Venue week after week never fails to produce top quality fishing with some of the best winter roach action
It was back on the Old Nene at March for the penultimate round of the East Midland Winter League and I am just about out of superlatives for this venue.
Week after week it never fails to produce top quality fishing and once again those fishing enjoyed some of the best winter roach action to be had anywhere in the country, with just about every angler putting double figure nets to the scales – quite remarkable.
A quality line-up saw ex-world champion Bob Nudd top the field with 30lb 12oz.
It was a near perfect display of short whip fishing on bread punch as you would expect from Bob, who is still one of the best in the country at this style of fishing.
Browning Hotrods’ Ricky Young was second with 28lb 4oz fishing punch to start with, but switching to pinkie and hemp on the waggler later in the match to keep the fish coming. John Weeden was third netting a fine 27lb 1oz, followed by Rob Hubbard with 26lb 13oz.
On the all-important team front, Browning Hotrods’ great run came to an end and they could only make third on the day behind Stanjay Gold, then came Matrix Image. Browning Hotrods remain league leaders with eight points. Before this match they looked to have all but wrapped up the league with just one match to go.
But now Stanjay Gold are second with nine and it’s going to go down to the wire.
With Matrix Image third with 13 points, and the match venue in a couple of weeks’ time split between March Twenty Foot Drain and Ramsey High Lode at Factory Bank, you never know we could yet have an almighty tussle for the top spot.
Wednesday Tydd Gote result: 1 Mike Asker 10lb; 2 John Taylor 9lb 14oz; 3 Pete Emery 8lb 0oz.
The North Level Drain has seen some very good weights with the mild weather still with us. In the popular Sunday Tydd Gote club match Steve Borrett caught an unseasonal tench of 4lb in his otherwise mixed bag of 11lb 3oz which gave him the win. Dennis Houghton had a steady days sport catching 70 fish for 9lb 9oz to give him the runner-up spot, then came Don Green who had 8lb 9oz of roach caught on hempseed.
Even more fish have been recently stocked into the North Level Drain as the Tydd Gote club continue their working arrangement with the Environment Agency. A good stocking of small skimmer bream when in and should ensure even better sport over the next few years. Not resting on their laurels though the club then got together with their landlords, the North Level Drainage Board for the annual reed cutting and clearing debris work parties from the drain. A spokesman for the club said: “We at Tydd Gote Angling Club will continue working hard to make sure are members fishing continues to be rewarding, but if you could all remember without the help of above agencies it would be a lot harder.”
The Cuckoo Canal Pool was the venue for the latest Townsend Lakes open at the weekend which saw fishery boss Colin Begbie take a narrow victory from peg 15 with 65lb 14oz, catching on the long pole line all day with pellet. Coming just a few ounces short with 65lb 5oz was runner up Steven Hillman on peg 18, he was also on the long pole over to the far side, but fished maggot. Third was Derrick Upson with 34lb 2oz.
In the Wednesday Over 60’s Open on the Raven Lake at Rookery Waters constant rain and gusting winds made for a tough day but the winning weights were still very respectable. Top spot went to in form Vic German on peg 11, who dobbed bread to the far shelf for 69lb 4oz. Second was Roy Whincup on peg 25, who weighed in 45lbs 8ozs, with Will Hadley third on a level 40lb.
Saturday saw the Rookery Waters Teams of Three Winter League fished over the Jay, Magpie and Raven Lakes. Top spot on the Jay Lake went to Denis Page on peg 47, who fished bread over to the far shelf for 70lb 1oz. Over on the Magpie Pool it was Dave Rawlings on peg 24 taking the honours, he fished the long pole at 16m all day, to win the lake with 88lb 12ozs with his catch all falling to dobbed bread. On the Raven Lake Wayne Shepherd returned to winning ways with a solid performance on peg 4, to win the lake with 87lb 13oz. He fished a long pole line with bread and maggot.
