Sunday 15/03/2009 - Avon Angling Open - Avalon Fishery

I have it on good Intel that a Dace of 1lb 3oz was caught last week on the River Chew at Compton Dando. This is the Bathampton AA waters – right hand bank upstream of the river bridge. Shame the season has ended, otherwise I would have given it a go next week. Roll on the 16th June.

Well, I couldn’t draw peg 26 again as it wasn’t in the draw bag. So I drew the nearest to it; peg 25! I decided this time to go easy with the micro pellet, feeding a small amount at 11 o clock on the 14 metre line. However, I also decide to feed a ground bait and caster line at the same distance, but at 2 0 clock. I couldn't get a bite on either line, until I switched to worm over the GB line. This resulted in two Skimmers, one Tench and a small Carp, all in consecutive put-ins! I kept trying the pellet line but to no avail. I bravely decided to feed chop worm and caster over the GB line, this totally killed the swim. Now well past the midway point, I decided to set up the 4 metre whip with maggot and caster for the Ronnies. Strange, I couldn’t string any more than a couple of Ronnie’s or Rudd together at any one position. I tried all sorts of feeding patterns, but couldn’t work it out. The fish appear to be very nervous. I finished the match with 1lb 5oz of Carp and 4lb 3oz of Silvers for a total of 5lb 8oz.

The match was won by my good friend Clayton Hudson (pictured right with two of his best double figure Carp) from peg 38 with 115lb 6oz - an all Carp catch. Clayton fished the pellet waggler eighteen inches deep up to the far island, hair rigging 10mm hard pellet and feeding six and eight mm pellet over the top. However, Clayton struggled in the last hour, landing one more Carp. He had the match won after the first hour anyway!!

The Silvers was won by Alan Oram with just 10lb 14oz of Tench and Bream from peg 19. Runner up was Chris Derrick with 10lb 4oz, having a 3lb 4oz Crucian adjudicated as a non Silver fish – unlucky Chris; they count on every other match I fish.

Full Result:

1. Clayton Hudson 115-06-0 peg 38
2. Steve Skelton 45-15-0 peg 11
3. Vince Brown 41-0-0 peg 5
4. Lee Pesticcio 33-13-0 peg 3
5. Alan Smith 30-14-0 peg 16 (three Carp – one 16lb 4oz pictured right)
6. Anthony O’Reilly 28-0-0 peg 6

Top Silvers:

1. Alan Oram 10-14-0 peg 19
2. Chris Derrick 10-04-0 peg 12
3. Steve Kedge 9-15-0 peg 30