YEW TREE, 14/7/13 ~ Derek worms his way into first place.

Heatwave conditions meant a difficult day was likely at Yew Tree. There were carp galore to be seen cruising the surface, but very few were interested in feeding. Eight members chanced their arm, so there were two sections of four.
It was pretty obvious from an early stage that the field was splitting into 2 camps. Those with worm n caster were catching well, whilst those using pellet, etc., were struggling.
Derek Warren seems to fish the wriggler wherever he goes, so he was one of the lucky ones. Fishing a top kit in both margins, the Moreton Marauder caught all day, with a mix of silvers, including some nice ide, going into one keepnet, while two specimen tench and a couple of large carp made their way into another. At the end, Degs had totalled 49lb 12oz (No! not 50) to deservedly take the spoils. Well Done.

Yippee Degsy, we're gettin a mention on the blog!!!

Neil Paterson also fished worm n caster, after wasting an hour on the 'splash waggler' chasing the elusive carp. That lost time possibly cost him as he brought a net of quality ide to the scales, which weighed 36lb 10oz. Cracking net of fish, but not enough for the Jolly Green Giant, who had to be content with second place.

In third spot, again using the magic worm, was Andy Lawton. Andy also had a good bag of mixed silvers, enhanced by a barbel nearing the 5lb mark. He ended up with about 25lb, so again, a big well done.

Typical for the venue, that was the good bit finished, as three DNWs, and nets of 5 and 10lb completed the field.  

FIR TREE, WIGAN, 23/6/13 ~ Kenny finishes first in Firtree fishfest

A windy day and an unknown in the shape of Firtree's new lake. A couple had fished it once before, with mixed reviews.
An unfortunate start for the Gnome, as, while tackling up, a gust of wind blew a top kit and sections 4 and 5 straight into the drink, DOH!!! The top kit was rescued, and despite 20 minutes of searching with landing nets, there was no sign of the flyaway sections. To add insult to injury, Kenny Pickup's gold watch fell off his wrist and also went for a swim. Quite why Yozzer had so many sections out anyway was a mystery, but a spare No.4 came out of the bag and that was as long as he fished all day  (nowt new there then).
As if to reward his efforts during the attempted rescue, Kenny went on to have the most memorable of days. A bite a chuck, and some 70 carp later, the scales confirmed him as the runaway winner with an incredible weight of 16lb 12oz. (Yeah, sixteen!!!) An awesome performance by the Chairman, well done.
A tight tussle for second place ended in a tie. Steve Cooke caught on meat, corn and pellet down the track, while Jamie Pickup did his usual numbnuts display of 16 metre mastery (in that wind). Both brought 13lb 04oz to the scales. Two great efforts.
With the section payouts now established, the final brown envelope went to Dave Lynch, who also caught bucket loads of carp, 35 in fact, for a total of 7lb 04oz. Nice one Spadge.
Not everything was rosey, as once again Sumo went for a walk of shame (off an end peg, too ??) and took Norman with him, while Yozzer got a cheque book and pen!

Two other DNWs meant the field was split in half, but the general consensus was 'a Pato special', and I don't think we'll be going back again.

Better news at the end as Kenny also had another look and found his watch, still working.

Cookie became a club legend as he stripped off and went swimming for the lost sections, and to my gratitude, he found both pieces.

Steve, what are those lumps in your throat?   Aaaaahhhh, your balls, OK

LLOYDS, BADGER, 2/6/13 ~ Ton-up for Lucas

Another match I missed, but the result was as follows:-
An excellent winning weight for Pete Lucas, with 102lb 08oz. A big well done to the maestro.
The other sections were won as follows, Spadger had 51lb 12oz, Jamie Pickup weighed 40lb 10oz, and Derek Warren added to his Weston success with a 47lb net. Well done to all.

HAMPTON SPRINGS, LONG ISLAND, 12/5/13 ~ Dennett donkeys secure winning debut

The middle of May, and everyone had big coats on. In conditions more akin to January, Hampton was not in the best of form. With very few margin fish caught, this was reflected in the weights.
One man who found some of the bigger carp, albeit at range on the feeder, was club debutant Paul Dennett.
Only five fish graced his keepnet at the end, but all were donkeys. They totalled 34lb 07oz and gave Paul a win on his very first outing with the Eggy. I knew I should have black-balled his application! Seriously, a great start, and welcome to the club.
A tie for second place between Lee Pickup, who was one of only a few who caught down the edge, but managed about a dozen meat loving carp, and Dennis Jones, who had a mixed bag of crucians, carp and bits. Both weighed a level 33lb from adjacent pegs. A real ding dong, and well done to both.
The new payout structure continued today, and section A winner was the maestro himself, Pete Lucas. He fished his usual method feeder, along with pole and bread, and finished with 27lb 12oz. Another good score by the Warrington Wizard.
Section B went to Kenny Stuart, who resorted to doing what he does best, and landed a crucian based net, on pole and pellet, weighing 21lb 04oz. Well done the mastercatcher.
With Paul winning section C, the final section was another close affair, with travelling buddies Derek Warren and Andy Lawton in a head to head, both netting some good carp. Derek came out on top with 23lb 12oz, caught on feeder with meat, while Andy was just a crucian behind with 23lb 02oz. Good effort lads.
Finally, from hero to zero in double quick time. On Saturday, fishing at The Oaks in Thirsk, Pato put on a masterly display to beat some top class anglers in winning his section at the fishomania qualifier. Congratulations on a great performance. Alas, on Sunday it was 'return of the duffer' as Neil failed to weigh after a dismal and cold day, catching next to nothing. Doh!!!

******* SPECIAL REPORT ******* ...Garbolino Club Angler of the Year... Tunnel Barn Farm Fishery, 19/4/13

When Neil Paterson earned the right to represent the club in the Garbolino, it gave us the perfect opportunity for one of our 'Premier Inn' excursions. The Big Fella chose the Tunnel Barn midlands qualifier, as we had at least been there a couple of times before, and even in a big match, a reasonable day's sport was likely. He didn't fancy the northern one up at Thirsk. 
Something big must have been on at the Birmingham NEC because rooms in the area were being advertised at higher than usual prices. I managed to secure a twin room at the Premier Inn, Royal Leamington Spa. 2 nights @ £39 per night, still great value and may I say what a delightful place it is too.
We travelled down on Wednesday morning, and arrived about 10.15. After a bacon butty and a chat with the fishery staff, we decided to fish on Extension Pool. Staff advised on the current form pegs, so we chose a couple where the wind was off our backs, and sat next to each other.
For the £2 challenge, we decided upon 6 hours. Pato went out to 6metres with groundbait and maggot and was quickly into F1s. I went to 5 metres, feeding 6mm pellets on one line, and groundbait on another. I also put a small pot of hemp and corn down the edge. I waited about ten minutes for my first F1.
After half a dozen fish each, things went a bit silly. Liners and missed bites for both of us. I put corn on and things settled down while Neil struggled on.
With about an hour gone, I had a little look in the margin on corn. The float buried first drop, and every other drop for that matter, until the end of the session.
After half an hour on maggot in his margins, and with little success, Pato started feeding maggot regularly and the F1s came shallow. Every put in was the same, a pinch of maggots, drop the rig in and within seconds the elastic poured from his top kit. And all at 6 metres ! 
What a fabulous day's sport we had. Then we realised that we may do ourselves some mischief as we had to weigh them. Pato added his weights up and came to a final tally of 127lb. After resting for a few minutes to get our breath back, it was my turn. I was worried. Not for my £2, but because I thought I'd done Neil by a few pounds and weighing would be hard work. We were equally stunned when my catch finally added up to an amazing 230lb. All F1s too. Never seen anything like it.

Back in Leamington, we found a Chinese, and ordered a banquet, the highlight of which were some rather hot salt n pepper king prawns. Full stomachs and aching muscles counter-acted the excitement, and we a good night's sleep.
Day 2 saw us on the Canal. No, not the thing with doggydo, boats and gudgeon, this was the name of another pool at TBF. We decided on another 6 hours, but this time, just in case, we would weigh after 3 hours and start again (same pegs). Information was that this was more of a maggot water, so Pato went 6 metres with maggot and groundbait, and the same down the edge. As it was a practice for the big match, I was happy to do something else. Pellet at 6 metres, and you guessed it, hemp and corn down the edge.
30 minutes gone and only a couple of skimmers to show for it. Down the edge, again, and a few F1s, but nowhere near as quick as the day before. Pato also went down the edge, on maggot, and had some F1s and a few small barbel. Slow but steady brought us to the first weigh, and only one net each. Neil on 24lb, me 32lb. Tongue in cheek we both muttered  "sh*thole" and laughed.
In truth, it was probably a more interesting day's fishing. Corn n hemp didn't seem to be working, and I scratched around for the odd F1 and mirror to 3lb. The staff came round and coached me on maggot for 30 minutes, before walking away muttering that they couldn't believe it hadn't worked for me.
Meanwhile, Pato was catching really well on the maggot, down the edge, mainly poundish barbel, with the odd proper carp and F1. We both agreed he was getting his £2 back.
With 45minutes left I scrapped everything and reverted back to what I know. Despite advice to the contrary, I went on a top kit straight out, where it was 3.5 feet deep, and fed a pinch of micros. A 4mm pellet went on the hook and unbelievably I started catching immediately. Big skimmers, F1s and barbel came steadily to the net until the end. All the local advice, given in good faith, and doing my own thing worked better.
The weigh-in seemed a formality, and when Pato put 54lb on the scales, to go with his first bag at 24lb, the total 78lb was a great effort considering we thought it had been a Grueller (now there's a laugh). Neil could have cried when I put my fish on the scales and the needle went to 52lb, meaning a total of 84lb for me, and another £2 coin.
 That evening we went for an Indian, and discussing plans for the Garbo match, Pato thought he had learned enough to have a good go.
There were 130 anglers in the match, spread over 7 pools. Each lake winner would qualify, along with the top 8 subsequent weights overall, making a total of 15 into the final. We both thought around 70lb might be enough.
At the draw, and Pato came out and announced 'Extension'......peg 30. Happy with the lake, but as far away from our opening session as you could get. Our fishery friends indicated, with a quick gurning contest, that it was not a good area.
At the peg, and it didn't look too bad. The whistle went, and so very quickly, did plans A and B. A lad opposite had started with 6 early fish. Plan C, two lines down the right margin, both fed with groundbait and hemp, came into play. Neil began catching steadily with maggot on one line and corn on the other. After an hour he was level with the other guy, and got his head in front, with 15 F1s approaching the two hour mark. A ten minute lull in the action coincided with the other guy having a good run, and that's when the wheel fell off for Pato. Instead of keeping things steady, panic set in and the next hour was "headless chicken" time (understandable I suppose) with Neil chasing round lines trying to make things happen.
With 90 minutes left, he finally settled down and went back to the original catching lines and tactics. F1s came at regular intervals, and he ended on 39 fish. I thought he'd done 50lb, but again, he just seemed concerned about the other fella, who was in his section. 'If I have 50, then he has a ton' was Pato's prediction. To Neil's amazement, the lad weighed 64lb against the honourable 57lb 11oz for the big fella. Lesson learnt! Fish your own peg and don't worry about others.
Pato had finished 5th of 20 on his lake, with the best weight being 80lb, from the other end. It seems that a high 70lb weight was needed to qualify.
 All in all, a thoroughly enjoyable trip. Neil enjoyed himself but feels that he may have let the club down. For what it's worth, I think he's been a credit to the club, and to himself. I'm sure the experience has helped his angling, and whoever is lucky enough to represent the club next year, would do a lot worse than ask him for advice.

OLD HOUGH, BIG MAX, 14/4/13

No texts with the result, no phone calls to say how enjoyable it was,     nothing! Called Pato myself at 10pm. He seemed to have had a reasonable day, on a flat calm peg, and claimed a 10lb roach net, caught on the pole.
For the majority however, it was slightly on the breezy side, and most adopted the donkey approach. Chuck a tip out and then fall asleep. The lucky ones were woken up every hour, and reeled in a few quality bream and F1s.
The actual final scores I got off the Old Hough site, and they read:
1  Gary Brislen..........20lb 12oz
2  John Heald............12lb 10oz
3  Andy Lawton........12lb 02oz
Congrats to the framers. Glad I had to stay in and wash my hair. How lucky am I? 

LINGMERE, 31/3/13 ~ Col catches the only respectable weight

Even a fishery with the quality of Lingmere will occasionally fall foul of the weather, and this Easter Sunday contest was badly affected by the recent arctic conditions.
Venue regular Colin Cook was the only one to put a half decent net together, and won easily with 21lb.
Lee Pickup continued his recent form with  another frame, this time weighing 12lb.  
Filling his now customary venue third place, was John Edwards with 11lb.
Sections went to Andy Lawton with 10lb, and Kenny Pickup with 7lb. Well done to all, least of all for actually fishing in this weather.
Finally, despite constant visits to Lingmere, and phone calls to Steve, Jamie Pickup took the wooden spoon.....Doh!