A couple of evening matches

Last Wednesday saw the penultimate evening match at Whinwhistle. The match was to be held on The Square and with 9 fishing there wasn't a great deal of room. We didn't draw until 5.15pm and with a 5.45pm start it was a bit of a rush to say the least!I drew peg 20 on the spit,a peg that used to have a bit of form but since the changes to the lake I wasn't sure what to expect. I quickly assembled two rigs,one for meat at 5m- 4x12 KC Chimp,0.16-0.14 and a 16 B911 matched to yellow drennan bungee. I then set up a rig for fishing at 10m to my left towards the tree on the corner. This was a 4x10 Scone GAZE on 0.18- size 3 Tubertini 175 matched to orange wilkie hollow. For bait I had some damp micro pellet,a tin of corn and a tin of 6mm meat. I was just about ready for the all-in and cupped in 20 odd cubes of meat and a pinch of pellet at 5m before shipping down to my left with a single grain of corn and a pinch of pellet in the cad-pot. All the while I was flicking 2-3 cubes of meat at 5m and after 5 minutes I dropped in at 5m and took a 1lb skimmer straight away. I then picked up a few smaller skimmers but it was pretty quiet. I then hooked a better fish that tore off and I soon netted a carp of around 2.5lb.

It then went quiet again and I couldn't buy a bite off either line. I notcied the reeds twitching slightly to my left at 4m so dropped in with a grain of corn and a pinch of pellet and caught a similar sized carp straight away. I dropped back in without feed and caught another similar sized fish before things went quiet. I took my final fish off the 10m left line but frustratingly lost two more that I pulled out of trying to get them out of a snag.

The all-out was called and I knew I wouldn't beat Colin opposite as although we had a similar amount of fish he had caught a vital lump of 7-8lb. My fish pulled the scales around to 14lb 8oz which was enough for 2nd place to Colins 22lb. The rest of the lake had fished hard with 7lb enough for third.

Wednesday 19th August saw the final evening match of the year and this time it was on Keepers lake. Again there were 9 fishing but this time we got the draw done just before 5 meaning it wasn't such a rush. There were two 'open water pegs' with all the others having a feature of some sort. I was first into the bag and pulled out peg 6...one of the two without a feature,great!
Peg 6 used to have a good edge to fish but on arrival I found that the post at 10m to the right had been moved to around 4m....double great!! I plumbed along at 11m to my right but it was very snaggy and hard to find a clear spot. I set up a 4x10 Scone Gaze on 0.22 to red J-Range as I wanted to ensure I landed anything I hooked. This was tied to a size 3 Tubertini 175 and shotted with a bulk of 10's. I also plumbed to the post at 4m and found a flat spot with the same depth. My other swim was meat at 5m (usual rig,4x12 chimp,yellow bungee).

The all-in was called and I cupped in a small amount of meat at 5m before shipping out at 11m with a grain of corn and some pellet and meat in the pot. A bite after 5 minute's saw a carp on before it swirled on the surface and the hook pulled. It was very snaggy which didn't help matters. After a while the sun made fishing down the edge impossible so it was to 5m on the meat where I caught a few small skimmers but it was very slow. Andy on peg 10 had caught a few tench and skimmers and was doing OK. With 90 minute's to go I put a full pot of bait at 4m and decided I would give it 20 mins before dropping over it and if I had no signs I would pack up.

With nothing at 11m or 5m I drooped in to my right with an over-soaked 6mm expander and missed a bite instantly....small fish. I dropped straight back in and the same thing happened but this time the strike saw the elastic pouring from the pole...maybe not small fish then! A few minute's later I netted a fat common of around 9lb...nice! While I was playing the fish I was flicking meat in to my right and went back out with a full kinder pot of pellet. After around 3 minutes I had another bite and soon netted an 8lb common. It then went quiet so I fed a full pot of pellet and meat and went back long. With no bites I dropped in at 4m and again a quick bite saw a 5lber in the net. It then went quiet so another pot of bait went in and a few minute's later the float buried and a beautiful 7lb linear mirror was soon in the net with his three mates.

The last half an hour was pretty uneventful and despite re-feeding I didn't manage another bite. Andy netted a fish after the whistle to go with the lump he had caught with half hour to go...all 14lb of it! This would be close.....

I tipped 30lb 8oz on the scales to take the lead. Vic on peg 8 then put 17lb odd on before Andy's two carp and silvers went.....30lb dead! 8oz....hard luck mate!

So that concludes the evening matches for another year. It has been an enjoyable series and quite profitable for me personally. I was pleased to finish with the win and will be back at Whinwhistle on Sunday for the final round of the summer league. It is a no-pressure match as I have already won the league but I will still be going all-out to win on the day.

Whinwhistle Summer League Round 7: 9/8/09

Sunday saw the penultimate round of the Summer League at Whinwhistle. I have been either first or joint first since the first round and going into the penultimate round I was 5 points clear of Andy Shanks in 2nd place. I wasn’t resting on my laurels as I knew that a blow-out for me and a good result for Andy would throw everything wide open. I arrived at the venue at 7.15am…a bit early for the 8.30 draw! I had a good walk around The Islands where today’s match was due to take place. After sitting down to a breakfast it was time for the draw. The two worst pegs have been 9 and 10 due to the fact they are so cramped with little water to fish. As there were a few no shows these were left out. The only two pegs I really wanted to avoid were Peg 1 and Peg 6. I was second into the bag and my lucky left hand pulled out …..peg 6! Not so lucky then! I was very disappointed with the draw, especially as Andy had pulled one of the flyers, peg 11. I felt sure it would be a case of damage limitation today and I just had to finish as close to Andy as possible and hope I could keep the lead going into the last round.

The only weight peg 6 has ever thrown up was in the last round when Nigel had two lumps caught down the edge to his left for 18lb. The worrying thing was there wasn’t anything else to go with them, not ideal in a league match. I just hoped I could snare one or two at some stage. This plan went out of the window when I arrived at the peg as Roger on peg 8 decided he would fish 15m to the far bank which was about 7m to my left, exactly where Nigel had caught in the last round. His argument was that it was opposite his peg (8-THE flyer on the lake) even though he had it in the last round and blew out. I couldn’t be bothered with an argument so decided I would just fill it in at 5m every half hour….if I couldn’t fish my edge then I wanted to make sure he didn’t catch there!! I still set a rig up for there just in case but with Roger fishing so close I knew I wouldn’t catch there (I didn’t even try it through the match).

As you can see in the picture there was an island at 14m straight in front of me. I often find on these small islands you can catch a couple of early fish in the first hour or so and then really struggle. I set up two rigs for fishing to the island, one on the corner and one slightly to the right in front of it. There was a depth variation of around 8 inches so two separate rigs were assembled. Both were 4x12 KC Chimps on 0.16 to a size 2 Tubertini 175. Both were shotted with a bulk of 10’s and one dropper and matched to red vespe bi-core. I also set up a shallow rig although again I didn’t actually use this during the match. I also needed a back up as I knew the island wouldn’t produce throughout the day. I planned on fishing pellet relatively light for the skimmers. I set up a 4x12 Chianti on 0.14-0.12 and an 18 Gama Pellet matched to double 5 slip. I plumbed up two swims where I found the same depth- around 4ft. The first was at 10m straight out and the second was at an angle to my right. I spent a good while plumbing up to ensure the rig was set at dead depth. This rig would also double-up for fishing caster 2 inches over depth at 3m to my left. This was a bit of a throwaway line but would be useful if I was really struggling. Finally I set up a shallow caster rig- 4x10 Chianti,0.12 to a drennan eyed barbless and double 4 slip. This was set at 12 inches. Every rig was slightly over-shotted and brought to a pimple above the service with some Vaseline as it was very bright without a breath of wind. For bait I had a pint of caster, a tin of corn, a tin of 6mm meat some damp micro pellets and some 4mm hookers.

The all-in was called at 10am and I cupped in 3 grains of corn,6 cubes of meat and around 50 micro pellets to the point of the island. I then cupped 1/3 of a cup of micro pellet at 10m. I would only feed the one line initially to gauge the response with the line to the right as a back-up line. I kicked off on a single grain of corn to the island and after 5 minutes of lifting and dropping the float dinked and a 6oz skimmer was soon in the net. I went back out and repeated the process and after one lift and drop the float dinked and a lift saw a few feet of elastic came out. A couple of minutes later I netted a small carp of around 2.5lb- BONUS! After 5 biteless minutes I cupped in a similar amount of bait and went straight back out. After a few minutes of lifting the pimple disappeared and not long after a 2lb common was in the net-DOUBLE BONUS! I then took a 3oz skimmer before it went quiet. After 30 minutes I cupped a pinch of pellet at 10m and a similar amount to the island. After 45 minutes I took a small carp of about 1lb from the island and after an hour I probably had 6lb in the net-not a bad start as everyone else was struggling. As expected the island line died and after feeding it again but remaining biteless I decided to rest the line without feed.

All the while I had been flicking casters at 3m and dropped over on the deck rig. I took a small perch followed by a couple of dumpy roach before this too went quiet. I went out to 10m with a soft pellet and started to pick up a few small skimmers. I changed hooklength to a 16 Gama Pellet as I lost a couple of 3oz skimmers on the way in. This did the trick and I started to put a few fish together- by no means bagging but as everyone seemed to be struggling a bit I was hoping I could sneak a top 5 finish. I attached a small cadpot to the pole and fed a pinch of micros after every fish. This worked for a while but I felt I was overfeeding the peg as I started to get a few iffy bites. I felt it was best to rest the line so it was back on the caster at 3m where I had been regularly flicking in two or three casters every minute or so. After taking a roach on the drop I picked up the shallow rig. First drop saw an 8oz roach followed by 7 roach and rudd between 6-12oz. Nice weight builders! Then like flicking a switch the line died. I got off my box and set up a slightly deeper shallow rig on a longer line but this proved fruitless. I even added a few sections but the fish had disappeared. The 10m line was proving very iffy and I hadn’t managed a bite off either island line….hmm, decision time. I felt sure the fish wanted pellet but even though I had fed pretty small amounts I was pretty sure with the blazing conditions I had overfed the 10m line. This was where the line to my right came in. I cupped in just SIX micro pellets and went over the top with a 4mm expander. After a couple of minute’s of lifting and dropping the float dipped slightly (not fully) and I lifted an inch or so and was pleased to see a bit of elastic come out. A 5oz skimmer was soon in the net. I went back out without feed and after a minute or so the float again dipped and this was a better fish. I gingerly played it to the net where a decent skimmer of some 2lb+ came to the surface before the hook agonisingly pulled….ARGH! I put another 6 micros into the cadpot and went back out. I got into a good rhythm of catching small skimmers feeding (and yes I counted them) 6 micro pellets every other fish- depending on bites. As there was no wind atall I was able to have the float touching the Dacron connector allowing me to lift at the tiniest movement. I then went 5 minutes without a bite and I was considering a re-feed when the float dipped and a lift saw a few feet of elastic came out. I carefully played what I thought was a decent skimmer to the net and was a little surprised when a fat little 2lb common carp popped up. I netted it before it new what was going on- BONUS! I could see Andy on peg 11 and he was struggling big time. I decided to spend the remainder of the match on the negative pellet line picking up the odd small skimmer until the all-out was called at 3pm.

I had 46 fish in the net for an estimated 14-15lb. When the scales got to me Richard Allin on peg 3 was winning with 15lb 10oz. This was going to be close! My silvers net went 9lb 8oz before my four little carp went 8lb 2oz for a 17lb 10oz total giving me the lead. I then followed the scales round all the way and was still winning when we got to Phil Timms on end peg 16. His all silvers net went 10lb odd meaning I had won. I was very surprised with this as I felt sure the pegs I couldn’t see would have had a few but it had fished hard for most. Andy weighed in 8lb odd for 7th on the day which meant I had won the league with a round to spare! After 7 matches I had a total of 16 points with no drops. As you are allowed to drop your worst result and Andy had 20 points including a dropped 7 I now couldn’t be caught- HAPPY DAYS!

I couldn’t believe I had managed to win the league, especially after the draw today. If you had offered me 5th place at the start of the day I honestly would have taken it as it would have meant we were going into the last day on level terms. As it happened it had been a very hard day and by fishing a few areas of my peg in different ways I had managed to winkle out a few fish that proved to be good enough on the day. In the end I was fishing winter tactics with very negative feeding and constantly moving the bait to entice bites.

After heading to the lodge and collecting my winnings (and having a good laugh with Phil James- mostly about sheep and us welsh!) it was time to head home. Everyone was talking about where Roger in peg 8 was fishing and everyone said I should have told him where to go! In trying to cut off my edge he had actually neglected the areas in peg 8 that make it a flyer and caught one small carp for nowhere. As it happened I didn’t need the edge anyway…..

On the top....

I would have posted my blog about the Wednesday evening match at Whinwhistle but it was a bit pants! I drew plum peg 15 that I have always wanted to draw. I set up one method rod as I was sure it would work....it didn’t! With 20 minutes to go I tipped back around 5lb of small skimmers without having a single sign of a carp! I can’t remember the last time I took an early bath and the match was won from peg 12 with 16lb odd.

Greenridge Farm Open- 8/8/09

With nothing on this Saturday I decided to fish the open at Greenridge Farm near Romsey. It is only 4 miles from my house yet I have only fished there once before- back in early April when I managed second place on Canal 1 with 96lb on shallow pellet. I had heard that surface fishing had been dominating recently with one angler in particular, Pete Newman, having the method sussed. He had won the last 3 matches in a row on floating bread with weights of 210lb, 240lb and finally a new venue record of 280lb! Not bad when the fish average around 3lb....

I’ve never fished a match with surface baits so when I heard that it had been banned at Greenridge I chose to fish there as I would always prefer to fish shallow as opposed to on the top as I feel there is generally more skill involved. A day or two before the match I found out that although it had been banned it would not come into place until the end of September. This didn’t change my plans much as I was sure I could compete shallow- although I did take a loaf of bread and a few floating pellets in-case I was being battered by the bread boys.

I arrived at the fishery at around 8am and as always had a walk around. The match was to be held on canals 1 & 2 and they both looked very similar, around 13-14m wide with 11 pegs on each. After meeting Pat (red-hydro) and his mate I tucked in to a few of the free bacon rolls and cups of tea as everyone arrived and awaited the draw. I went into the bag and pulled out peg 13....unlucky for some? Whilst unloading my gear in the car-park I heard somebody mention that Pete Newman had drawn end peg 12 next to me...great!! Pat had drawn two to my right on 15 so the obligatory quid side-bet was soon struck up.

My match plan was quite simple really with two paste lines at 3m and down the edge and pellet shallow across. I hoped to spend the first 30 minutes or so on the paste whilst priming the shallow line with a few 6mm pellets every 20 seconds or so. I set-up a few rigs to cover my options. My two paste rigs were on 0.18 to a size 5 Tubertini 175 and matched to Orange Wilkie hollow. One was for 2 feet of water tight to the bank on my left and the other was for the base of the near slope at an angle of 11 o’clock. I also set-up 3 rigs for across. The first was a malman MTD1 dibber on 0.18 to a size 20 Fox Series 2 with a ban on a hair. This was set at 18 inches. I also set up a Korum blob on the same terminal gear but set at 6 inches. Finally I had a 2ft length of 0.18 line to a size 16 Fox Series 2 for fishing the bread if I had to. All three rigs were matched to red vespe bi-core elastic. For bait I had some paste, a load of 4mm & 6mm pellets, a loaf of bread and some SonuBaits 8mm Oily floaters.

By 10 o’clock the sun was blazing and there wasn’t a breath of wind- hardly ideal fishing conditions. The all-in was called and I moulded a piece of paste around the hook and dropped in at 3m with no feed. The float sat there for all of 5 seconds before disappearing and carp number 1 was on.....for about 5 seconds! I suspect it was foul-hooked but after firing a few pellets across I dropped in at 3m and the same thing happened. I netted a small carp of around 3lb whilst everyone else was still potting in bait. I dropped straight back in and waited for around 30 seconds before a similar sized carp took the bait and was soon in the net with his mate. This is going to be a bagging match! Errr....wrong! Despite introducing a few 4mm pellets after 10 biteless minute’s I hadn’t added another fish after half an hour. Pete to my left was picking up odd fish on the bread and I was falling behind. All the while I had been pinging 6mm pellets across and with no bite on the paste I fed half a cup of 4mm pellets at 3m before picking up the 6 inch shallow rig and shipping across. After a few slaps the blob dipped and a small carp was soon in the net. Despite fishing my heart out pinging,lifting,slapping I couldn’t buy a bite. Pete was now surging ahead on the surface and although I added another small carp on the 18 inch rig I knew I wouldn’t compete the way things were going. To make matters worse Pat was catching fishing tight to the bare bank in his peg. His rig looked to be about 6 inches deep so I was convinced he was catching shallow but I later found out that’s how deep it was right across. He seemed to be suffering with foul-hookers and lost fish but either way my pound looked like it was heading his way! I couldn’t buy a bite across or on the paste at 3m so I plumbed a new paste line straight out at 6m. First drop with no feed saw a quick carp followed by another next drop. However as with the first swim it then died. Although I hadn’t fed anything except the hook bait there was a lot of blowing in the peg but I couldn’t get any signs. I eventually caught another fish across but after 3 hours I had just 7 fish in the net for around 20lb with Pete surely having close to the ton.

With nothing to lose I accepted that I was never going to frame on the pellet I cupped out a dozen floating pellets and a few bits of bread to the far bank. After 5 minutes or so there were a few ripples and after a while the carp were happily slurping away. The sun was blazing down so I decided to shorten the line right down to 10 inches and poke the small piece of crust under the tree. After a few seconds there was a large boil and the pole was yanked down and carp number 8 was soon in the net. Over the final 3 hours I managed to catch faster than Pete and I also found some bigger fish. Although it was too late to catch him I knew 2nd place was up for grabs as Pat had slowed down a bit. I got into a nice rhythm of hook fish, ship back quickly fire out 3 floating pellets, net fish, fire out 3 more, ship half way across, fire out 3 more. By doing this I always had fish waiting and was able to catch quickly. Whenever it went a bit quiet I would cup out 6 or 7 pieces of bread and a few pellets which always brought the fish back. I often found it best to ship out a metre or two from the far bank and hang the bait out of the water. As soon as I saw some movement I would plonk the crust where the fish were as they kept moving along the far bank. It was imperative that the bait was within an inch or two of the rushes, most of time it would be up against them. Something else that was effective was waiting just off the fish after I had cupped bread out. As soon as the last piece vanished I would drop my hookbait in the same place and it was usually taken instantly. When I was just feeding floating pellets this was less important as the bread stood out more. At one point I had a fish tear under the tree and snap me so I stepped up to 0.22 as it makes no difference to presentation when fishing on the top.

The all-out was called and I had finished on 36 carp with 29 coming in the last 3 hours. I guessed on having around 120lb. Whilst it was clear that Pete had won I hoped to nick second but I thought it might be close with Pat. Pete was first to weigh and totalled 174lb....a bad day apparently! After 3 weighs my total was recorded at 120lb 4oz...a new best match weight. I don’t usually fish bagging matches as most of the waters I fish you are looking for 20-60lb to do well. My previous best was an agonising 99lb 15oz,followed by 99lb 8oz,97lb,96lb and two 95lbs,with loads of 80’s to boot! I followed the scales down and Pat took third place with 87lb odd. I was pleased with the result although a little frustrated as I felt I could have won had I fished on top all match.

After packing away it was back to the BBQ area for a refreshing beer and to collect my winnings. Pat ‘didn’t have any change’ so it’s double or quits next time!! All in all an enjoyable day and there is a lot more to fishing on the top than I had previously thought. I will be heading back to Greenridge in a couple of weeks for another go on it as I’m sure I could do 200lb if I fished it for the duration and like all aspects of fishing those that fish it best will come out on top.

Whinwhistle Summer Series- Round 6

After a nice result at Withy farm the day before I was looking forward to the sixth round of the summer league at Whinwhistle- so much so that I was up half an hour before my alarm was due to go off! I arrived at the venue at around 7.30 (it takes 8 minutes from my house!) and duly sat down to the obligatory breakfast. Going in to this round I was 3 points clear of Andy Shanks at the top,with 3rd place quite a way off around 10 points behind 2nd. Come 8.30 we were ready for the draw and I pulled out peg 16. There are atleast 5 or 6 pegs I would have chosen before peg 16 but there were certainly one or two pegs I really wouldn't have wanted! Andy had drawn peg 10- not good. With it only being about 6m wide in places it is a bit like fishing in a broom cupboard and he would have his work cut out from there. To my right on peg 15 was Phil James and a £1 side-bet was soon struck up. I have only ever fished peg 16 once before and that was an evening match a few weeks ago. I managed to win that by fishing the method feeder to the island in front of peg 15 (it wasn't drawn) with 3 carp and a few skimmers for 15lb odd. With Phil on 15 I obviously couldn't fish the same area so had to alter my approach. The first thing I set up was a method rod for throwing up the side of the near island hoping to snare a carp or two. Despite having a side-bet with Phil he kindly lent me an extension off his Tourney-Pro allowing me to reach the small island at 17.5m. (I've got my own extension on order!) The peg was like a snooker table from under my feet right the way across which meant things were kept simple.

I set up 3 rigs to cover my various lines. Firstly I set up a 4x12 Chianti on 0.14-0.12 and an 18 Gama Pellet matched to double 5 slip. This was for fishing pellet and caster if it was quite tough and was set just touching bottom. My 2nd rig was similar but stepped up slightly- a 4x12 KC Chimp on 0.16-0.14 and a 16 B911 matched to yellow drennan bungee. This was set 2 inches over-depth as the wind was steadily getting worse. My final rig was for in case the carp were showing- a 4x12 KC Chimp on 0.16- size 2 Tubertini 175 matched to red vespe bi-core. I had a swim at 5m slightly to my left for fishing meat. This was a bit of a throway line and I didn't actually have a bite here. My 'main' line was at 16m straight in front and my back-up line was to the island at 17.5m. I plumbed all over the peg and had about 3 foot everywhere. For bait I had a pint of caster,a tin of corn,a tin of 6mm meat,some damp micro's,4mm and 6mm pellets along with some 4.5mm expanders and some mini white boilies for the method.

The all-in was called at 10am and I cupped in some pellet and a few casters at 16m before flicking a few bit's of meat to my left at 5m. I then baited up the method feeder and cast to the front of the far island some 25m away. After a couple of minute's Phil was into a carp fishing at long range up the side of the other island and although he lost the fish he was into another on the next cast. Meanwhile after 5 casts in twenty minute's all I had to show was a small 'rattle'- probably from silver fish. I came off the method and shipped out to 16m on the lighter rig as the wind had eased a bit. I was getting instant bite's on 4mm expander but they were mostly 2-3oz skimmers and 16m is a long way to go for fish of that size,especially as 1 in 2 would fall off. After an hour I had less than a pound in the net and despite the wind now howling from left to right I had been pinging the odd cube of meat at 17.5m. It was time to go over the long line with the 0.16 rig and a single grain of corn. First drop saw a skimmer of some 6oz and next drop-in the float barely settled before disappearing and a 3lb carp was soon in the net. I decided to clip on a small cad-pot and fed 4 bits of meat and shipped back out. The wind was making things difficult and at times I actually had to float the pole on the surface in order to keep the rig still. In the next 15 minute's I added a 2lb carp and a 1lb tench but I was finding things increasingly difficult in the wind.

After around 2 hours I added a small 1lb mirror and a couple of skimmers but I felt the line was going away from me. I fed half a pot of pellet and meat at 17.5m but had great difficulty presenting a bait there. With the method not working for me I switched to the straight lead with a 12 inch hooklength,16 GURU QM1 and an 8mm pellet. With 2 fifteen minute casts producing nothing it was decision time. By this time Phil must have had getting on for 20lb and the quid was looking like it was already his. However,I had to focus on the league and ensure I got good points so fed half a cup of micro pellet and caster at 10m as I wouldn't be able to catch the small skimmers fast enough at 16m. After spending 10 biteless minutes at 5m on the meat I baited up with a 4mm expander on the chianti rig and shipped out to 11m. I was pleased to see the float settle and disappear straight away and a 3oz skimmer was soon on the way. At this time I also started to loose feed caster at 5m to my right. In the next 35 minute's I caught 28 skimmers and although they were small they were coming quite fast and by feeding a pinch of micro pellet every 3rd fish and shortening the line rig down to two inches I was hitting almost every bite. I could hear that the venue was fishing very hard so kept plugging away. I hooked a lump of a fish that tore off at a rate of knots before the rig pinged back- almost certainly foul hooked and better it come off straight away then waste a load of time playing it on light gear. With an hour to go the wind dropped slightly so I cupped in a pinch pf pellet at 10m and went out to 17m where I didn't manage a bite.

It was now decision time, do I spend the last 50 minute's sat on the lead with my fingers crossed or do I keep putting the small skimmers in the net? I chose the latter as although I knew I wouldn't catch first place I hoped that I could make a top three finish. The trouble with peg 16 is I could only see two other anglers so it was a bit of a gamble. A quick try with meat saw a longer wait for a bite from a similar sized skimmer so I stuck with the expander. I kept picking off the skimmers and also managed a few dumpy roach at 5m on the caster. The all-out was called at 3pm and I reckoned on having around 12lb in the net.

I was first to weigh and my net of silvers went 8lb 4oz with the three carp only going 6lb giving me a 14lb 4oz total. Phil then put 25lb odd on the scales to comfortably take the lead. I decided to follow the scales round and soon realised it had fished hard for most with mainly low single figure weights. We got to Andy and his 8lb 12oz took 3rd spot before Nigel on golden peg 6 had two lumps fors 18lb odd,knocking me into 3rd. There were no more weights until Jumper Collins on peg 3 put 10lb odd on the scales to take 4th spot,crucially knocking Andy into 5th.

I was happy with 3rd place and would have gladly taken that if it had been offered when I drew peg 16. The decision to target the small skimmers with 2 hours to go proved to be the right one as although I might have snared a carp on the lead it would have been risky,especially as I didn't even manage a liner when trying it occasionally throughout the day. After eventually packing away I made way to the lodge to pick up my winnings. With just two matches to go I am now 5 points clear of Andy as I am on 15 points with him on 20,although we can both drop our worst result( both 5 points). I also have a weight advantage of some 40lb or so which could prove decisive overall. I'm not fishing atall next weekend as I'm in ireland but if the weather isn't too bad I'm hoping i can sneak in an evening match on Wednesday.

Witherington farm Open- Barnmoor lake- 25/7/09

After not fishing atall for almost three weeks I was raring to go this weekend,especially with the prospect of a match double-header. After umming and arring for a while about where to fish I eventually settled on the open at Witherington Farm on Barnmoor Lake. This is the only lake I have never fished at the venue, and speaking to a few people before hand that wasnt necessarily a bad thing! I called up on the Thursday and booked myself and Nick White in, and with 15 anglers fishing the 20 peg lake it shouldn't be a bad match. I arrived at the venue at around 8 o'clock and as always had a quick wander round to get a mental picture of where I would like to draw. There is a central island which would obviously be worth a chuck on certain pegs, and the only real flier I could see was peg 16 that had the island within pole reach (16m or so). Whilst wandering around with Nick we heard a shout of 'morrrning chaps' from peg 9 on Sellwood where Nick Lund (nicky-the-bricky) was setting up. It turned out he had a day booked with England International Des Shipp. (I later heard someone on Barnmoor remark 'look over there,it's Des Shipp with a sinking ship'). After chatting with Nicky for 10 minute's or so we headed to the cafe in readiness for the draw. Into the bucket I went and out came.....peg 5. It didn't mean alot to me but I soon found out I was in the middle of the island on the near bank.

Arriving at the peg I surveyed my options and decided on a few different approaches. After borrowing Nick's extension I plumbed up at 17.5m (more like 16.5 with the short 4) towards the island,and although I was still some 3m or so off I felt sure I would catch the odd fish here. The peg was also very flat which made things easier. My rig for the long line was a 4x12 KC Chimp on 0.16- Size 2 Tubertini 175 matched to red vespe bi-core. I also set up a line at 13m where I had the same depth but would be predominantly looking for skimmers. For this line I assembled a 4x12 KC Chimp,0.16-0.14 and a 16 B911 matched to yellow Drennan Bungee. I decided to use 0.14 as there was every chance of picking up a carp on this line. My final pole line was the margin to my left. The next angler was pretty close but there was actually a spare peg between us so I set up a 4x10 Scone GAZE on 0.18- Size 3 Tubertini 175 and Wilkie orange. Finally I set up a small inline method feeder with an 0.18 hooklength for fishing to the island. For bait I had a tin of corn,a tin of 6mm meat,some damp micro pellets and skretting pellets in sizes 4, 6 and 8mm. I also had a tub of 8mm Ringers boilies for the method.

The all-in was called at 10.15 and I cupped in some meat and pellet at 13m before casting the method tight to the island. I decided not to feed the 17.5m line until I went on it as I was expecting things to be pretty tough. After 6 casts in 30 minute's without so much as a liner I dropped in at 13m with a 6mm cube of meat and went 15 minute's without a bite. Hmmm....not exactly going to plan!Nobody was really catching bar the odd small skimmer so I put 4 cubes of meat in a cad-pot and shipped out to 17m with a single grain of corn. After 3 or 4 minute's of lifting and dropping the float dipped and yards of elastic streamed from the pole. The fish kited to my right and actually caught the line of the guy to my right who was fishing the method to the island. After a lot of hassle I eventually slipped the net under a plump 7lb mirror (and a method feeder!) I have to say the bloke was very good about it all, I believe his name is Mayo?Anyway,cheers mate! I then repeated the process but couldn't buy another bite and things were pretty grim all around. I felt the method wasn't right so switched to a small cage feeder with a 12 inch hooklength and a single grain of corn. After a few minute's the tip flew round and I soon had a 2lb skimmer in the net. A few casts later and I added a small carp of around 2lb. I then added a couple of small carp and although it wasn't fast and furious I was catching more than anyone else on the lake. After a while the feeder line died and with no signs on any of the pole lines I decided to change tactics.

I switched to a bomb with an 8mm pellet and would constantly ping 2 or 3 6mm pellets over the top. I attached a new hooklength containing a size 16 Guru QM1. I have heard great things about these new hooks so was looking forward to trying them. After 5 minute's the top flew round out of the blue and I lifted into resistance before the fish fell off after a second or two. Nick had told me that he was yet to lose a fish on the QM1's so I was a little surprised. The regular feeding was bringing a few fish into the peg although I had to get my cast within 6 inches of the island in order to get bite's. It took a lot of discipline to retrieve the cast when it fell a foot or so short but it was worth it as I picked up a few smaller carp. I lost another two fish on the QM1's before switching back to Fox Series 2's. I still lost a couple of fish on these and I'm not quite sure what was happening. There was also an underwater obstacle as twice the tip flew round and the hooklength was sheared clean around half way along. I was getting quite frustrated but managed to pick up the odd fish. I went around 40 minute's without a sign at one point so scaled down to an 18 PR36 and a 6mm pellet and within minute's I added a 4lb ghost carp.

Fordy was also at Withy for the day as he was fishing with Des and Nicky and wandered past and kindly bought me a cold can of coke from the cafe- cheers mate! He said that I was winning the lake and there was about an hour or so left. Despite rotating all my line's I didn't manage to add another fish,although I did lose one more which was very frustrating. The all-out was called and I wasn't in the best of moods. I felt sure I had thrown the match away through lost fish and the chap to my left had caught a lot of skimmers and my clicker was on 20lb exactly.

After packing away the scales got to me and the guy to my left weighed 21lb exactly. I was therefore surprised when my carp and two skimmers went 26lb 12oz. The clicker only works if you click the correct amount of times! I followed the scales round and there was a 24lb followed by Nick weighing 20lb exactly. He had struggled all before switching to the bomb and tea-bag late on to catch a couple of carp. He had lost a lump which would prove costly as he was beaten by a pound into 5th and they paid the top 4. This was particularly frustrating for me as we split our winnings when fishing together. As it turned out my 26.12 was enough for the win followed by 24,22,21 something and 21. It had been hard for most but by ringing the changes I had managed to just about do enough.

I headed to the cafe and picked up £90 before giving half to Nick and heading home. I don't think I fished a particularly great match as I lost alot of fish and I'm at a loss as to why. Still,I'd rather fish poorly and win than fish like a pro and come nowhere!

On a roll.....

Whinwhistle Summer League- 5/7/09

Sunday saw the 5th round of the summer series at Whinwhistle. After four matches I was top of the league but only two points ahead of Andy Shanks who was hot on my heels in second place. There is then a big gap to 3rd place so it's looking very much like it will be a two-horse race. Arriving at the venue at around 7.45 I quickly demolished a breakfast before paying my pools and getting ready for the draw. We were to be on Keepers lake this week which is generally quite fair although there are one or two pegs that are far more likely to hold a few carp. I dipped my lucky left hand into the draw-bag and out came peg 24.....a flier!! It is one of the pegs that usually holds carp as it had a large bed of lillies straight out at 14m with a fair bit of open water to the right. The only trouble is it can be a bit of a tackle graveyard as most people lose fish in the pads. Andy drew it last time and lost 5 carp shallow in the pads before catching 3 on the deck in the last 30 minute's to win the lake with 14lb odd. He was placed on peg 6 this time which has a very decent margin to fish and I knew he would get points from there.

As soon as I drew the peg I made the decision to fish 'proper gear', as I wanted to give myself the best chance of landing everything I hooked- far too often people fish too light to features only to get smashed to pieces and then wonder why. Commercials hold a good colour through the summer months and I personally don't feel line diameter make's that much difference-always better to err slightly on the heavy side when fishing to features. Therefore the first two rigs I set up were for fishing against the pads at 14m. The first rig was a 4x12 scone Jubleez on 0.22 to a size 3 Tubertini 175. This was shotted with a small bulk of 10's and one dropper, set to fish 3 inches over-depth in four feet of water. The second rig was for fishing shallow- a 4x10 Scone AM wellardz on 0.22 to a size 16 Fox Series 2 with a band on a hair. Both rigs were set to red J-Range elastic (beastie stuff!). As it was a league match I couldn't rely entirely on the carp so also planned to fish for the silvers at 3m. I set 3 rigs for here- a 4x12 KC Porth on 0.12- 18 Gama pellet matched to double 5 and two shallow rigs- 4x10 Chiantis on 0.12- 18 Drennan eyed barbless matched to double 4 slip. As I had a bit of room to my right I also set up an edge rig at 8m. There were a lot of cabbages under the water in close and the only clear spot I could find was around 5m out- not ideal but atleast it was clear and flat. The rig for this line was a 4x10 Scone GAZE on 0.18- size 3 Tubertini 175 and Wilkie Orange elastic. Finally I set up a pellet waggler rod as there were one or two carp cruising about down to my right. Standard set-up: 11ft carbonactive,Daiwa 2503CU with 3lb Maxima,0.18 trace to a size 20 Fox Series 2 with a band on a hair. For bait I had two tins of 6mm meat,a tin of corn,some 6mm pellets,a pint of caster and some worm.

The all in was called at 10am and everyone began potting bait into their swims. I've been doing well lately by loose-feeding as oppsed to potting in so catapulted 3 bits of meat to the pads and went out with a single piece of corn. After feeding another 3 pieces of meat and lifting the rig the float buried and a lift was met with solid resistance. By shipping back quickly the fish was in open water before it knew what was going on and a minute later I had a 5lb common in the net while everyone else was still potting in- nice! I then fired another 3 pieces of meat out and repeated the process. After 2 minute's or so the float buried and again I lifted into resistance. This clearly wasn't a carp but the 2lb skimmer that was soon in the net was very welcome! I quickly fed some caster at 5m and around 10 cubes of meat to my right before catapulting another 3 pieces to the pads. I shipped back out and after around 5 minute's the float dipped before disapearing and again a lift was met with firm resistance. The fish sat there for a second or so in which time I had a few metres of pole behind me and had the fish in open water. Three or four minute's later a scrappy 6lb common was in the net. 10lb is always my target weight at Whinwhistle for good points,with 15lb usually needed to win. I was now 15 minute's into the match with around 13lb in the net- not a bad start!

The next 30 minute's saw a few missed bite's and a few small skimmers. Although I was using pretty crude gear the big hook meant I wasn't bumping the skimmers and had a couple of 1lb+ fish and a few smaller 6-8oz fish. I was happy to be adding weight to the net although I was suprised I hadn't had any more carp after 2 hours. I noticed a few carp swirling down to my right and had been pinging the odd pellet down there. A quick look on the caster-line yielded a few small perch but they weren't really worth fishing for. I decided to continuously feed 3 or 4 casters on this line hoping to get some of the better roach shallow. I had a quick try with shallow meat to the pads but only managed a few suicidal rudd. I was reluctant to spend too long shallow as that is how most people lose fish in the peg whereas I had hooked two on the deck and got them both out without any fuss. As I had been regularly pinging meat to the pads I decided to give the 14m line a rest and have a look on the pellet wag to my right. It was hard work as there wasn't a breath of wind but after continous casting and feeding I eventually hooked one as the waggler splashed down but frustratingly the hook pulled after around 20 seconds. Something didn't feel right and I suspect the line had caught over the carps back. With 2 hours remaining I decided to try the method feeder as there were clearly a few fish down there. It was already set-up in my ready-rod bag so I quickly dampened some micro's and attached a new hooklength (0.18-Fox series 2:20 with a spike on a hair).

The first cast down to my right was biteless as I was on the phone to Andy Shanks finding out how the top end was fishing- not well by all accounts! After re-casting I didn't even have time to put the rod in the rest as a carp took the 8mm white boilie within seconds. A few minute's later and a nice 7lb common was in the net. No more fish showed on the line so it was time to try the caster line where I had been religiously feeding 2 or 3 casters every few seconds. First drop in and the double 4 slip was streaming out of the pole as a 12oz roach hooked itself. Second drop in and I had a rudd of some 10oz followed by a few dumpy roach. Although it wasn't fast and furious I was happy to be adding more weight to the net.

I had completely rested the 14m line as I felt the constant feeding of meat had brought too many small skimmers into the peg. I shipped out with a single grain of corn and was pleased to see the float sit there for a few minute's without being knocked around. After 5 minute's I catapulted 3 or 4 cubes of meat out and lifted the rig a foot or so out of the water. Within a few seconds of settling the float buried and another carp was on. With little fuss it was soon in the net at around 4lb and the rest had clearly worked. No more bite's were forthcoming so I fed another small amount of meat before dropping in down the edge where I had been feeding small amounts every 20 minute's or so throughout. After 5 biteless minute's I decided to sack this line and spend the remaining 40 minute's fishing to the pads. I added a few more skimmers for around 2-3lb but unfortunately no more carp when the all-out was called at 3pm.

From what I could see it had fished hard for most and I was pretty sure I had done OK. My silvers net went 9lb 8oz before my four carp went 21lb odd giving me a 32lb 4oz total. I followed the scales round and it had fished harder than I thought with most people weighing around 7 or 8lb. Phil Timms on peg 14 put 15lb something on the scales which was enough for 2nd place until we got to Andy. His 2 carp and a few silvers went 16lb something which was eventually enough for second. It transpired that he had a carp jump out of his keepnet so it would have been a bit harsh if he had been ounced into 3rd!

So all in all an enjoyable day and I doubled the weight of 2nd place which can't be bad can it! I felt I fished a tidy match as I didn't lose any fish to the pads and caught off a couple of line's. I could have done with Andy dropping a few points but that's something I can't influence- I can't do anymore than winning on the day. Another advantage was topping up the weight difference between us which now stands at around 40lb- quite significant at Whinwhistle as there's every chance it will come down to weight between us.

I seem to be on a bit of a roll lately where everything goes to plan and I'm winning matches quite comfortably. I think alot of this is down to feeding. I have been feeding small amounts of bait regularly as opposed to dumping it in and it certainly hasn't done any harm. I've had 117lb of fish in the last 3 matches at Whinwhistle which is almost unprecedented and I feel sure alot of that is down to the feeding. I'm hoping to get back there for the Wednesday evening match- let's hope the run continues!

A New Venue Record.....

Whinwhistle Evening Match- 1/07/09

With the glorious weather we've been having these past few days I had no hesitation in booking in for the mid-week evening match at Whinwhistle. I managed to get away from work at 4 and after heading home to pick up my gear (and the mrs!) I pulled into the fishery gate's at around 4.50pm. The weather was boiling with temperatures of 32 degrees and bright sunshine. The match was to be held on 'The Square'- the first lake you pass on driving into the fishery. The lake used to be connected to 'The Islands' until it was separated last Autumn with the use of boulders in wire cages. The lake was then netted and all carp removed with the idea being that it would be a good silver fish water. Come 5pm and we were ready for the draw. I wasn't really that fussed where I drew as it's a pretty fair lake and I would fish pretty much the same way on every peg. My hand went into the bag and out came peg 20. It always used to be the best peg on the lake as it had a good edge to the left that always held carp. I had heard rumours that a few carp where still in the lake so I fancied it for a few. The last evening match on there was won with 14lb which is a pretty good weight....until I found out it also included a 10lb carp!!

I was just leaving the lodge when the call of 'RE-DRAW' rang out. There had been a mix up with the pegs so it was time to do it again. This time I came out with peg 23- opposite 20. I've never known it be pegged in a match so wasn't sure what to make of it. Upon arriving at the lake it was clear that somebody had left the back door open...there were carp cruising everywhere!! I had always done well on The Square fishing pellet very light for the 4-6oz skimmers. After seeing the amount of fish near the surface I decided to change my approach and target the better fish (that weren't supposed to be in there!) After setting down my box and making sure my girlfriend was comfy it was decision time. I wasn't sure that the fish basking would be interested in feeding so decided to cover my options. Firstly I would fish meat at 5m at an angle of 10 o'clock. My 2nd line would be straight out at 13m where I hoped I might get a few shallow. My final line would be down the edge to my right at 7m where there was a bit of grass hanging into the water. My 5m deck rig was a 4x12 KC Chimp on 0.16-0.14 and a 16 B911. It was shotted with a bulk of no:10's and a single dropper and matched to yellow Drennan Bungee. The Square is a very flat lake with depths of around four feet. At 13m it was only around 3 inches deepr than at 5m. This was perfect as I could use the same rig on both line's- just touching bottom at 13m and 3 inches overdepth for the meat line. I always prefer to fish pellet just touching and meat just over so the rig was absolutely perfect for both line's. I also set up two shallow rigs- Malman MTD1 dibbers on 0.14-16 Drennan eyed barbless with a band on a hair. One was set at 12 inches and one at 2ft- both were matched to yellow Drennan Bungee. Finally I set up my edge rig. I had around 3ft of water a metre or so from the bank- just on the edge of the grass that was hanging down. For this line I set up a 4x10 Scone GAZE on 0.16 to size 2 Tubertini 175. This was shotted with a bulk of 10's and matched to red vespe bi-core. For bait I had a tin of 6mm meat,a tin of corn,some damp 4mm pellets and some hookers.

On Sunday I found that the fish didn't want bait dumped in, and pinging small amounts regularly was far more effective. With this in mind I decided that I wouldn't feed any bait with the pole pot,preferring to either feed by hand or catapult. The all-in was called and I flicked 6 pieces of meat in at 5m, the same down the edge with a pinch of corn and started to fire pellet out at 13m. I dropped in at 5m with a single cube of meat and followed the rig down. No bite's were forthcoming so I flicked another 3 pieces in and dragged the rig slightly to the right. This did the trick as the float buried and an 8oz skimmer was soon in the net. I flicked another 3 pieces of meat out and again waited for a bite. I repeated the process of slowly dragging the rig and as soon as the float settled it dipped and a gentle lift was met with solid resistance. The fish slowly moved out of the peg as I flicked in another 3 cubes of meat.




A few minute's later I slipped the net under a pristine 6lb ghost carp- Nice! I then threw another pinch of meat and corn down the edge,followed by 3 more bits of meat at 5m. All the while I had also been constantly pinging 4mm pellet out to 13m. I stayed on the 5m line for the another 30 minute's taking a few small skimmers but as nobody else was catching I was happy to be topping up the net.

With 45 minute's of the match gone I felt it was time to rest the 5m line and try out long where I had been feeding every two minute or so. First drop on a 4mm expander saw a 2oz bottle-top skimmer. With better fish about I decided to slip on a grain of corn. As soon as the float settled it kept on going and a flying 2lb skimmer was soon in the net.



A few smaller skimmers long were followed by a couple of missed bite's prompting me to pick up the shallow rig. This just saw the bait being ragged by the bit's so I came off the long line but kept feeding it. Back at 5m and two missed bite saw me spread the bulk out as I felt there were one or two fish off the bottom. As I followed the bait down I had a bite and a gentle lift saw a proper bream come flying out of the water! It was soon safely in the net and at a good 4lb it was a nice bonus. No more bite's on the near line saw me back out long where I had a quck run of four 12oz-1lb skimmers.

With an hour to go I guess I must have had around 18lb in the net and nobody else had really caught except Andy Franks on Peg 17 who had caught a few skimmers. I had been regualrly feeding the edge with small amounts of bait every 5-10 minute's and it was now time to give it a go.


I layed the rig in with a single grain of corn and after around 30 seconds the float buried and a carp was on. As the fish swam out of the peg I threw in around 10 cubes of meat and 3 grains of corn.




After 5 minute's or so I netted a carp of around 6lb and flicked a few more pieces of meat down the edge. I repeated the process and again after around 30 seconds the float vanished and another 6lb carp was soon in the net. Whilst playing the fish I flicked a bit more meat down the edge as they seemed to be responding to the regular feed.




At this stage I decided to feed a new line at 13m down the edge to my left. I wanted to see if the fish would respond to potting the bait in so fed a full pot of corn,meat and pellet. All the while I was still feeding my 5m line as I wasn't sure if the edge would dry up. After 5 biteless minute's down to the right I fed a small handfull of meat and then swang around to the long edge line to my left. No bite's had me back on the right hand line and after a few seconds the float vanished and another carp was on.






This fish was again a good 6lb and I was starting to put a decent weight together. I was now into a rhythm of feed,lay rig in,hook fish,feed,net fish,feed.....

What was particularly pleasing was that I hadn't missed a bite or foul-hooked a fish- every fish was square in the top lip. I dropped back in and again took a similar sized fish straight away and repeated the routine-netting the fish a few minute's later. Next drop in saw no signs so I fed another small amount of meat and a few bits of corn before swinging around to my left at 13m. One missed bite was all I had to show so it was back down to my right with 15 minute's to go. As soon as the bait hit the deck the float buried and another carp was on.


After netting the fish (again around 6lb) I dropped back in and immediately hooked another. After safely adding another 6lb to the keepnet I checked my watchand saw there was just 5 minute's left. Time for one more? YOU BET!! After a bit more feed the float dipped followed by the familiar sight of elastic pouring from the pole. After 5 seconds or so the rig pinged back! Even though I knew I had comfortably won the match I was still annoyed (that's the competitive streak in me!) I dropped back in with just two minute's remaining and as the clock ticked down the float vanished with just 30 seconds remaining. Another carp was on and my final 6lb was added to the net some 5 minute's after the whistle- a beautiful fighting fit common.











The all-out was called and I reflected on the match. It was one of those days where everything went to plan. I lost just one fish and caught from all 3 of my line's. I began packing away and when the scales got to me Andy Franks was winning with 22lb from peg 17. It was clear I had more than that and with my silvers going 11lb odd and my seven carp going 42lb odd (I told you they were all around 6lb!) I had a total of 53lb 8oz. I was even more pleased to find that this was a new venue record beating the previous best of 49lb that had stood for 4 or 5 years- and that was from a 5 hour match! I was even more pleased when I was reminded that the previous record holder was my old mate Andy Shanks....a quick phone call was soon in order!!









After packing away I headed to the lodge to collect my winnings and savour a well earned cup of tea. I was pleased with my decision to loosefeed as opposed to cupping in as it was clearly the right approach on the day. Other anglers that cupped in either caught very little or foul-hooked a single fish. By spreading the feed out a bit and regularly having bait hitting the water meant that by the time I went down the edge the fish were lined up. I think too often anglers simply pot bait in without giving it much thought as it's what they always do. Some days it is the right thing to do but on many occasions spreading things out a bit is far more effective.


The one small thought niggling away was should I have gone down earlier? It's hard to say as I could have gone down half an hour earlier and taken a quick fish but then spooked them out of the peg. By the time I went down at 8pm they had thrown caution to the wind and were feeding confidently,meaning I took 6 fish in the last hour.


On the drive home my girlfirend asked is it always that easy?! She has now sat behind me three times and I've had two firsts and a second....she's adamant that she's my lucky charm!!