I needed one more decent fish (as did several others) on Magpie, Pidley

 Peg 28, Magpie, Pidley
Peg 28 on the island at Magpie, and Golden Peg to boot! I was very happy with the draw until I saw that the swim, together with Pegs 1, 3, 5 and 30 (which was on my right), was calm in the bright sunshine, while the far four pegs, 7, 9, 11 and 13, had ripple in the West wind. In the event those ripple swims didn't fish as well as ours in the calm, So what do I know?

Nice to have sun, but a bit of Raspberry Ripple would have been nice!

I freely admit that while I caught fish, I should have had more. But I was exceedingly happy with the first hour, because I fished banded caster shallow - something I have not done before. And it worked! Six or seven carp and F1s from 1 lb to 3 lb in the first 45 minutes in four feet of water at about eight metres, set me up for the morning, though then they just refused to take the bait, although I could see them swirling, and I don't know why, as the weather conditions seemed the same. Had I fed heavily enough? I'd changed depth several times, finishing at about ten inches, but after that I couldn't get a touch. I had been putting in about 30 or 40 casters every minute - was that enough? I soldiered on for another 20 fishless minutes before having a look in the margins, already considering the day a success whatever else occurred.

Martin Parker, opposite on 5, had the best legs on display!

Into the margins

Now all the experts in magazines and on video insist that the margins should be left for later in a match, but on this lake they have always been a target much earlier for most match anglers. And yes, today I found some fish, after about ten minutes, in the right margin, about three feet deep, which I had primed with small cubes of luncheon meat, while also putting corn into the left margin. I had seen Dick on Peg 30, fishing three sections in front of him and landing a couple of good fish. I couldn't see Dick himself, but I could see his landing net go out. Later that preyed on my mind, as I had intended to start a swim there but never got round to it.

As time went on I gravitated farther along the right margin, just a couple of feet, where the water was a little deeper, towards the reeds, but I never had any sort of purple patch, and the fish were mainly less than 2 lb. I also lost two or three foulhooked - the fish seemed to be off bottom but knocking the bait about. I guessed that the others were finding it difficult, but I could see only John Garner and Martin Parker, on the opposite bank. Martin had some fish on feeder early on, but I didn't see much after that.

A beautiful-looking common of 13 lb 12 oz was my best fish.

Corn takes a good-un
A switch to the left margin with about two hours left, using corn, brought more fish, and I assumed that would be the case for the other competitors. That brought two or three nice sessions on corn, and occasionally cat meat, when I had fish in successive casts. I started alternating between the two, as the fish seemed really finicky, and that worked well. I included one on corn we later weighed at 13 lb 12 oz, which is big for that lake. It was a beautiful-looking common, and Dave Garner opposite nearly wet himself when he saw it in my landing net.

You would think that a fish like that would fight harder than the three-pounders, but in fact it came in quite quickly. As always I laid the pole level with the water surface when I hooked it, and it obligingly came to the surface, waving its tail at me. It was soon over the net, but as I prepared to lift it the fish kicked and made off. Fifteen seconds later it was over the net again, but not quite in position,  and it literally kicked itself over the rim. But 15 seconds later it glided in. Mind you, it found its energy in the net and I had the dickens of a job extracting the hook.

With 20 minutes left I made the decision to stay in that left margin swim, but to come in closer to the bank - just inches away, which produced another two fish. In fact I should have already been putting corn or pellets out at three sections in the deepest water, ready for a switch. I suspect that cost me the match.

Dave Garner, fishing a waggler and cat meat ,
caught the bulk of his fish in the last hour.

The weigh in
I estimated I had 70 lb, but felt I should have been able to get more, so was amazed when the first three (from 13 back to 9) all weighed in the 40s, with Callum on 7 then totalling 52 lb 2 oz. Then Martin Parker, who has had a torrid time this season, brought 95 lb 1 oz to the scales from Peg 5. It was one he fancied, as it has a good reputation, but I thought that was still a very good performance on a difficult day.

Dave Garner on 3, fishing his usual waggler and cat meat, had 50 lb 10 oz and he was followed by Shaun Buddle, who has been sweeping almost all before his this season, particularly in the two clubs we both fish with. Shaun threatened to overtake Martin, but his 92 lb 9 oz put him into second place.

Caught out on the clicker
Then round to me on the island, and I had severely underestimated my catch (had I forgotten to click?). It went 90 lb 2 oz on the scales. I tried to hold the big fish for a photo, but it obviously didn't like me (why would it?) and wriggled such that I had to put it in the landing net for the picture.

Dick Warrener fished a real tidy match, on my right, to beat me, with 92 lb 8oz.

Shaun Buddle - 92 lb 9 oz for runner-up spot (just!).

Finally there was extreme tension on Peg 30 (even more than wondering who Michael Owen's daughter will end up with on Love Island) when Dick Warrener threatened to overtake Shaun but the scales settled on a weight which left him an agonising ONE OUNCE short in third. So I finished fourth and (not for the first time) felt I should have started a longer swim, or even tried a change of bait during the slow spells. I could have put on worm, maggot, mussel, hard pellet, expanders, or paste. But I am an idiot.

Next match Friday on Six-Island at Decoy, followed the next day with a waggler-only match (rod and line -plus float fixed at the bottom only) on Yew. Not looking forward to that, but it's good for me to be forced to give it a go as I don't fish rod and line enough.

Martin Parker - winner with 95 lb 9 oz from Peg 5.

THE RESULT

Tight at the top...I was actually on Peg 28 and Dick Warrener on 30, approximately opposite 3 and 5.