There were some surprises in the results this year for all the teams taking part in the European Coarse Angling Championships in Opole, Poland from 25th – 26th June 2011. Drennan Team England consisted of; Mark Downes and Mark Addy (Joint Managers), Alan Scotthorne, Steve Gardener, Will Raison, Sean Ashby, Darren Cox and Steve Hemmingray. Drennan Team England averaged around 250gm per angler per day on practice with some perch to be caught so the team targeted them and the bleak that averaged around 180 to the kilo. There were tiny fish to be caught around 0.
Bolies Reign Supreme as Garbolino Dominate BarstonRound 2 of the Preston Innovations backed UK Angling Championships saw a last minute change of venue from Colemans Cottage to the coliseum of competition angling, Bartson Lakes. Host venue of the British Carp Angling Championships the weekend before the UKLAC, Barston saw large quantities of boilies fed in the water and the carp loved it. A tactical team discussion from Darren Cox saw a number of the Garbolino boys hit the lake on the feeder with bright boilies on the hook, loose feeding boilies over the top individually and continually through the match. It paid off and as the scores were checked the Garbolino anglers recorded 4 section wins, with Simon Fry taking overall honours for the whole match with 99lbs 4oz and Harry Billing third overall with 91.
7 teams of eight lined up to fish the second round of the Superleague on the Huntspill between Gold Corner and past the Clapper and the venue fished quite consistently with plenty of Bream, skimmers, eels and Roach to be caught. River Huntspill – Gold Corner to the Clapper (56 pegs). Winner on the day was Kev Perry (Sensas Thyers) who was pegged below Woolavington bridge and caught tight across on the feeder on maggots and worms to take Bream to 4lb and weigh in 49-12. Second was Dave Micklewright (Maver Bathampton) who caught Bream to 3lb on the feeder from peg 60 above Woolavington.
This quality PVA mesh is available in two popular sizes – 23mm and micro 18mm. The mesh is fast melting, even in cold water. The 18mm size looks perfect for winter when a small parcel of feed is all that is needed to tempt a bite. Both sizes come in 5m lengths.
Joe Carass takes a close look at a new family of hooks that is already gaining favour with many top anglers on the match circuit… Even though I’m very young (well, compared to editor Dave Harrell) my angling career stretches over more than 18 years, and the original Preston PR range of hooks seems to have been available for as long as I can remember! There were many cult hooks among that range and I’ve had loads of success using several of the various patterns available. They were hugely popular but, as with all things, technologies move on and hooks can be produced nowadays that are even better than when the original range was first produced. So, having used so many of the old PR range I couldn’t wait to see what the lads at Preston had come up with in their new range. It comprises five hook patterns, which is quite a small range, but it complements the existing PR competition range of barbed hooks and the PR eyed range perfectly.
A quality cool bag is an essential item of tackle, and this massive version from Ultimate looks fantastic. Holding 18 two-pint bait boxes, there is ample room to store all of the bait you need. RRP: £19. 99.
Dave Harrell runs the rule over the latest family of rods to come out of the Japanese tackle giant’s factory in Scotland… Every so often I find myself wondering if tackle companies can actually come up with anything new in terms of rod developments. The raw carbon fibre materials now being used haven’t changed significantly for a number of years so the only things that can be worked with are actions and cosmetics. This new family of six rods from Daiwa actually came about as a result of rods that the Scottish factory developed for the Italian market and, to use Daiwa’s words, they ‘break the rules of rod making. ’There’s no cork in sight on any of these new Airity rods as each one has a tapered butt section, which blends into its own sculptured handle and unique reel seat.
Chard AC members fished the penultimate round of the Spring League in glorious conditions at Perry St Pond on Sunday. Perry St Pond, Somerset. 20 fished. The top weights were excellent and the top two in the league took the top two spots on the day.
Featuring a zip-top lid, this bait bowl will be perfect for transporting your bags of groundbait to the bank. It is also the ideal size to mix groundbait well. RRP: £6. 99.
When anglers of the calibre of Darren Cox and Steve Cooke work together to design a rod range you can probably expect something pretty good. Dave Harrell takes a look at their work… Match rod actions are something that have interested me for many years and having been involved in rod designs and developments myself in a previous career I like to think I know a bit when it comes to passing judgement on them. This new range of four feeder rods has been developed by Darren Cox and Steve Cooke, two incredibly successful feeder anglers in their own rights with a long list of match wins behind them on various waters around the UK, so as you can probably imagine I was looking forward to having a look at the finished products when they arrived at the Match Fishing office. My first reaction when I took all four rods out of the bags and set them up was one of surprise, as I’d expected to waggle another set of soft, parabolic through-action rods, which seems to be the current trend with virtually every rod producer.
