There was good news...and not-so-good news at the Spratts club draw at Decoy. It was great to see Mick Ramm back on the bank, sporting his two bionic hips. As I have mentioned many times before, Mick and I were in the same class at St Peter's Shool, Wisbech, in the late 1940s, and no doubt we both quailed at, and suffered at, the hands of, Old Ma Thompson, a teacher I can only describe as wicked.
No-one who was ever in her class will ever forget the delight she displayed in caning poor little six-year-olds who didn't really know what was happening and who wouldn't have ever been rude to a grown-up, anywhere. But we both survived, though I suspect that many more had their chilhoods scarred by that hariden. Strange that her husband 'Rocky' Thompson, the headmaster, was a lovely man...
Then Trevor updated us on Peter Barnes, who has had a horrendous time with his chemotherapy, and has said he didn't expect to be able to fish with us this year. Peter said he keeps up to date with the club by reading this 'comedian's' blog. Blimey, he must be in a bad way... Hasta las Vista, Baby! We really miss your smiling face, Peter, so I will have to put up with photographing these ugly buggers till you get back.
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| Peg 14, with another pesky bush peventing me fishing further along that margin. |
I was happy with peg 14, and as last week's (failed) Golden Peg, I drew for this one, and pulled out John Garner. Well, I pulled out his milk bottle top! Next decision was to wheel my trolley down by peg 2 and right round the lake, as the bank from peg 23 down to 16 was ankle-deep in mud in places (as it often is). I once had my best-ever match weight of about 176 lb on peg 14, mainly from the left margin, but on this occasion the wind, which was over my back from the left (how did I manage that?) was too strong to be able to fish that properly after the first hour. And I had a bush only a top-two away to the right.
The best margin spot (to be honest the only one) looked to be under that bush, but I started with a banjo feeder and a pink wafter cast to the middle. Before long I had an 8 lb common carp, and I was away. Bob Barrett on 13 was casting to the island and also had a quick start. An F1 came quickly but then I had a long period without any more bites so had a quick look on my 2+3 pole line. The 0.5 gm float sat there in the waves just beautifully, and I was certain that something would come along and pick up the 6mm expander. But NO. Not a sausage, not a touch.
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| Bob Barrett, on the other side of the bush, kept putting occasional fish into his net, all on feeder and pellet. |
So it was into the margins, which were also blank, and then back on the feeder. That produced five F1s in about 40 minutes, but suddenly those bites dried up. So it was back inside, under the bush, with corn, and I thought the float was twitching as it settled. That happened several times and gradually the twitches became proper bites...except that when I struck there was nothing there. I became convinced that F1s were knocking and slapping the bait.
A change to maggot produced another 8 lb carp first drop in, but then I had just the dips and dive-unders. Then in came a 5 lb carp foulhooked in the pectoral; fin, and a 3 lb F1 hooked in the side of the head - a clear indication that they weren't taking the bait properly. The next hour saw another carp and a couple of F1s, and I cleverly changed from the bunch of four or five deads I had been using on a size 12, down to a size 16 with two maggots, assuming the F1s would perhaps take a smaller bait.
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| John Garner had 6 lb knocked off his weight. 😞 He took his fish on pole but lost a couple. |
With an hour to go a 5 lb carp took the maggots on a size 12, but the last hour saw just liner after liner, on maggot or corn, and not a single fish. I am sure there were lots of carp down there, but I wasn't clever enough to catch them. On peg 11 Mick Ramm eventually found carp close-in, right in front of him, and looked as if he had caught up Trevor Cousins opposite. Later I remembered that before the match Mick said he had had several fish splash in front of him, but I saw only two all day in front of me.
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| A triumphant return for Mick Ramm to the match scene... |
In fact Mick had just 81 lb 14 oz, and Bob Barrett, to my right had 55 lb 12 oz for third, all on a feeder and pellet, which would have been fourth if John Garner hadn't gone overweight in his net. I managed 45 lb 12 oz, which nobody else could beat, and I ended fifth, with top honours to Trevor and Mick, followed by Bob and John.
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| Bob Barrett - third, with every fish taken on his usual feeder gear. |
From then on weights gradually got lower as the scales went along the bank, with a grass carp of about 8 lb boosting Dave Hobbs to 28 lb 8 oz on peg 25. There are just a few left in the lakes, and must be at least 15 years old now. But they didn't do as well as the barbel, which were stocked around the same time.
Tooday I tried mussel and red corn, but I think I should also have tried feeding expanders, as a change from corn, on a short line in front of me - that would possibly have brought in carp and F1s and avoided the roach. Still, you can't do everything, and just two or three more F1s (my best was over 3 lb) would have pushed me to third spotl. So I give myself 6/10.
Next match is back on Six-Island on Sunday with JV. It's my favourite lake at Decoy, and this was my first match there for months. I don't care about the wind or rain - just give me something between 7 and 11.
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| Dave Hobbs, with that big ole grass carp from peg 25. |
THE RESULT
4 Mike Rawson 10 lb 4 oz
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