A quality combo! Check out the latest rod-and-reel combo from Shakespeare!There was a time, many years ago, when a Shakespeare rod was the very object of my dreams! I remember as a young 11-year-old walking by the tackle shop on my way to school and looking longingly at the purple blank on the Shakespeare Quo 12ft feeder rod. Of course, the rod was way out of my price range and no matter how hard I saved my pocket money I could never quite get there. That all changed, though, when one Christmas my dad bought me the very rod I had dreamed of, and it is a rod I still own to this day! Every angler in my town used Shakespeare gear and it was the stuff to be seen using. However, it has now been a long time since I have fished with a rod from Shakespeare, so when editor Alex Bones gave me the new Agility 12ft Feeder rod and matching 40FD reel I couldn’t wait to see what they were like.
Maver 'Match This' Champ in hunt for £30K prize. Matrix and Bait Tech-backed ace Les Thompson has made it two big finals in as many years, after winning the Fish 'O' Mania qualifier at Essex venue, Colemans Cottage. He explained: “I had never even seen the venue prior to the match on Saturday, and when I drew Peg 4 on Copse Pool, I wasn’t too sure what to expect. The regulars told me that it was a decent area, but usually the pegs that can reach across to the island prove better – and all I had in front of me was open water.
River star to attend shop open day. Alan Clark, the new owner of Thames Valley Angling, has set up a special open day for existing and new customers on Saturday 27th April. Joining Alan in the shop on that day will be well-known river expert and former Match Fishing Magazine Editor, Dave Harrell and Angling Trust Campaigns Co-ordinator Martin Salter. The pair will be on hand to offer advice on all things to do with river fishing and also the activities of the Angling Trust.
Same peg gives angler festival win, and place in £50k final. When James Dent drew the noted Peg 16 on Twin Oaks on the final day of last week’s Dynamite Baits festival at White Acres, many people predicted it was a ticket to victory. So it proved – the Teesside ace bagged 170lb of carp, which built on his good results for the rest of the week to give him a perfect 36-point score – and victory in the 180-angler event. Unbelievably, the next day saw the MAP and Marukyu-backed rod draw the very same peg in the qualifier for the £50,000 Maver 'Match This' final.
Top tackle sponsor for angling’s Mr Consistent. England Feeder team ace, Grant Albutt has signed for Matrix. Grant, who is arguably the UK’s most consistent angler, is to join the company in a consultancy role. He said: “I am over the moon to be joining Matrix, which is one of the fastest-growing companies in the UK market.
Ellis Driscoll on winning the Drennan Coca Cola Festival at White Acres. On Day one I was on Trelawney and having had a practice on the lake the day before, I knew it would be hard! I had a bit of luck drawing Peg 23 (some call it “the F1 bay”) and I had a great chance of winning my lake if not the section, but to win I’d have to work hard to beat the angler on Peg 20 in particular. There are strict rules at White Acres regarding permitted baits and quantities. I used a mix of ABC Betaine green CP70 Method mix, micro pellets, 4mm pellets, 6mm pellets and casters.
First-ever ticket lands Doncaster man in final. Marukyu-backed rod Craig Jones, an accountant from Doncaster, has won the Makins Fish 'O' Mania qualifier with a 99lb 8oz bag. Fishing his first-ever Fish ‘O’ Mania qualifier, Craig brought a splendid 99lb 8ozs to the scales from Peg A13 on Lake 2. He only had a dozen fish with the biggest weighing around 15lb.
Exclusive digital bookazine with FREE app and taster issue. The Angling Heroes series pulls together the best articles from the biggest names in match fishing. In the second issue in the series, we look back at 20 of Darren’s most memorable features – relive his biggest angling achievements, and learn from some of the best technical pieces to ever go to press in an angling publication. Few modern match anglers have a record as impressive as England International, Darren Cox.
Tight finish in final round of Winter League. Matrix Dynamite Trentmen have won the Lakeside Fishery Winter League, after a close finish. Going in to the final round Trentmen were winning the league by a four-point margin, but a late surge by second-placed team, Daylite Baits almost saw victory snatched from their grasp. On the day, Daylite Baits took victory with a 10-point score, but Trentmen managed to clinch the overall title after weight countback put them 45lb in front.
Steve Hemingray replaces Stu Conroy in World Champs line-up
Steve Hemingray is to be given his chance to represent England at World Championship level.
The former European Champ said: "I am absolutely delighted to be given the chance – it is the culmination of everything I have worked for. I have faced some difficult decisions over the last few years and sacrificed a lot, including a place in the England Feeder team, to give myself the best possible chance of getting in the World Championship squad. All that hard work has paid off, and I am over the moon!”Steve will join defending World Champion Sean Ashby, former World Champion Will Raison, five-times World Champion Alan Scotthorne and England stalwarts Steve Gardener and Des Shipp, in making up the 2013 Drennan Team England World Championship squad.
