Sunday 9th April 2006

What a difference a day makes!!

Perverted came and picked me up, as he wanted to prepare some of his bait at my house prior to getting to The Oaks. He is asking for trouble one of these days, he carries his top kits ready assembled. On this occasion, my rod bag was placed on top of said top kits. When does he change his hooks? What happens if the rigs set up are of no use due to depth, tow, wind, etc? I realise that there is a certain amount of time to set up, but he always finishes in time to have a walk around the lake.

55 of us hardy soles made the decision to venture out in to the elements following the wind, hail, snow and rain from the previous day.

When Orc made his appearance, I reminded him that he still owed me a quid from the previous match and a very rapid double or quits was struck up, (if you ask me I don’t think that he carries coins around and is waiting until he owes me a tenner). Poison Dwarf reminded me that he had already paid me his quid and this was backed up by his good lady wife Marge.

I announced that there were 2 jackpot pegs, pegs 12 and 77 (both had some form and if a decent angler drew them, it was possible that one of them may go). The Jackpot pegs are capped at £400 and for every £400 that is accumulated another jackpot peg is added. I recall at one time on the Maple Lake, we had 5 jackpot pegs on the go! Charisma Pawlett drew jackpot peg 77, I quickly announced that the jackpot pegs now carried a top prize of £50.

The obligatory £1 side bets were struck with Panic Poole, Poison Dwarf, Orc (double or quits) and Perverted (£2), £6 to either win or lose!! No sweets for the kids if I lose.

All the pegs were sorted and we were going to fish 11 – 4. A good few people asked me how I had got on, on the fisho. I re-told the tale about peg 47 being left and not wanting it. I put my hand in the draw bag, and drew the only peg (well one of them anyway) that I didn’t want……….. Cedar 47. Ho hum or words to that effect followed. The only difference today from yesterday was that there was no wind (well not as strong anyway). I was informed that Coyney had won the Thursday match from Peg 48, fishing at about 4 metres.

I had Mick Grant on Peg 48, Kirkyboy Grainger on peg 50 (with 49 empty), Joe Sandcastle on peg 45 and John Illingworth on peg 44. Peg 46 empty.

At the start of the match, I set up a 4x12 rig across to the island on .12 dia line to a size 18 PR 23 hook. This rig was to fish on top of the shelf. White hydro through the No. 2 section completed this kit. I had a 4x14 float down the middle (a bit like one of the Colmic Jolly floats except this one was green) on .12 dia line to a size 18 Kamasan B911, grey hydro through a power top 2 completed this rig. My last rig (following information rec’d) was set up at 4m at the base of the near slope. This was a .50 gram float on .11 Powerline to a size 18 B911, with .12 latex through 2 sections.

At the start of the match, I had seen a fish roll between me and Granty (as it turns out there was something wrong with it and it was going up and down all day). I fruit-shooted some groundbait over to the far side and fed pellets at 4m. I went over to the far side and waited some 5 mins for my first indication. Missed it!!. Dropped in again, the float had only just settled and I had my first carp of about 2.5lb. After a further 25 minutes of fishing across, I had added 1 more fish for a total of approximately 3.5lb.

I had been dripping pellets at 4m all the while whilst fishing across. First drop in at 4m, the float dipped and the resulting strike was met with resistance. An F1 carp of about 2lb was soon in the keepnet. For the next 40 minutes I continued to plunder the ball of fish that at congregated on this line. After about 30 minutes, I could feel that the fish were starting to back off a little, so I cut out the micro pellets and started feeding 2 x 4mm pellets.

CONKERS

Right then, let me get one thing straight about CONKERS!!!

Duty rumour has it that I fish with conkers as hook bait. My ‘conkers’ are 6mm BBPC expander pellets that when the swell up are probably nearer to 8-10mm rather than 6mm, but when the start to dry out a bit the expander shrinks, therefore you end up with a firm 6mm pellet. I must admit, that I had also spread a duty rumour myself (which most people wouldn’t put past me) that I came 2nd the previous week by fishing with double conker on the hook. The thing to ask was it only a rumour or not???

With said ‘conkers’ on the hook, I managed to put about 18lb together after about 1hr 20mins. I rang perverted to ask how he was getting on and to let him know what I was doing. Perverted was owning up to 10 fish for about 8lb. Granty had caught about 3 fish by this time and was starting to look worried, but then again, he always does.

It started to hailstone, and he asked me whether or not I had a brolly. I asked why? He replied that I had not used a brolly all match the previous week when it was absolutley chucking it down and here I am now with hailstone, rain and snow and still no brolly. I hate fishing under brolly’s as I like to put the brolly over my left shoulder, but this is then in the way of my landing net stick and to put it to the right, it is in the way of the pole.

The middle of the match went very, very slow and Kirkyboy was steadily starting to put a few fish together. Poor Granty had his brolly up and he could only hear the splashing now and again from Kirkyboy. He took great pleasure in telling me that Kirkyboy was catching me up.

With about 1hr to go, I would have thought that I had about 25lb and Kirkyboy had about 27lb. During the middle of the match, I had fed a few micro pellets at the bottom of the far slope and tried to catch a fish (or two there) with very little success. The inside line appeared to be all but dead and I couldn’t get a bite or an indication over to the far side. I dropped back in at the base of the far slope and with great shock, the float buried. A mirror carp of about 1lb was soon in the net, another followed, then an f1 (the first of about 4 or 5). This line soon seemed to die (if I had waited would I have caught any more? Or do you go looking for other fish?).

I came back onto the inside line and managed one more fish in the last 15 mins. Granty asked me if I had caught as much as last week. I thought that I had just over 30lb and if lucky about 35lb. I told Granty that I didn’t think so. Whilst packing up there was still a gusty wind and some numb nuts on peg 45 had taken his brolly out of the ground, but not collapsed it. Said wind picked up his brolly, did a pike and dive bombed into the lake. Numbnuts was on the telephone ringing the pond owners asking for a boat to get to the island to retrieve the aforementioned brolly. Mr Illingworth, being the nice man that he is, was hiding under his own brolly absolutely peeing himself. When he popped his head out of his brolly his face was so red, I thought that someone had been slapping him with a red paint brush. Numbnuts was not a happy teddy bear and needs to get a sense of humour, I think you can buy them from Morrison's.

The scales were soon upon me as my half of the scales started at peg 41. Craig Ebbrill (Mosella Garbolino) had done well and weighed in 48lb odd from peg 42. I knew that I didn’t have that and plonked 33-01 on the scales. Granty tipped back 8 fish. Kirkyboy lifted his net out, it looked close. He weighed 32lb odd, I didn’t celebrate, much!!!

After getting back to the cabin and sorting out the result, I was 3rd. Craig’s mate, Alan Rutherford (Tri-cast Highfield) had weighed in 36lb odd of peg 32. Craig told me after the match, that he had caught at 5m and rang his mate up to let him know what he was doing, Alan followed suit and emptied it. At the end of the match I rang Perverted to see if the bit of advice that I gave him had worked………had it eck!!! He weighed 15lb, oh well £2 was coming my way, as was Panic’s and Poison Dwarf’s quid. Orc had done a runner!!

Bad Luck or what?

Perverted has been off injured for about 3 months and during this time, I had only won my section a couple of times and one the match on the Thursday prior to Christmas. Now that the ugly one was back, I had been 2nd and 3rd in succession. The bad luck being that I go halves with him!!! Oh well, at this rate, when he wins the lottery he owes me half!!

Official Result

1. Craig Ebbrill (Mosella Garbolino) - 48-06. Peg 42. Carp to 5lb both across and down the middle. Pellet over micro pellet.
2. Alan Rutherford (Tri-cast Highfield) - 36-09. Peg 32. Same as winner.
3. Mick Herrington (Oaks/Bob-Co) - 33-01. Peg 47. Pellet at 4m and at 9m.
4. Kirk Grainger (Clay Lane) - 32-03. Peg 50
5. Dave Topham (Waterline Wibsey) - 30-12. Peg 27.
6. Ian Exley (Middy Team Dons) - 28-07. Peg 60.

Let the good times roll.