Sunday December 23rd

I have to admit, after missing last Sunday I was looking forward more than usual to getting out on the bank! It's been nice and mild too, with temperatures in to double figures - I chose to try and ignore the wind which woke me at 5am!

When I drew the current form pegs nearest the car park had all gone, and I pulled out peg 66 on the end of the island. I had mixed feelings about this - it's normally a decent peg all year round, but it's recent form has been poor, and I struggled off it not too long ago, catching just a few roach.

While the wind was quite bad, unlike last time I could manage to hold 13m of pole to fish the bottom of the slope from the island. The wind was awkward at times, but by using a longer than usual line above the float, and two no8 back-shot halfway and holding them, I could get a steady presentation on my rig. A .4gr NG Decker on .15 mainline to a .125 hook-link and a size 16 B611 was the rig, matched to Preston 11h lakky. With a tinge of colour I also used the same rig at 5m for a throw-away line where it was just two inches shallower - just under 5ft in both cases. I also put up a rig on the same terminal gear, but using a 4x14 Preston Chianti, just in case the wind settled. Last up was my 10ft CarbonActive Mini Carp for fishing the bomb along the island. As usual, I had various hook-links for this to change between different multiples of corn or punched bread.

On the whistle I fed half-a-dozen grains of corn and a tiny pinch of hemp at 13m, before starting on the bomb and double corn. I was just going to drip an odd grain at 5m by hand.

I had four or five chucks on the bomb in the first hour with no signs of life, and with the wind at times dropping or turning enough I thought I could hold the 16m of pole to fish the island. When I saw some fish move right along the island without giving me a sign it made my mind up! I hastily got the two extra pole sections from my bag, and put up a rig to fish 2ft deep using the same terminal gear as the other rigs, but using a small 4x10 Preston PB2 float. First drop in on a big bread punch I had a bite that I missed, then dropping in again the float went and I had a bitterling! After that the wind got a bit swirly again, and holding the pole became awkward - typically, the wind was just teasing me!

I had a brief try at 13m that bought me no joy, so I went back on the bomb with double corn. After the first hour of getting my eye in casting, I managed to get the bomb as tight as I could without clipping the vegetation and needing to bring it back in. I left it for ten minutes and was just saying to the next peg that I could see fish in the area but was getting no sings on the tip when the rod went round! A small carp of about 3lb was the culprit. Despite a fair few drops being bang on the money after, I couldn't get another bite on the bomb even varying the baits between multiples of corn or bread punches.

After going through the motions on the 13m and 5m line without a bite, and plugging away on the bomb as well I couldn't raise a response. I was only fishing corn as I figured with one carp it wasn't worth fishing for the roach, and I hadn't bought any maggots! With just over an hour left the wind settled a bit again so I decided to try the pole across. With the fish ignoring anything still on the bomb I decided to try a corn skin on the hook, hoping the fluttering of the bait would make a fish snap at it. First drop across doing that and the float was away and carp number two, a twin of the first was soon heading to the net!

I plugged away along the far bank on the pole but other than a liner I couldn't muster anything else. The wind had an odd gust which twice saw me snag on the vegetation, but both times I managed to flick the rig clear without needing to pull for a break! Lucky, eh?

With half an hour to go I dropped in on the 13m line again, and the float sat for only a few seconds before the tiny pimple of bristle wasn't there! Carp number three was soon in the net - it's a while since I had that many carp! Topping up with two grains of corn and number four was joining the others five minutes later, both about 3lb, but very welcome. I missed a bite next drop before I saw the next peg catch one carp then lose another form their close line. I had a drop in on mine but nothing came of it, so with just a few minutes left I was back on the 13m line. The float plinked away and something a little more lively was on the end. A 5lb'er was netted and no sooner did it reach the keepnet than the whistle went!

Predictably, pegs 70 and 72 (either side of the rushes) had both caught well, with 70 just coming out on top with 50lb and a few ounces, and 47lb being second. My five carp went a little over 17lb which was good enough for third in the end, with eveyone else finding it much harder. The weather hadn't helped my day (the first two pegs barely had the wind), but even then I doubt I could have got near their weights. Anyhow, I was just happy to have caught!

I'll be back on the bank again between Christmas and New Year - most likely on the usual Sunday, but I may just manage to sneak out on to one of the midweek matches too! I'd like to wish everyone reading this a Merry Christmas, and I hope that all of you that manage to get out on to the bank of the festive period manage to catch a few fish - hopefully with some nice shiny new gear! Tight lines, and have a good one!

Sunday December 9th

Well, at least it's been a damn sight warmer this week! I think it took me about five hours sat by the fire to thaw out properly last week!

Back on the old lake and I wasn't totally sure of where I wanted to draw (except the obvious peg 72, which is always a good draw in the cold), but was fairly happy with peg 68 - it's a deep peg in the open water. While it has no recent form what so ever, I always feel that there is space to explore and that somewhere there'll be a fish or two to catch!

While setting up the wind wasn't too bad, as while it was right to left it was slightly off my back too. I had two pole rigs up for one line at 13m - one a 4x14 Preston Chianti which the conditions never allowed me to use, and a .4gr NG Decker. Both rigs had .12 hook-links to size 18 hooks and were matched to Preston 11h elastic. The only other set up was a 10ft CarbonActive mini, with 6lb mainline and a 1/3 oz bomb. I had a variety of different hook-links to try on this to allow for different size punches of bread or multiples of corn. With plenty of time before the start I also plumbed up a line at 11m but downwind - I'd try feeding this line positively rather than drip-feeding as I would the main line.

On the whistle I fed around twenty grains of corn on the positive line, before going on the 13m line and starting to drip grains of corn in two's or three's, with an odd grain of hemp in too. The wind started to turn a bit so I couldn't pick up the lighter rig which I'd prefer to use. I plugged away for the first three quarters of an hour on corn, dripping a little in every few minutes but with no joy. Putting a single red maggot on bought a small roach instantly so I hadn't blanked, but as I had to double ship it wasn't ideal catching them that far out so I went back on corn.

On the hour mark I had a brief try on the positive line but with nothing to show from there I had a try on the bomb with a stack of bread punch. At this time only pegs 44 and 59 had carp, other than that it was just roach. Back out long and still nothing was forthcoming and I started to worry - it normally takes a little while to work but I'd hoped to have started to get an odd indication by now.

With two hours gone I had another go on the positive line, before trying double maggot on the drip-fed line which led to tiny roach number two. Word came up that peg 72 had started to nab odd fish now, and one or two others had odd carp in with their roach. On the half way mark I went back on the bomb and bread, cast just past the pole line and a tiny bit up wind. The rod had barely been on the rest for ten seconds when it pulled round positively and after a lively fight a common of about 6lb was netted - a fair bit bigger than the other carp I'd seen caught. I had a couple more chucks in the same area, but had no more joy.

With an hour and a half remaining I decided to plug away and catch a few roach to boost my weight - with one good carp I thought a few roach would help me stay clear of anyone who had more smaller fish, and beside 59 and 72, nobody else had more than one carp! It wasn't ideal catching them at 13m due to the fact I had to un-ship twice, but I was putting small roach in the net pretty regular. Most fish were under an ounce, but an odd one that was about twelve-to-the-pound came too.

With around twenty minutes to go I'd probably put a pound of roach in the net, but two of the three anglers I could see on one carp both had another. They were small fish again, both around 3lb so I figured that the roach with my bigger fish should just keep me ahead of them. That plan went out of the window when they went back out and both hooked another. Plan change - I needed another carp!

With only just over ten minutes to go I decided there was one way to go about it - a big bright bait in the hope of attracting the attention of a carp. Two of the biggest bits of corn I could find were put on the hair and the bomb flicked to pretty much where I'd had my other carp. It had been in place for about two or three minutes before the tip started to see-saw back and forth - not great big positive movements, but enough to signal a hooked fish!

What felt a big weight came in very easy until it got under my rod tip, and then it woke up, going on a run across the lake that must have taken about thirty yards of line! I had to slow it myself before it went round the marginal point of peg 48! After a hefty fight I managed to net it with about a minute left - a munter of a ghostie easily in to double figures! I managed to get the bomb back out again but it didn't go again in the thirty seconds or so left!

When the scales got to me 25lb was top weight from peg 59, which was also the golden peg! After that 15lb was next, and a few weights just scraping in to double figures. My net of plips went 1lb 4oz, and then my two carp went on the scales taking them to 19lb 10oz! My total of 20lb 14oz was good enough for third in the end as peg 72 put a little over 31lb on the scales.

While my late gamble paid of somewhat I wish I'd approached it different. Now the cold has been set in a while I didn't expect it to be so hard. With hindsight I wish I'd not fished the long pole and just tried the bomb with no feed what-so-ever out long, and just had a short pole line for the roach which would have been much quicker and easier than un-shipping twice from 13m. While I can't say for sure I'd have had more carp doing it I think it would have increased my chances. With the roach fishing being easier too just one more carp would definitely have got me second, and perhaps even first had it been big enough with the extra roach to go with it. Still, I didn't do it, and at least I caught, unlike last week!

As it stands at the moment I wont be out next Sunday so no blog, but I'll be back out the Sunday after, and with Christmas midweek it wont affect my normal Sundays. Hopefully, the fish will be a little more obliging!

Fur & Feather - Sunday 2nd December

What can you say - it's nearly Christmas, where's the year gone! The Arctic blast arrived, albeit not quite as bad as perhaps it looked last week. Still, I arrived with my nice "new" ice breaker (made over a year ago, but yet to be used after not fishing last winter!). At the draw I was told I wouldn't need it - there were only three or four pegs round the back of the island with ice. Guess where I found myself heading? Yup, you guessed it! Peg 53 on the old lake (the first time I've drawn on that lake in the Christmas match) - in the shade, and first peg in the ice!

Peg 53 actually won last weeks match on the lake - but it was pretty mild, and they were sat in a gap of ten empty pegs! No such luxury today with all the pegs in that area in. I put my box down and started to clear the ice where my nets would go, then the ice in my right hand margin to allow me to have a line there. I levelled my box, got up to get my silvers net and the ice holes were already freezing up again! Great.

The left hand side of my peg was ice free, and with a small lilly bed at 6m with about 4ft of water next to it (about the deepest the peg gets) I hoped I could nobble a few roach here. The gear was a compromise - the roach don't tend to be too fussy so a rig with a .09 hook-link and a size 20 hook was for here. The float was a 4x12 Preston Chianti, and the lakky was 9h. I'd put up a rig to fish at 11m slightly to my right at about 1 O'clock, but where I'd cleared the ice there (cut with the cupping kit and pushed under) was re-frozen too! I left it for when the ice (hopefully) cleared, and set up a rig for the island. I could fish slightly to my left on the island, on the edge of the ice, not where I wanted to get really, but pointless clearing as any holes I made re-froze! I wasn't going to feed the island anyway, just dob along it and hope against hope really! The last two rigs were finished on .12 hook-links and size 18 hooks, with the lakky being Preston 11h. Optimistic really.

I started the match flicking odd casters and maggots to the lillys, while going across on punch hoping to find one carp stupid enough to be in the shallowest, coldest part of the lake. There weren't any! Nor were there any roach too.

On some days you just feel there are no fish there, and yesterday was one of those! For the first three hours the peg carried on re-freezing any areas I tried to keep clear, the only thing that stopped it was on the occasions the breeze picked up, but that cut right through me instead. Eventually the sun found the water and it stopped freezing with ninety minutes to go (it never really got on to me with the tree's!), but I never had a bite. When the sun dropped off the water with twenty minutes to go I packed up, rather fed up! The peg to my left finished the same (not surprised given the amount of likky they fed, most of which floated up to the edge of the ice in my peg!). The peg to my right had two tiny roach fishing up to a bramble bush hanging in the water in the edge, while the others who were totally iced in blanked too - I think seven of us on that lake suffered the same fate!

To rub it in, when I wanted to get back to the barn to warm up I had the scales. I wasn't supposed to be weighing, but those that were meant to be weighing left the draw without taking them. I volunteered to take them up to the lake to those that had drawn them, but as soon as the one remaining person who was meant to have them weighed they cleared off, leaving me to do it!

I was practically the last back to the barn, and just managed to get a sausage roll and a mince pie before they were all scoffed. The cup of tea was most welcomed, as I'd had little else to do all day other than drink my flask! When I eventually got to the prize table I was sorely tempted to take some of the booze that was still there to drown my sorrows, but instead I took the box of Thorntons chocolates to give to the wife - that made her day, even if I'd had a crap one! I used to like winter fishing, but the last couple of weeks have been dire now, and I've not really had much enjoyment from it. Hopefully a change in luck at the draw bag is on the way!

Sunday 25th November

Well, what a rough night! It was quite calm when I went to bed, but at 4am the wind woke me sounding like a lorry driving through the wall! Thankfully, the weather was not as bad for us in Cambridge as many other parts of the country.

The wind seemed pretty much strait down the lake, so nowhere was going to escape it with the exception of peg 42, where it was pretty calm. My hand went in the bag and came out with 66, which is usually a decent year-round peg just on the end of the island. When I put my box down and sat for a minute I was quite pleased, as the lake kinks slightly back here, meaning the wind was for the most part rushing past me further across the lake.

I could comfortably plumb up to 10m (the occasional gust still affected me there, but for the most part it was okay), so I had a pole line here, and then one at 8m to my left (downwind) down the nearside slope using the same rig. Depth was about 5ft, and a .4gr NG Decker held stable here. This rig was finished off with a .14 hook-link and a size 16 B611, and matched to Preston 13h. Despite the wind, it was quite warm and I've found that carp do largely tend to feed in those conditions. To fish the island the 10ft Carbonactive Mini Carp came out, and my plan was to fish the bomb with either corn or bread in multiple grains/punches. I also soaked-up a few micro's to try a pellet cone if the fish needed some feed.

With very little to set up I was ready well before the off, and with the rain clouds long gone and the sun coming out it wasn't too bad. With the whistle I fed a few grains of hemp and corn at 10m, while the down wind line was fed more positively, with the idea that I'd not top it up and just see what happened. A grain of corn was hair-rigged and cast a meter or so short of the island where the depth was about 3ft, and I waited....

Two hours later I was still waiting! I'd topped the 10m line up with four grains of corn and a tiny pinch of hemp every half an hour, and I'd tried different multiples of corn and punched bread, exploring along the island and dropping down the shelf looking for signs. I hadn't seen one!

Odd carp had been caught - pegs 64, 48 and 44 I'd seen catch one each, so it was time to try the pole lines. With no sign on any of those I went back on the bomb. Cast dead in front of me and much tighter to the island in about 2ft of water I had a very slow deliberate liner. I left it, and it never developed. It was the only sign of a bite I had on the tip all day.

Out of desperation I got last weeks maggots out, and fishing them on the hook at 10m I winkled out a few roach to save the blank! I only really gave it twenty minutes or so before I switched back to corn, which got me a bonus 3oz roach as opposed to the twenty to the pound ones I was getting on maggot.

I never saw another sign of a carp in my swim all day, and was long packed up before the scales even started to weigh in! The two windward end pegs (pegs 53 and 62) were first and second on the day with a little over 24lb top, and just under 24lb second. There were a few low double figure weights and a few people like me that were carp-less and didn't weigh.

Next week is the fishery Fur and Feather, and typically the weather is looking on turning very cold by the end of next week. Hopefully we can just avoid a freeze-over (my ice breaker is ready mind), but beyond that I don't think we're going to get away with it. I know the weather forecasters often get it wrong, but it seems that when predicting an Arctic blast they don't!

Sunday November 18th

After a few weeks on the old lake I was looking forward to going back on to the new lake. The only downside looked to be be the weather again, as per last week the relatively mild weather during the week lead to clear sky's Saturday night and quite a sharp frost on Sunday morning.

I fancied a higher number draw, so when number 2 came out in my hand I feared the worse! Basically, my peg for the day was a twenty meter square right off the main lake by the car park (the tip of the bay is visible in the pic), although I did have an island chuck with the bomb (only as peg 3 wasn't in - it would be a a bit close otherwise). There's always fish in that area of the lake in the evenings as they often get fed there after matches and during the week, but with it being the first match in a month on the lake, with the cold and everyone having to walk past my peg optimism was low!

I set up a rig for the margin to my right in case any fish came back in to the bay, one for 13m towards the open water plus my bomb rod with a variety of hook-links to try different baits.

To cut a long and very boring story short, I had one carp about 4lb and five little perch. The carp came to the bomb and bread, dropped fairly short of the island about two hours in to the match. I didn't actually see the tip go round either, as somebody walked up the bank behind me, and when they asked how I'd got on I replied looking round to them (something along the lines of a four lettered word, followed by sayin I was bite-less) and when I looked back the tip was round a foot! I never had another liner or twitch on the tip, and the perch fell to maggot fished in the edge.

Peg 5 won with 48lb of carp on punch, so the fish that normally inhabit my little bay looked to have headed that way! Just 12lb was second from peg 7, and peg 11 was third with 11lb. A few other people had just the one carp like me, and some had none. It's fair to say it wasn't the day I was looking forward too as the winter "aqua bingo" begins!

Sunday November 11th

I have to admit the weather had me a little worried about the fishing on the morning, as what seemed just a chilly morning in my back garden turned in to a progressively harder frost the nearer to the venue we got! The day was supposed to be pleasant enough, but after three or four mild days and nights I did wonder what effect it would have.

Walking around before the start I could see that the colour had dropped out a touch from last week, but I was a little unsure of where I wanted to draw, although with the pegs around the back of the island being missed out I skill fully managed to avoid any of the four end-pegs the gap created! I was happy enough with peg 44, as at least with the remains of the large lilly bed in the peg I had some cover to fish to.

I put up three rigs for the day, although in the end I never picked up the shallow rig that I put up. What I expected to be my main catching rig would cover me for two areas of the swim - for 6m near to the lilly's, and for 13m at the bottom of the slope up to the small island. That slope is very un-even, else I would have fished up it slightly to cover more depths. This rig was a 4x14 Preston Chianti (with the cane tip replaced by a plastic one), with a .14 hook-link to a size 16 B611, and matched to Preston 13h elastic. Depth on both areas was the same to within a inch, at around 5ft. The last rig was for 6m to my left in the edge. The float was a 4x12 Chianti, again with plastic tip, while the terminal gear was the same too. Depth here was about 3ft.

On the whistle the margin and the 6m line both had a pinch of hemp and corn, while the longer line would be built up from drip-fed corn and and odd grain of hemp. Form peg 42 to my left was in to fish instantly, and had three before I had my first bite about half an hour in. I'd had odd liners, and the fish (a small common about 2lb) was hooked in the pectoral fin.

After that fish the liners faded away in my swim, and while peg 42 to my left was catching, so was everybody on the opposite bank that I could see. They were all basking in pleasant sunshine, while mocking those of us on the other bank who were all still sat with coats on!

After an hour I had my first look near the lilly's but had no joy. I tried the margin and had an odd knock but they seemed from small fish. I tried maggot out long which bought me a 1oz roach strait away, so carried on plugging away on corn. The two pegs to my right were fairing no better than me, so I elected to just plug away and hope some fish would turn up. Meanwhile, I had to get up and get my neck gaiter as I was feeling a bit chilled. Peg 70 opposite was sitting in a t-shirt!

With a little over two hours to go I was nine carp behind peg 42 to my left, while end peg 72 on the opposite bank wasn't catching fast, but their fish were much bigger. I dropped in near the lilly's and had my first bite there, and a small ghostie gave a lively account of it's self. Topping up with just two grains of corn carp number three fell soon after, again only around 2.5lb. That fish however decided to run in to the lilly's instead of away, and caused a bit of a disturbance that led to no bite on the next drop.

Back out long and two fish fell in quick succession, and they were about 3lb a piece. Again though, after two fish the swim went off. I topped it up with a small pinch of bait and tried in the edge. I did miss a bite here on corn, but nothing followed after.

With an hour to go I dropped back in near the lilly's, and was away instantly! This time the swim kept going and for the last hour I had a steady run of bites on corn. The fish weren't big, but from five fish with an hour to go I finished on fourteen carp. I was topping up with just two grains of corn each time, and never missed a bite until the very last minute! I'd over taken peg 42 in terms of numbers of fish too, as their peg had faded in the last ninety minutes, although I suspected peg 72 opposite would have more weight. They had less fish, but much bigger!

At the weigh in peg 42 put 36lb odd on to the scales - it was going to be close! My fish totalled up to 37-8 and gave me the lead for a little while, until the first end peg on the other bank (peg 62) put 39-1 on the scales! If only I hadn't missed that last bite! The were a few 20lb weights on that bank until we got to peg 72 on the end who put a couple of ounces over 40lb on the scales - less than 3lb more than me! Doh!

While being so close but so far, I'm not sure there was a lot else I could have done really - I never lost a fish. It was just the usual story for that peg - plenty of fish, but smaller. Both pegs that beat me were end pegs on the much warmer bank so I suppose to make the frame (and over take peg 42 after being nine carp behind at one point) wasn't a bad, but I guess when you're only one fish away from winning it's easy to look at a missed bite last chuck and think "if only!"

I think next week is back on the new lake after a few matches in a on the old lake, so the fishing will be a bit different. With no matches having been on there for a month there's nothing to go on too. Hopefully, it fishes okay!

Sunday November 4th

Well, I have to say as the week pressed on the weather forecast for Sunday looked less and less promising! While there is always the hope they'd get it wrong (which we all know happens!), it delivered just as promised - the rain started at about the moment I first went out in to the back garden at 6.30am, and never really stopped until after I got home. Yes, that is a brolly in the picture, as even I didn't fancy a day in that cold rain!

Last week the pegs to draw on the old lake had been around the island, and when peg 66 stuck to my hand I was pretty pleased. It's a decent year round peg to be honest anyway. I did notice however that the water there was clearer than last week, plus the wind was a different direction pushing what leaves there was up to the car park end of the lake. Was it going to be a case of should have been here last week?

I decided on three areas to target in the swim - across to the island, fishing at about 15m which dropped me down the slope a touch in to not quite 3ft of water. I also had a line at 5m, and then plumbed up with the same rig until I found the same depth on the slope up to the other side, which was nicely at 13m. Depth here was not quite 5ft. Simple rigs too - a 4x12 Preston Chianti on the island rig, and a 4x14 of the same on the deep rig! Both had the cane tip removed and a plastic one put in. Line was .15 to a .14 hook-link and size 16 B611's, while lakky was Preston 13h. I did put up a third rig in case the wind made the light Chianti impossible to present in the deep water, using a NG Decker, but the peg was pretty well sheltered - thankfully! In the end, I never picked up stand-by rig.

At the off the deep lines had a pinch of hemp and corn fed on to them - a bit more on to the throwaway 5m line which I expect to not be a viable target line for much longer as the cold comes in. I then went across on a 4mm expander pellet, with a small cad-pot on the pole which contained a little crumb and a few 3mm pellets. I was off the mark pretty quick but only with small 1oz roach which produced more missed bites than anything else. Odd carp were getting caught, including one on the peg to my left which won last week.

A grain of corn proved harder for the roach to nab, and the bites slowed for long enough that about twenty-five minutes in my first carp fell, a small common of about 2lb. In the next half an hour I managed to add three more of the same size to the net, all to corn - steady, if not spectacular! However, as tends to happen from lines on the far bank here it died after the initial run of fish. I do feel the rain may not have helped as it went from just wet to an icy monsoon!

I left the far line after perhaps twenty minutes without a bite, having a few drops over the 13m line to see if they'd dropped down the shelf. I had a liner here which led to me plugging away there a bit longer than I may have. A missed bite was followed by a small roach on corn, so I topped it up and went back across.

The rain had eased a touch now, but the indications I could get from across seemed to be from small fish. A switch back to pellet put a roach in the net, before a change back to corn saw me nab a small 12oz mirror before the swim went quiet again

With no more knocks across I had a drop in again at 13m, and again an occasional liner led me to plug away there, hoping the drip fed corn via the small pot would encourage them to feed. I couldn't see the pegs nearer the car park in the open water, but from what others were saying I knew they were catching, and quite well by the sounds of it!

On the half-way mark of the match I decided it was worth a drop on the 5m line, and it was a worth while effort as the float slipped away pretty quickly and gave me a common of about 3lb, but unsurprisingly no more followed. A drop on to the 13m line also gave me a quick fish, again about 3lb.

The quick burst of fish was followed by a lull, so I gambled on re-feeding both lines in the deeper water with the pot. A quick drop across just led to knocks from roach again so I didn't give it too long before coming back in to the deeper water at 13m with perhaps ninety minutes to go.

Two missed bites led me to fiddle with the shotting, moving it all down in to a tighter bulk to make it more positive. I knew two pegs were catching well, but third place looked a wide open possibility. The change worked as three small carp all around 10oz fell - not quite what I wanted, but better than catching roach! With just under an hour left I gambled on feeding it again as the bites faded (rather than just drip feeding with a pole mounted pot).

Resting the 13m line I dropped in at 5m, and the throwaway line gave me a quick bonus in the form of a chunky common that perhaps nudged 5lb, but again no more followed. Back on the 13m line and I started to put a run of fish together - I wasn't bagging, but I was getting an odd bite and putting a steady run of carp in the net. I did lose exact count, but I finished the match with about eleven "proper" carp plus the pasties I'd had. With a few minutes to go bites were fading again so without the time to rest and re-feed I spent the last part at 5m looking for another bonus. I did get a liner, but no proper bite.

It was clear that pegs 42 and 70 would be first and second (42 is perhaps THE form peg at the moment, framing in the last four or five matches even when the island pegs have been good), but nobody else was admitting to more than seven or eight carp. The late flurry had indeed given me third place with 40-15, with peg 42 putting 75lb odd on the scales and peg 70 putting 69lb on. Not bad weights, or days fishing given the weather, but I do have the task of drying out nearly everything now during the week!