Peg 26, Yew, Friday, Sept 9
Thirteen of us in this Spratts match, on the Eastern bank, and my swim looked good, with a shallow area a few yards to the left of the platform, giving me hope that it would come alive there in the last hour. Trevor Cousins was on my left; I like to be able to watch a better angler - so often leaving blank pegs means that a match now almost feels like pleasure fishing.
Thirteen of us in this Spratts match, on the Eastern bank, and my swim looked good, with a shallow area a few yards to the left of the platform, giving me hope that it would come alive there in the last hour. Trevor Cousins was on my left; I like to be able to watch a better angler - so often leaving blank pegs means that a match now almost feels like pleasure fishing.
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| Grey skies greeted us and we did get rain. |
The sky was cloudy, with probable rain forecast, so I donned my new Goretex bib and brace. But it wasn't until I used it properly that I realised it doesn't have the two large outside pockets that my old one had. I found them so useful, particularly for holding my mobile as I walked along following the scales and hoping for pictures.
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| Wendy was soon in action on her feeder rod. |
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| And this was the result - all 18 lb 9 oz of it safely in the net! |
Like Trevor I started on a feeder, and like him I had a look on the pole line after about 20 minutes without a knock. The water felt 'dead', so I felt I had time to try my three earmarked pole swims to see the float working properly - the shallow water, a deep hole on the right hoping for barbel eventually, and a simple 2+2 our just to my left, and the brisk wind was coming from the right. But at least I had a big Raspberry Ripple, unlike the anglers farther down towards the Northern end of the lake. The first person I saw land a fish was Bob Barrett, three swims to my right, who was fishing his usual feeder.
Meanwhile Wendy, to my right had had three fish on the feeder and I know she usually uses sweetcorn - in fact it looked as if she had double corn on the hook. So I changed my pink wafter on the feeder for two grains of sweetcorn, with micros, and that brought a fish of about 6 lb. A big lull followed, during which time Trevor lost a fish on the pole and went back himself onto the feeder.
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| Trevor in action to my left - the umbrella was for his secret weapon - his wife. |
Slow on the pole
In the next hour or two I managed a 2 lb F1 foulhooked on the pole at 2+2, and then some small perch on maggot over the casters I had put into the deep hole, but no barbel. Trevor now had a good spell on the feeder and when Martin Parker came along Trevor had had six; I had just the one decent carp, and Martin said that Bob Barrett had seven. I was being thrashed.
Then I hit a big fish on the feeder which weeded me to the right. I held on and slowly the fish came free, but it was obviously attached to something, which turned out to be a big lump of twigs and branches. I had this lump, clinging to my feeder, almost over the landing net, and could see the fish lying next to the bundle, but I couldn't position my landing net properly.
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| Trevor would be the one to conduct the weigh-ins. |
Lost!
The the fish slowly took the whole caboodle out a little and before it glided back to me the hooklength broke - it must have been cut on a thorn or something. I believe I said "Oh dear, Oh dear," or something similar! But while I had been playing the fish, and as Trevor had taken several more on a feeder, I had made up my mind to have another look on the pole line, as I felt the atmosphere had altered and it looked as if perhaps carp had started feeding.
The the fish slowly took the whole caboodle out a little and before it glided back to me the hooklength broke - it must have been cut on a thorn or something. I believe I said "Oh dear, Oh dear," or something similar! But while I had been playing the fish, and as Trevor had taken several more on a feeder, I had made up my mind to have another look on the pole line, as I felt the atmosphere had altered and it looked as if perhaps carp had started feeding.
I was using a cheap rod (I remember it cost me £25, including the reel many years ago) with an all-through action. To be honest it hasn't enough beef in it to deal properly with this size of fish - I made up my mind to put the Preston feeder system on one of my Matrix feeder rods, which I should have done a long time ago.
Fish on the pole
Back on the pole and I suddenly lost a foulhooked fish on the 2+2 line, and followed that with three carp around 8 lb in three casts. Then, just as if someone had thrown a switch, the bites stopped. In the next hour or so I tried the other swims - nothing there until I had a look on the deep margin just beyond the shallow spot, and quickly had a big fish on mussel, and two foulhooked and lost on it before they also went AWOL. That was followed by another fish on the feeder, which I had now covered with groundbait, rather than using just pellets.
Back on the pole and I suddenly lost a foulhooked fish on the 2+2 line, and followed that with three carp around 8 lb in three casts. Then, just as if someone had thrown a switch, the bites stopped. In the next hour or so I tried the other swims - nothing there until I had a look on the deep margin just beyond the shallow spot, and quickly had a big fish on mussel, and two foulhooked and lost on it before they also went AWOL. That was followed by another fish on the feeder, which I had now covered with groundbait, rather than using just pellets.
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| Rain came during the weigh-in. Here Bob Barrett, who had a brilliant start, waits for his weight to be called. |
Somewhere around this time a sudden whirlwind, not uncommon in the Fens, caught us by surprise - I held on to my side tray, but Bob Barrett had one of his holdalls lifted off the ground and deposited in the water. Seconds later everything returned to normal, but afterwards John Smith, who was nine swims away on 17, said that they knew nothing about it at that end of the lake - it must have bypassed them...
I finish with seven decent carp
In the last hour I fished the shallow swim hard, but eventually gave up with 20 minutes left, and had another cast on the feeder with groundbait, which brought a carp around 8 lb. I finished with those seven decent carp, the F1 and a few small perch. The barbel never showed. I guessed Trevor had around 20 fish. He told me afterwards that he, also, had started catching better when he had substituted the pellets on his feeder for groundbait. If I had done that earlier I am sure I would have had more.
In the last hour I fished the shallow swim hard, but eventually gave up with 20 minutes left, and had another cast on the feeder with groundbait, which brought a carp around 8 lb. I finished with those seven decent carp, the F1 and a few small perch. The barbel never showed. I guessed Trevor had around 20 fish. He told me afterwards that he, also, had started catching better when he had substituted the pellets on his feeder for groundbait. If I had done that earlier I am sure I would have had more.
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| My old mate Martin Parker, happy cos he'd caught some fish! |
The weigh in
Joe Bedford, at 92, was first to weigh and did himself proud with 44 lb 9 oz. But it was generally agreed that Trevor had blitzed the match, and indeed he had, with 136 lb 6 oz. I weighed in 61 lb, while Wendy next door had 51 lb, which included one fish which we weighed at 18 lb 9 oz!
Bob Barrett had a torrid time after those seven early fish and weighed in just 71 lb 9 oz. Best weight after that was Alan Porter's 55 lb 3 oz - the swims towards the far end, which had the calmest water, definitely fished the hardest. So I ended up a very surprised third in a difficult match -
Peter Barnes never had a bite!
Peter Barnes never had a bite!
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| Wendy's best-ever carp. |
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| The winner - Trevor with 136 lb 6 oz. |
Next match was on Kingsland small lake, which turned out to be most frustrating!
THE RESULT
28 Joe Bedford 44 lb 9 oz
27 Trevor Cousins 136 lb 9 oz 1st
27 Trevor Cousins 136 lb 9 oz 1st
26 Mac Campbell 61 lb 3rd
25 Wendy Bedford 51 lb
24 Peter Barnes DNW
23 Bob Barrett 71 lb 9 oz 2nd
22 Alan Porter 55 lb 3 oz 4th
21 Martin Parker 52 lb 10 oz
20 John Garner 21 lb 4 oz
19 Bob Allen 27 lb 12 oz
18 Mike Rawson DNW
17 John Smith 32 lb 14 oz
16 Dick Warrener 23 lb 1 oz
And a message from Bob Allen...see below...
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| Bob Allen is becoming rich on his winnings from John Garner, and would like the world to know... |
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