Huntingdon aces Stanjay Sports runners-up in team event on Fenland drains
It was the huge Angling Trust Winter League final at the weekend with hundreds of anglers spread across the Fenland drains for half of the match, the other half fishing the majority of the pools at Decoy Lakes.
The best teams in the country were taking part after qualifying through the winter months in their respective leagues, from as far apart as Newcastle and Somerset.
With all the hot favourites lining up were our two local sides – Browning Hotrods and Stanjay Sports, both up with the top teams in the betting, such is the strength of both sides these days.
On the Decoy Lakes first place on the individual front went to Steve Bellion fishing for Milo MGM. He put 69kl 625 to the scales from peg 18 on the Horseshoe Pool. Runner-up with 62kl 250gr was Darren Wright (Sensas A4) from the Beastie Lake peg 13, followed by Lee Gibbon (Matrix Bait Tech/LTB on the Yew Lake peg 12 weighing in 61kl 675gr. Best of our local rods on the Decoy complex was Josh Pace, fishing for Stanjay Gold. He did well from the Six Island peg 11, putting 54kl 275gr to the scales.
A very consistent team card from Browning Hotrods saw them take the top spot with 22 points, with Dynamite Maver Midlands second on 24 points and Drennan North West coming third with 26. Our other local side, Stanjay Gold, came in a creditable sixth with 29 points.
So then all eyes switched over to the Fenland drains which had fished well in the lead up, with the better-than-expected weather helping. Top rod from peg 3 on the Twenty Foot Drain at March was Matt Barnett fishing for Drennan Bordon, just enough to see off the challenge from Dave Brown, who came close with 12kl 120gr from the Old Nene at March. In third place with 11kl 500gr was Lewis Breeze. Best anglers on the drains, for the Stanjay team, was Mark Pollard who came 7th with 10kl 740gr and for Browning Hotrods it was Kye Jerrom with 8kl 350gr. Team-wise on the drains it was Drennan Bordon out in front scoring 12 points, a very good result for the southern side. Congratulations to Stanjay Gold too. They came second with 23 points, followed by Sensas A4 on 26.
The team result, which combined the two sets of results, saw Drennan Bordon taking the Winter League title with 46 points, thanks really to a sensational performance on the drains. Huntingdon-based Stanjay Gold were runners-up with 52 points – a fantastic effort and I am sure all local anglers will join me in congratulating them. Third were Starlets AS on 60, then came other local side Browning Hotrods, 63.
