Saturday 16/04/2011 - Hillview Open

Back to Hillview with son Steve, after our standard double toasty sandwich breakfast Keith decided that because of the numbers it would be both Lakes and the first canal in the draw. So I was first (based on the youngest first) in to the smelly woolly hat and out comes peg 39 on Heron. I can’t remember when I fished the peg last – many years ago I think. I wasn’t disappointed even though I had a few regular noses turn up at it. Steve drew peg 2 on Moorhen, a peg I fancied – got that wrong.

All the pegs at Hillview have margins that have been worked at by many anglers over many years and it doesn’t take long to plumb around to find where to fish them - both Right and Left hand. I set up a paste rig and a banded pellet rig for the LH margin and a corn rig for the RH. My main attack was to be the soft pellet rig to be fished at 5 metres (top 6) for which I set up a 4x14 Jolly with the tip blackened down, to target the F1’s. On the whistle I started to feed 4 mm pellets in the LH margin and few grains of corn in t the RH, followed up with a dozen 4’s and 20 odd micros at 5 metres.

I started in the LH margin (it's one of the few venues you can do this) with 6mm banded pellet and had a small F1 first cast. I then missed a few bites, so switched to the 5 metres with 3mm expander hook bait. I had a run of F1’s with a smattering of Skimmers. However, I couldn’t get the feeding right through the Kinder. If I fed too noisily or too much the Carp would scatter and interrupt the F1’s, with the odd lost foul hooked Carp replacing them. I tried the LH margin with paste and the RH with corn but there wasn’t any sign of Carp. I persevered for the remainder of the match on the 5 metre line landing more F1’s and Skimmers plus 7 carp to 4lb. The F1’s are very difficult to unhook as they either shed the hook in to the landing net or double hook themselves as they will not keep still. Nonetheless a very interesting fish to catch. I weighed 21lb of Carp and 46lb 1oz of F1’s and Skimmers for a total of 67lb 1oz. this left me penniless, second in the section and 9th overall.

The match was won by Richard Ahern (pictured right sat reflecting on his box) with 109lb 10oz from peg 14. Richard caught initially out and around mugging half dozen Carp. However, Rich caught most of his fish in his LH corner margin using triple maggot on a no 16 - 911 hook to 0.14 hook length. Rich fed a total 3 ½ pints of maggots. If there was any angler I would want to win (other than son and me) would be Rich as he has had a bad spell with one thing or another, plus he is a bloody nice bloke. Richard nice to have you back.

Steve DNW'd but had a few carp late on - wrong end of the lake.

Full Result:

1. Richard Ahern 109-10-0 peg 14
2. Luke Hughes 106-07-0 peg 37
3. Francis Porter 100-06-0 peg 12
4. Terry King 94-0-0 peg 18
5. Trevor Chalk 87-09-0 peg 16
6. Shaun Wilson 85-12-0 peg 22