The good thing about all of these matches is the craic, I have been known to give out some stick to individuals on some of the matches I fish, but I do receive a fair bit of provocation as well.
I had not been to Alders Farm since November, but I had an idea of what was working and where I fancied to fish. Believe me this fishery is going places, and developing extremely well. The owners are welcoming, helpful and polite. If they can help you they will.The matches are under the guidance of Trevor Price who runs the fishery side for the owners. The balance works well with plenty of banter in the shop as well.
As this is a local event for both Mick and I, we decided to make our own way to the fishery. Mick having had to take two days holiday looked refreshed and vitalised and ready to take up the MK Nugget challenge.
What a beautiful venue
A full English breakfast was soon devoured, all washed down with a proper mug of tea. Monies paid and it draw time. We had pegs 1 to 10 and 25 to 30 leaving the dam wall to any pleasure anglers. As is the norm, Mick goes into the bag and out pops peg 1, believe me I have never in twenty odd years of knowing Mick seen him run until today.
Kris another of the MK anglers, had drawn well in peg 29, a shallow peg but does normally hold a few better fish. Me, well I go into the pot and draw end peg 10, with the wind blowing out of it and a couple of pleasure anglers in the corner pegs. However, I am a new man and have a PMA, belief that there is no such thing as a poor peg, just a poor angler fishing it.So with my head firmly being firmly held up by my belly, I trundled off to the corner of shame.
So I was going to be up against it. My section was a collection of reprobates from within the angling fraternity, Mugger Morton on peg 25 all on his lonesome.
Me on 10, Dave " the Paste" Pontin on 8 and the Reverend Tony Roberts on 6.
I set up a top four bottom rig, a top three bottom rig, a top two bottom rig which doubled as a margin rig. A shallow rig completed the set up. Fishing long was not going to happen today. Bait was to be corn down the edge, pellet on the longer lines 4mm fishery pellet for feed with 6 or 8mm hookers.
At the all in I threw a handful of corn down the left edge on a topkit and a handful of 4mm sinkers on the top three line. I then started fishing the top four line. I know this sounds strange but I have found this works if you want the fish to come closer. I can then follow then in rather than out.
I had a fish straight away with a banded 6mm hard pellet but then things got strange, I felt fish were in the peg as there was some clouding up of the water but I could not get a bite. Lifting and dropping, switching to a 4mm banded or 6mm expander made no difference. Changing to a top three, I could only foul hook fish and the elastics were too tight, changed them over and landed a couple but still only the first fish was hooked in the mouth. by the end of the first hour I was going no where with 4 fish. I tried fishing around the feed and this improved things a little with a few more hooked fish in the mouth. After 2 hours I had 12 fish for around 30lb. Dave Pontin was admitting to 4 fish but there was a lot of splashing noises coming from his peg. I could not see Tony or Peter but knew they would come good at some point. Word was though that it was fishing slow. Things may work out if I could keep those fishy things coming. A couple of quick looks down the edge brought a single carp around 2lb. Back out to top four and a run of fish every other put in. The bites though were very slight, so I dotted it right down and greased the bristle to help with surface tension. When that slowed I came in closer and again a few more fish for the nets. The only line that did not produce was the top two line. A switch to the margins with 90 minutes to go, saw a few better fish show and I managed another 60lb in that time. On a harder than most day it was very welcome.
At the all out I could not really put a weight on my catch, it was a strange one, I thought I had done a ton twenty but doubt crept in when I started the weighing in.
Starting at Peg 1 Mick was grinning like a cheshire cat, He had caught well all day and had 4 nets in place. The scales settled on 143lb. That would take some beating.
Jim lost out to his son in the father and son battle on pegs 2 and 3 with Mikey taking the honours 80lb to 68lb. Chris was on peg 5 and although he enjoyed his day was never in it, he is on the mend from a serious injury and with time will get back to full strength. Tony used his holy licence to sneak in with 96lb and another near ton. Mr Sparkle Dave Pontin was up next and was looking quite confident. However the scales confirmed a different story and 92lb.
Dave with part of his 92lb catch
I was up next and with three nets in and Mick in attendance I managed to scrape 145-08 for a sneaky MK Nugget. The section though was still up for grabs, only Mugger to go, and despite his best efforts could only muster 125-12.
Clive as always is a danger, and by all accounts had caught well from the off, there were rumours he was standing on his box to land fish but 141lb was good enough for his section. Dave unfortunately was struggling with arthritis and 38lb. Onto Kris, giggling his way around the weighing in, looking for every little plus point to take with him. 104lb and another ton for a genuinely nice man. John was last to trouble the scalesman with a good 89lb.
Overall
1st Keith Ashby Peg 10 145-08
2nd Mick Wright Peg 1 143-00
3rd Clive Pritchard Peg 27 141-04
4th Pete Morton Peg 25 125-12
5th Kris Old Peg 29 104-00
6th Tony Roberts Peg 6 96-12.
Overall a good day for me, A hard won win, good banter with Dave Pontin next door. A MK Nugget off Mick a good fair match, with no one running away with it. I cannot make the next match so that will have an effect on the league but that is the price I must pay for a week with the Yam Yams and a few rarely drunk beers.
Mick 5
Keith 6
And a quick poll on Facebook says that peg 1 is a preferred choice of the dozen anglers responding.
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