Was my journey really necessary? Jay, Pidley

 Peg 19
I hadn't fished Jay for a long time, but with a North-Easterly forecast, with rain later, I fancied a back wind. So, drive in to the car park, dip nets using the new Matrix net dip bag; leave it to drain; mask on; and up to the shop for the draw. Tim, standing behind the counter, drew me 19 - Back Wind! Yippee. I was so pleased I nipped into the cafe for a mug of tea. I know how to celebrate in style!

Tim draws for me - and a picture ensures I can remember what peg I'm on!

So I drove to my peg in plenty of time and it was fairly calm, with a ripple up the arm to my left, from peg 20 upwards. To my  right on 18 was Derek Hayes (though I thought it was Brian York, and I probably called him Brian several times). And we both started across, at 13 metres.

To be honest that was virtually the sum total of my excitement. I fished bread punch, moving from mid-depth to the bottom, in about two-and-a-half-feet of water, and hit my first fish after an hour. It came off. Half an hour later I managed to land one of about 1 lb 8 oz. meanwhile Derek had also lost one, and landed one about 5 lb.

Peg 19, giving me a nice back wind and plenty of room...but not much in the way of fish! 

I get liners

Then I had a spell of about 90 minutes when I would get a liner every five minutes. Most were slow dips, but six times the float shot under. On each occasion I lifted, felt nothing, and the bread was still on. It seemed that if the bait was on the bottom I had liners, but when I lifted in shallower they stopped. A couple of times I tried resting the swim and fished maggot just in front of the platform for half-a-dozen tiny perch; I also tried expander at the bottom of the far shelf, which never brought a single touch.

Then, an hour before the end I hit another fish on bread which I played for about three minutes. It was clearly foulhooked and never came within several yards of the net before eventually the hook pulled out. Derek then landed another carp around 5lb.

To my left Ray Poolman (Raymondo) on 21 had one carp on a Method feeder, and the angler to his left had two. Things were dire. But at least when it rained it was back wind for me.

John Pratt still fishing matches at 90,  had 33 lb 8 oz.

The weigh in
Will Hadley, who hadn't weighed in on Peg 16, told me, as the scales came round, that Alan Owen had weighed 95 lb 9 oz on Peg 11. I was astonished, but he explained that it's regarded as the best Winter peg on the lake - back wind on the South-Western end, into which the wind was blowing.

I took the opportunity to photograph John Pratt on 45, who weighed 33 lb 8 oz - at the age of 90! (But don't say I told you how old he is). 

If you haven't weighed...
Derek next to me totalled 10 lb 6 oz for his two carp, and for my carp and perch I was given 2 lb - and that was generous. Most of those who didn't weigh had a carp or two, but I dislike not weighing (I think it's a bit of an insult to the others), and will normally only do it if it is inconveniencing the weighers-in in heavy rain. After all, as Kevin Ashurst says: "If you haven't weighed, you haven't catched." I came no-where.

Runner-up Vic German, with 77 lb 14 oz on bread.

Interesting that Vic German, behind me on 42, had carp at 13 metres (but holding his 14-metre section) on bread, but could catch only with the bread one inch off bottom. Like me, he had liners when it was on bottom, but they stopped when he put it six inches off bottom. So he increased the depth one inch at a time until he started hooking them. He took 77 lb 14 oz for second place.

On Peg 13 Roy Whincup fished cat meat at towp-two-plus-one all day. His first fish came ten minutes after the start and he then waited for three-and-a-half hours for his next one. But he caught enough for 48 lb 1 oz and fourth place. I hadn't tried cat meat, but as Roy said, it's the time of year when you think about giving it up. Still, the waiting game worked for him.

I'm committed to the 14-match Winter League at Pidley, and have a horrible feeling that if it fishes like it did this time, I could be in bottom place time after time.

The result, with pegs 11, 42, 28, 13 and 5 taking the top places.

My next match is Sunday on Willows at Decoy. We're on Pegs 16 to 35, and I'd like 23, 24, 25, 27 or 29, with 33 as a second-choice.