CARP, carp and more carp – that was the matchmen’s weekend lot as a sudden burst of sunny weather brought the brown fish on feed with a bang!
And nowhere was that more true than at Meadowlands where Steve Richards won the spring league second round with an arm-aching 214lb, all taken down the edge on corn and worm.
Nigel Smith made second with less than half that, 111lb, followed by Danny Mount 107-12 and oh-so-close Paul Garner 107-2.
Probably the biggest local carp of the week was Andy Cwiklinski’s 32lb common from Stanwick’s Elsons, where several 20s also came out.
If you fancy a really big eel there could be worse places to try than mega trout water Grafham where, this week’s AT reports, ‘a professional angling guide’ had the surprise of his life when he hooked and landed a 7-8 monster...while fly fishing!
Winning catches in this year’s ‘town specimen group’s annual awards read like an angling dream and range from dainty chalkstream grayling to 220lb mekong cats.
CarpinCapers’ Dougie carried off the all-rounder-of-the-year title.
Full list
Frank Wright Trophy
1st Rob Pitkin Barbel Nene 16-1, 2nd Jamie Cartwright Barbel Nene 15-15, 3rd Rob Pitkin Barbel Nene 15-11
Sea
1st Pete Britten Plaice Weymouth (B) 5-03, 2nd. Pete Chillingsworth Smoothound Bradwell (B) 12lb, 3rd. Andy Gilling Thornback Bradwell (B) 12lb
Fish of the Year (Grayling Only)
1st Pete Chillingsworth River Itchen 2-3, =2nd Paul Douglas River Itchen 1-12, =2nd Bob Church River Test 1-12
Foreign
1st Vince Rogers Mekong Catfish Thailand 220lb, 2nd Vince Rogers Mekong Catfish Thailand 170lb, 3rd Vince Rogers Siamese Carp Thailand 110lb
Cyril Inwood
1st Bob Church Sea Trout River Test 5-8, 2nd Bob Church Brown Trout River Test 6lb, 3rd Bob Church Rainbow Trout Rutland 4-11
Otter Trophy
1st Jamie Cartwright Chub R.ouse 8-4, 2nd Rob Pitkin Barbel R.nene 16-1, 3rd Tony Gibson Carp N’pton G.p. 45-2
Catch
1st Rob Pitkin 9 Barbel R.nene to 16-1, 2nd Tony Gibson 2 Carp N’pton Pit. to 45-2, 3rd Paul Douglas 3 Catfish to 49-7
All Rounder
1st Paul Douglas, 2nd Jamie Cartwright, 3rd Tony Gibson
WHITE Hart Flore, Springpools: Mark Griffiths 99-8, Tom Griffiths 73lb, Andy Sibley 66lb.
OLD Kings Head, Higham on the Hill: Darren Oakley 97lb, Pete Hayward 84lb, Ian Wills 43lb.
DAVENTRY, Tofts (weather included a ‘mini twister’!): Ivan Mills 95-8, Paul Barnes 86-14, Mick Turner 71-2.
CASTLE Ashby: midweek, Grendon, Grant Howie 44-4, Paul Hardman 28-14, Bob Reed 24-4; Saturday, Brickyard, Reed 38-14, Chris Garrett 26-12, Steve Dorks 24-6; Sunday Grendon, Richard Dunkley 38-4, Kevin Folwell 24-8, Keith Bishop 23-8.
BISHOPS Bowl open: Steve Bull 42-10, Mick Wheeler 41-4, Damian Green 39-1.
CASTLE, silverfish, Canons: Jeff Rice 25-2, Paul Lafflin and Nick Antonacci both 20-15.
NEWPORT open, Abbey pits: Kevin Osborne 16-2 (tench to 5-11), Mike Buchwalder 10-6, Dave Tebbutt 10-4.
TOWCESTER open, Bairstows: Mick Goodridge 15-14, Dave Martin 14lb, John Balhatchett 10-10.
FLORE & Brockhall, Barby Mill: Steve Smith 14-6, Rob Rawlins (well out of his depth with fish which fight back) 14-4, Ken Cadd 9-10.
MOBBS Miller, silverfish, Willowbrook: Jim Broadbent 11lb, Ken Taylor 9-12, Philip Hamilton 9-8.
GLEBE, Marston Trussell lake; Pat Byrne 5lb, Dave Jones and Brian Beard both 3-11.
TROUT: town’s Chris Tierney has banked Ravensthorpe’s biggest trout of the season to date, a 14-2 rainbow.
FIXTURES: Sunday, Towcester open, Silver lake 07915 613862; May 5, Newport Abbey pits spring league opener 07795 068428.