After getting back from the European Champs in Poland, it was back to work for one day, before heading off to Gold Valley for the latest round of the match fishing cup. Poland the fishing was grim, but this was going to be the complete opposite, when most people thinking you were going to need 80lb to progress to the next round. This round there is 32 anglers that will be reduced to 16 after todays match, which was being fished on all of Gold lake.
At the draw, I drew old peg 45, which can be a real flier, so I was happy. At my peg it was very obvious that I was probably going to be at the wrong end of the lake as the wind was blowing into the other end of the the lake, there wasn't a fish to be seen at my end of the lake and the other end was 'black'.
As so often happens in a match situation, once the leads start hitting the water, lines going through the water and fish are being hooked and landed the carp have a habit of moving to quieter water, thats what I was hoping for, the area in front of the club house is one area fish can move to during the match.
My first hour was very slow, with hardly a fish being caught around me, then things started to improve, during the next 3 hours I caught 34 carp, casting a method feeder to the steps in front of the cafe, the last hour was ver slow again and I never had a bite. My 34 carp weighed 147lb and I finished 2nd in the match, Pemb Wrighting had a great match near the long island and caught 25 carp for just over 200lb, so the long drive back to Bristol felt a lot better having had a great days fishing and a few quid to help with the costs.
Next round is only 16 anglers left, and it is on the River Trent at Newark Dyke on the 21st July, I fished this area of the Trent in the Div 1 national last year, so I am really looking forward to it, but it will see quite a few more miles on the van and an overnight stop or two for practice.