee and Tim Bates both had over 75 lb, but not enough to beat Shaun. On 25 Mel Lutkin found fish four metres out from the bank to the tune of 81 lb 14 oz, with not a fish from the margins. That put Mel into third spot, leaving Shaun as the winner, and me an undeserved second. But I'll take that!

Afterwards several anglers told me that the small F1s had been a real problem, so I wondered whether putting in mussel had kept the larger fish interested while the smaller fish had dropped away. No matter - it's just another challenge when we next fish that lake.

Mussel
I buy them frozen from Tescos in bags at about £3.50. Leave them frozen until you get up in the morning. By the time the match starts some will be thawed, and any that aren't take only seconds to thaw in water from the fishery.

I hook the mussel through the tiny round piece of gristle that looks like an eye. I then cut the mussel in half, diagonally, trying to ensure that the two black 'lips'  round the end stay fairly compact. If there's a piece hanging loose roach and smaller fish try to tug it.

HOWEVER Shaun fishes his mussels whole, which I am happy to do if it's a small specimen, but I'm not confident doing that it's it's big and fat.

Any that are not used MIGHT be OK once more if they have not been left in the sun, provided you re-freeze them as soon as you get home. In my experience once is the maximum number of times you can re-freeze them and use on the hook. However when they go mushy they are fine when cut into pieces and fed as loose feed.

THE RESULT

2 Bob Allen                     34 lb 3 oz
3 Kevin Beavis                17 lb 14 oz
4 Dick Warrener              40 lb 4 oz
6 Dave Garner                 39 lb 7 oz
7 John Garner                  50 lb
8 Martin Parker               DNW
9 Peter Spriggs                59 lb 12 oz
10 Callum Judge              38 lb 13 oz
11 Roland Butcher           35 lb
12 Shaun Buddle             88 lb 13 oz        1st
14 Mac Campbell            85 lb 12 oz        2nd
17 Allan Golightly            16 lb 2 oz
18 Joe Bedford                24 lb 8 oz
19 Kevin Lee                   80 lb                 4th
20 Tim Bates                   75 lb 4 oz
22 Trevor Cousins           62 lb 10 oz
24 Mick Rawson             17 lb 5 oz
25 Mel Lutkin                 81 lb 14 oz        3rd

Next match

Next match Wednesday on Damson at Decoy, which is an unusual lake, unlike any other. Shallow margins drop down to eight feet only about five feet from the bank. The shallows used to fish well for an hour at the start, but recently that's not been the case, possibly because the fish are now bigger and have wised up.