LLOYDS, BADGER, 25/1/15 ~ Third time lucky for Chris Roe

Sadly the BBC couldn't tell us the weather if they looked out of the window. Predictions of a mild weekend were wide of the mark as ice-breaking was high on the agenda when we arrived at Lloyds.
Sport, however, was predictable, with half the field on a bucketful of fish, with foul hookers and lost fish commonplace, whilst others sat biteless wondering if there was anything in front of them.
Making the most of a decent draw, and improving on some already impressive performances was Chris Roe. He fished maggot at 16metres all day and despite some losses, put a solid 54lb 03oz on the scales to record that elusive first victory. I told you in last week's report that it wouldn't be long in coming..... maybe I should become a weather forecaster. Anyway, congratulations to Chris on another fine effort.
After falling behind in the early stages, Gary Brislen came with a rare rattle in the second half of the match. Such was his catch rate that he nearly pulled off the great escape. Ultimately, he fell just short with 49lb 13oz. His magical display got him into second place, but all his fish went into one keepnet. Not very clever when club rules state 2 nets, and such actions in the future will result in disqualification.
Narrowly missing out, but finishing an honourable third, was Kenny Stuart. He too put in a superb effort, dobbing bread, to register a 49lb 10oz total. Well done.
At the lower end of the spectrum, and illustrating the difference in levels of sport on the day, Andy Lawton picked up section money again, this time weighing a meagre 5lb 14oz. Dennis Jones just pipped Pato to the next section with 17lb 15oz, while Yozzer also won his with 17lb 13oz.
Making it a successful day for 'Team Kenny' was Kenny Pickup, who had the only decent weight from the poor end of the lake with an excellent 21lb 13oz. Well done to all those who got envelopes, and commiserations to those who had gruellers.

LINGMERE 18/1/15 ~ Roe foiled again as dodgers dominate

It was amazing that this match actually went ahead, and with all 17 who had booked on too. A dusting of hail/snow the night before had frozen, and with no sign of gritters having been at work, cars needed defrosting and roads were hazardous to say the least. Even the motorway was icy. Arriving at Lingmere, and a different story greeted us. No icy track and not even a frost in sight. It still didn't fill us with optimism and pre-match banter was about the start time for the snooker masters and who was on the live football on Sky. Seemed the walk of shame was firmly on the agenda...... or should it be re-named the walk of common sense? Anyway, the first to walk was Norman Smith.
Having been the first to catch a fish, John Edwards seemed certain to stay the distance, but encouraged by the first exit, Sumo soon followed to the comfort of the Caernarvon.
Only four pegs on the bottom lake, but two early darts as both Tony Wilson and Steve Coleman decided that West Ham v Hull was a better option than getting battered by Chris Roe. After all, Chris is allegedly a bigger muppet than Miss Piggy.
Another solid display, this time mainly on maggot feeder, brought more runner-up glory with an excellent 24lb. Big pat on the back for Chris, that first win seems imminent.
Up on the top lake, after a slow start with placid conditions, the wind picked up, and for some, so did the fishing. With all the recognised fliers failing to produce, it was left to the lads who regularly fish the coffin- dodger matches on Wednesdays to show the way (and take the money).
Nicky Harrop has settled into the club quickly and made it 2 from 2 section wins, supplementing Wednesday's big 'dodger' win with a fine third place. Maggot and caster proved to be the right choice as RSwipe put 23lb 15oz on the scales to take a great bronze medal.
The Garden Gnome defied the elements, and his short pole reputation, by fishing maggot at 14metres. The effort was worth it as he secured a 'comfortable' victory with 33lb 06oz. Wednesday's DNW turned into a distant memory. Comfortable hardly seems appropriate with wind and sleet blowing into the face but you know what I mean.
Gary Brislen is another who attends the odd dodger match, and he made the experience count as he took a well earned section win with 10lb 02oz. Well done to the Entertainments Manager.
The last section went the way of The Butler, Andy Lawton showing the Lord just how it's done with a quality display of feeder and waggler fishing as he racked up a decent return of 16lb. Well Done Andy.

LINGMERE, 4/1/15 ~ Newboy Chris thwarted by Jamie masterstroke

With reports coming out that Xmas knock-ups had produced several ton-ups, culminating in Steve Openshaw weighing in a staggering 137lb on Friday, it was sod's law that things wouldn't be quite that good for The Eggy. Notwithstanding the difference in angling ability, this was as much of a let down as we could possibly imagine.
Once again general opinion was that the bottom lake would produce the better sport. With the amount of fish in the lake and the great weights of previous days, everyone would catch, surely. Amazingly, everyone did catch, even if it was only ounces.
Grueller doesn't seem to accurately describe how hard it was. With an hour gone and one carp to show, Jamie Pickup pulled a masterstroke. He got a rod from the bag and proceeded to set up a waggler. Not the now standard pellet waggler that has become an obsession, but a good old fashioned 3BB peacock waggler. Going twice as far as anybody else on the float, Jambo caught some decent carp throughout. 37lb 03oz was the reward, and to illustrate his dominance, the next best was Simo with 12lb odd.
At the other end of the spectrum, Paul Cargill won a section with 3lb 01oz !!!! That's right THREE pounds. Well done for sticking it out.
The other section winner, after a festive break, was Steve Coleman. A golden tench of all things, featured in his winning 9lb 15oz, so a big well done to Steve, too.
Up on the top lake, 3 decent weights, but plenty of DNWs, so very hit and miss. New boy Chris Roe was telling everyone how he'd only joined the club to gain experience and learn a few things from other members. On this performance we'll be learning a few things from him! Chris caught steadily all match, and despite losing a handful along the way, he had Jamie panicking at the scales. Agony in one respect as the needle fell short of a debut win when it settled at 36lb 15oz, but joy at making the frame on his first outing with the club. Massive congratulations.
3rd place, with a decent enough weight of 28lb odd was Yozzer, all F1s on pellet.
First section on the top was contested by 2 more new boys, with Nick 'swipe' Harrop seeing off the challenge of the returning Tony Wilson with 9lb 15oz, with the others in section failing to weigh.
Another section win went the way of John Edwards with an excellent 20lb 00oz. Just scraped through in "the challenge" so great for Sumo. Typically, having been beaten by Sumo, the others in section did not weigh and sat in cars sulking.
Maybe the next outing at Lingmere will produce those magical 100lb bags.... then again...... gotta be there to find out.

LINGMERE, 21/12/14 ~ Kenny is Daddy Christmas...AGAIN

Some things never change. That gentle cooling breeze at Lingmere, Jamie peggin' it wrong then drawing a flier, and Kenny Pickup winning the Christmas match.
In order to bring comfort to as many as possible, and improve the chances of everyone catching a few, the match was split over the two lakes.
Just like last year, King Kenny drew the bottom lake and came out on top thanks to an impressive total of 38lb 13oz. 13metres with maggot was the successful approach. The performance also clinched this year's "20lb challenge"  series for KP. Great effort, both on the day and season-long, so congratulations.
In a reversal of the last Lingmere match result, Jamie Pickup was a gallant 2nd this time. Moving from his customary peg 20 draw all the way round to....19, Jambo proved it's not the peg, but the angler as he put 34lb 04oz on the scales for the silver medal. It also guaranteed a spot in the Garbolino Club angler as runner-up.
Top dog in the Garbo was Yozzer, so both will be representing the club in 2015.
Final podium place was filled by the other half of 'Team Kenny' as Ken Stuart managed a meritous 29lb 08oz from the bottom lake, well done.
Despite sulking for most of the match because he had to stay till the end to do weighing-in duties, (Jan wouldn't let him have scouse at 12.30) John Edwards actually had a decent day's fishing to the tune of 25lb 07oz and picked up section money. Although he made Scrooge look like the Laughing Policeman, a big pat on the back to Sumo for his angling prowess.
Another laughing boy, this time in the shape of Gary Brislen, again put in a sterling effort, and with 23lb 13oz he too won a section.
NB a 'sterling effort' doesn't mean he was diving in the lake every 5 minutes like a certain little s**t in a Liverpool shirt.
Ian Simpson was the other section winner with a decent return of 28lb 01oz. Must have learnt a lesson after drawing the bottom last time eh Simo? Nice one Mate.
Finally, the 'section winners' challenge was also decided, and The Gnome came out on top after a close battle with Dirk and Lee.
Thanks to Jan at Lingmere for some great post-match scouse and chilli. 
I wish all our members and regular readers a very Merry Xmas and I hope you all draw the pegs you want during 2015...Good Luck.

LINGMERE, 7/12/14 ~ Pickups blow the field away... or was that the wind?

If last week was full of banter with plenty of laughs, then this one was the opposite. I'm pretty sure that there weren't many who actually fancied fishing on the day. This was Lingmere weather at its cruellest. Strong gusty winds brought regular showers of rain and hail, and it was cold too. Even when the ripple subsided it was still difficult to spot bites through watering eyes. Just what you want when winter F1 fishing. Banter was non-existant as heads were buried deep into snoods, under woolly hats, with hoods pulled up. Brollies were a no-no due to the wind.
Having said all that, Jamie Pickup adopted his usual attitude, I'm fishing 16 metres, I must be good. On this occasion he was good and proved it with a runaway 35lb 12oz for an easy victory.
Don't know where he gets it from cos Dad Kenny tried 6 metres of pole for half an hour then gave up and went on the tip. He was rewarded with some nice F1s and a total of 27lb 04oz for second spot. Come on you Pickups!
Final place in the frame went to the never-reliable Jolly Green Giant. Neil was one of the few who could fish the pole in any degree of comfort, and he put this to good use with a decent day's sport which gave him a 23lb 06oz total. Another hour an he would have won it!
Team Kenny collected more pools money as Ken Stuart won the first section with a level 10lb. They need to win some more as the conditions took their toll and Ken's pole now has 2 short no.5 sections.
Venue regular The Gnome got an envelope to take home as his 17lb 09oz was enough for the other section.
All in all we've had nicer days out, but I suppose even this was better than sittin in the house, by the fire, nice and warm.......... mmmmm .........    don't know so much .

HAMPTON, ALICE SPRINGS. 30/11/14 ~ Cake-walk for Lee

Wasn't at this one so results only. Seems like a cake-walk for Lee and the familiar walk for Sumo.

1  Lee Pickup 51lb 02oz
2  Neil Paterson    34lb 09oz
3  Steve Coleman  16lb 14oz

Sections:
Tony Byers   9lb 09oz
Kenny Stuart  3lb 10oz

Well Done everyone

LINGMERE, 23/11/14 ~ Practice makes perfect for The Wriggler

The Lingmere wind machine had been turned down low for this latest visit, making it a relatively pleasant experience for everyone. Well, everyone with a modicum of sense but not those who forgot to take a decent coat. With 18 in attendance, it was decided to put a section on the bottom lake to ease the pressure on the top lake and give everyone a better day's sport.
Those drawn on the bottom certainly had good sport and enjoyed plenty of bites throughout the match. A head to head developed on adjacent pegs, and provided us with the first and third overall.
Following 5 or 6 appearances in the Wednesday 'dodger' matches, Dirk Wriggler put the knowledge gained in those 'practice' sessions to good use. Unconfirmed reports suggest a method feeder with maggot was the successful tactic, and Degsy ended up with an impressive total of 55lb 02oz.
That proved much too good for the gallant effort of Ian Simpson, who also employed maggot baits, but mainly on the pole, and Simo brought 42lb to the scales for a well earned third place.
Up on the top lake, things were a whole lot tougher, with hard work required to  make a few bites.
The Awesome One known as Jamie Pickup found the task easier than most, and he too caught steadily all day. Feeding an amazing 4 pints of maggots, JBay had a mixed bag but bemoaned the fact that his fish were small. They ended up totalling 50lb 06oz. Super stuff from the Match Sec.
Next best was venue regular The Gnome. Despite telling everyone that pellet had not been working, it did on the day and Yozz won his section with 34lb 08oz.
Col Cook had the help of a decent carp weighing 7 or 8lb, which enhanced a nice bag of fish and gave him a 30lb 09oz total for his section win.
Gary Brislen kept up his recent run of good form and duly won a tough section with 19lb 12oz... nobody else weighed in the section.
The last section was won easily by the male model that is Paul Robb. His open-topped balaclava ensured his hair wasn't ruffled but his ears were kept warm, and fishing comfortably, he registered a solid 28lb 02oz for section victory.
Pato had an eventful day...... before the match started, a feeder cast to get the range saw him playing a barbel that had taken a liking to his hook with pellet band. It turned out to be the only fish in his swim for the first two hours. The next one to arrive was hooked, took him into the rushes, and when he finally retrieved his hook, it was attached to a ball of 20lb line with a pole rig, and 3 assorted feeders. Later in the match, he finally started getting bites on the pole. Such was his keenness to connect with these bites he was striking with such verve that the pole tip was 15 feet in the air every time he missed a bite. As one comedian remarked, he poked the man in the moon's eye out three times! (Dennis..you funny guy). He also received some coaching from Sumo, who had gone walkabout after struggling to catch. Conversation went something like........ Neil, let me tell you all the things I've made a balls of so you don't make the same mistakes. Seems there's a full moon every week in Sumo's world.
Well done to Dirk, and Jamie for their respective performances, and well done to the section winners.