I managed third in a cool wind - Decoy, Cedar

Cedar Lake, Decoy, peg 8

There were 12 in this Fenland Rods match, and I would have liked pegs 1 to 5 or 26 back to about 22, at the car park end of this strip. But 8 stuck to my hand, and as I walked to my peg I realised that 24, 25 and 26 were all pegged and occupied, and I mentally accepted that fourth was probably the best I could do, as these three pegs traditionally produce well.

A dull day, with occasional sun, but no ripple near this side bank.

There was a very cool South-Westerly over my back, but although it meant I was probably warmer than those opposite it meant there was no ripple for those of us on this bank, and the wind tends to push a margin rig out, rather than into the shallower water, which is almost always preferable. So I started on the Method, while pinging out 6mm pellets to six metres. After 40 minutes with only liners I went out on the pole to six metres, with a 6mm expander fished on the bottom. Immediately I foulhooked a fish which came off.

Over the next half hour I took two small F1s then, having had several liners, switched to a light strung-out rig fished a foot off the bottom. First put-in a 3 lb F1 took, and I had cracked it! Err, no – inevitably it was a false alarm and another 30 minutes trying all depths proved fruitless. After two hours I had about 10 lb, and went to the left deep margin with a bunch of dead reds over read reds and hemp. This didn’t produce even a bite, so I went back to six metres.

Me with two double-figure fish.

There I lost four fish in succession; came in to the left margin, and lost another. Carp – 5; Me – nil. But the next carp of 8 lb stuck, only for me to lose another next drop-in. They were probably all foulhooked, and I could see some anglers on the opposite bank also losing fish. But slowly, very slowly, the fish started to feed properly, and several carp to 98 lb came over the next hour mainly from the left margin. I had about 45 lb when Kevin, opposite, went for his third net.

A switch to the right margin produced two double-figure fish quickly to cat meat over pellet and corn, then I foulhooked a 5 lb barbel, which ended up in my landing net...eventually. I concentrated here and in the next 45 minutes managed to hit another double-figure carp foulhooked near the tail which somehow, through gritted teeth, I managed to land, and then a couple of smaller fish.

Alan, with sunglasses because
the sun came out at the end!

With 20 minutes to go I went for a third net – though now both Kevin Lee opposite on 17 and Tony Nisbet on 24 had four nets and I had revised my best possible result to being top on my bank of six anglers. On my return I dropped in and immediately hit another fish on a bunch of deads that felt very big; but after a couple of minutes the hook pulled out. I think it was properly hooked. Just one more fish came on the last cast, a 2 lb 10 oz ide to corn which was lonely in that last net.

I was surprised, when I went to the car to get my extra net, that only Kevin and Tony appeared to have more than two nets out. So that made me wonder whether I might have managed unexpectedly to scratch third spot. I was top weight down to me with 98 lb 13 oz, having managed to not go over the 50 lb limit, though the first two nets were perilously close, at 48 lb 14 oz and 47 lb 5 oz.

Callum, in corner peg 13. He's
 a neat angler and a neat writer -
just look at his results sheet.

Tight at the top!

Then round to Kevin who weighed 168 lb 8 oz, taken on cat meat, to lead the match, and he looked to be the winner. But in a nail-biting weigh-in Tony on 24 managed to pip Kevin by just 13 oz. Tony started out at about eight metres with pellet but, like me, couldn’t keep the fish feeding, and then came in to the deep-water margins taking most of his fish on corn. And he lost four really big fish one after the other.  John Garner, next door, surprisingly hadn’t managed to find the fish, and Mike Rawson on 26, who hasn’t been in the club long, took 38 lb, mainly on feeder. So I finished third.

Mel Lutkin with the best fish of
the match, weighing 14 lb 5 oz.

I noticed when I walked round to the opposite bank top watch the weigh-in and take pictures, that although it was even cooler there, the ripple did look nice, and I fancy that if the wind had moved round and given me some, I might have caught more. When there are 10 lb-plus fish in your swim you don’t need many to really give you a big weight in a short time. The fish came late, but not quickly enough for me. So I suppose third spot and top on that bank was a good result, really.

Kev with a 13 lb 15 oz mirror.
 "That's the way to do it!"

The result,

Tony lifting one of  his nets out.

The winner, Tony.

This barbel was almost 5 lb.

Mike - loves his fishing!

Next match is a rod-and-line float-only on Kingsland Silver Lake. If the water is still down it will be difficult, as the margins are shallow and clear, and I wouldn’t expect fish to come in close unless it’s a warm day. I will have pellet waggler ready.