Christmas Match, Westerleigh, 11 December (22 pegs)

Apparently the coffin-dodgers had fished a match on both lakes the day before and also on the Thursday and with the water being cold and clear a tough day's fishing was anticipated. And with the new lake having been fishing poorly this year the bottom lake was the place to be and sure enough this was where all of the top five weights came from.
Leading the charge (and entertaining everyone within earshot) was Craig Trigger Edmunds on peg 9 who took full advantage of the fact that his peg was stuffed with feeding fish.  Craig alternated white maggot and soft pellet on the hook and only fed 15 micros and 3 maggots to get them interested at the start.  He landed a carp on his first put in and followed this with a steady run of small roach, carp, f1's and crucians plus a mutant goldfish for a total of 33lbs 7oz which won him £55 in pools plus a free membership and a Mosella Kompact4 rod holdall!
   Just missing out on the rod holdall was match organiser, Steve Burgess on peg 6 who landed five carp and a few silvers for 21lbs 10oz.  Steve fished at 9 metres with maggot and caster hookbaits over micro pellet feed and later with double red maggot over caster four feet off the platform of peg 5.  In an ironic twist to last week's result at Boyd Valley, and much to the amusement of Trigger,  Steve managed to loose seven foul-hookers which cost him the match (and the rod holdall) but he remained chirpy and not bitter in any way, shape or form and was more than happy with a stink bag, keepnet and fifty notes!
    Third on the day went to Rich Britton on peg 8 (you may have noticed a pattern developing here) with 16lbs.  Rich caught 12lbs of that in the first ten minutes with one fish that took his white pinkie hookbait.  He spent the rest of the match catching tiny roach on pinkie and watching Trigger catching quality fish 8 feet away from his float. Rich took home a power net handle and £45 for his efforts.
    Paul Elmes couldn't stop smiling when he drew peg 1 and was witnessed running to his van from the pub carpark to get to his peg. Normally you would expect Paul to be heard across the entire lake, especially with Trigger in "abuse range" but today he was very quiet indeed, no doubt wondering why he hadn't easily won the match from the best peg on the lake.  Despite at one point going off to buy more fags and a length of rope from B&Q (to hang himself), he eventually weighed in 13lbs 12oz for fourth place which earned him a Preston pole support and £40.

Overall Result:
(Results in red are on the top lake)

1. Trigger ........ peg 9 ... 33-7
2. Steve Burgess ... 6 ... 21-10
3. Rich Britton ...... 8 ... 16-0
4. Paul Elmes ....... 1 ... 13-12
5. Kev Jefferies ..... 2 ... 11-3
6. Jamie Brown .... 21 .. 10-7
7. Andy Bush ....... 4 .... 9-3
8. Rich Jones ....... 14 ... 8-3
9. Chris Gay ........ 19 ... 6-15
10. Stuart Riddle ... 26 ... 5-9
11. Alan Healy ....... 31 ... 5-4
12. Dave Tippet ..... 23 ... 3-13
13. Mark Radford ... 24 ... 3-4
14. Stuart Ashton ... 12 ... 3-3
15. Mike Welling ..... 32 ... 2-10
16. Eddie Wynne .... 28 ... 2-0
17. Paul Reed ........ 33 ... 0-13
18. Darren North ... 35 ... 0-5
19. Steve Wynne ... 11 ... 0-1
20. Neil Mercer ...... 15 ... 0-2
21. Derek Lucas ..... 21 ... 0-1
22. Simon Belcham .. 17 .. dnw

Many thanks to all who turned out and made it a thoroughly enjoyable day and to all who have supported the club throughout the year.
Thanks also to Tony Rixon for his help with the tackle prizes which were much appreciated and also to Dean Malin.
Thanks also to Mugger Shanks for doing the pegging and organising the breakfast.
And thanks to Chris Gay (and wife) for organising the food which was excellent and also to Sam and Sonny Burgess for heating it up!
Finally, hope everyone has a great Christmas and see you all in the New Year at the next meeting on Tuesday 3 January (which may possibly be a curry night if anyone's interested)!

Westerleigh, Top Lake, 17 April (10 pegs)

This Sunday last year we were on Campbell and the match was won by Trigger in his flip-flops with 133lbs 4oz and, if I remember rightly, the weather conditions on the day were identical .. warm, bright sunshine and little or no wind.
The fishing, however, couldn't have been more different as many of Westerleigh's resident carp were cruising around just below the surface with no intention of feeding whatsoever and to make matters worse, even the roach and skimmers were playing hard to get.
Stuart Riddle, on peg 31, made the best of it with 23lbs 4oz caught across and down his left margin, although his weight was boosted half an hour before the "all out" by a near double-figure grass carp that had it's afternoon sunbathing spoilt when it was coaxed into breathing in Stuart's hookbait! 
Rich Britton took second place (the best genuinely caught weight on the day) with 15-1 from peg 35 and Stuart Ashton claimed 3rd and the best silvers weight with 11-11 from peg 21.
Mark Britton unfortunately only got as far as the car park and never even managed to draw as he was suffering from "dodgy guts" ..... it was mentioned that he may be pregnant but I won't say where that rumour came from otherwise Bob's wedding invite could be going in the bin!

 

After coaxing out a 10lb grass carp Stuart unfortunately suffered a minor mental breakdown 

Full Result: 

1. Stuart Riddle ..... peg 31 .... 23-4
2. Rich Britton ........ 35 ........ 15-1
3. Stuart Ashton ..... 21 ........ 11-11
4. Chris Gay ........... 23 ........ 10-8
5. Simon Belcham ... 27 ........ 8-14
6. Bob Warren ......... 29 ....... 6-11
7. Darren North ....... 28 ....... 6-5
8. Yan .................... 26 ....... 6-4
9. Derek Lucas ........ 33 ....... dnw
10. Steve Burgess* ............. 32 ........... dnw

Silvers:

1. Stuart Ashton ..... 11-11
2. Rich Britton ........ 9-14
3. Simon Belcham ... 8-14
4. Chris Gay ........... 7-15
5. Bob Warren ........ 6-11
6. Darren North ...... 6-5
7. Yan .................... 5-0
8. Stuart Riddle ....... 4-12

*golden peg

Westerleigh, Top Lake, 26 March (12 pegs)

Despite the decent weather on the day it was unfortunately one of those days where the lake's inhabitants weren't playing ball and, for most, a bite from anything was a premium.
Not so however for that legend of the coffin dodger circuit Bob Warren.
Armed with a fountain of knowledge and a bag full of leftover bait (nothing new there) from Thursday's Kingswod over-55's match, plus an healthy suntan from his recent Caribean cruise, Bob started the match on a roll catching skimmers and good sized silvers on soft pellet at close range from peg 23.
Simon Belcham, tucked around the corner on peg 21 was also catching on maggot while at the opposite end of the match Alan Healy on peg 29 was getting the odd good fish in between catching roach fry as was Mike Smith on peg 27.
Steve Burgess did manage to boost a fairly dismal net with a near 5lb carp that was hooked in the tail but despite trying every area in his swim and everyone else's, he also struggled.

Full Result:

1. Bob Warren ...... peg 23 ... 13-3
2. Simon Belcham ...... 21 ... 12-4
3. Alan Healy .............. 29 ... 11-4
4. Mike Smith ............. 27 ... 9-0
5. Steve Burgess .......... 32 ... 6-10
6. Eddie Wynne .......... 28 .... 6-0

Silvers:

1. Bob Warren ....... 10-5
2. Simon Belcham .. 8-2
3. Mike Smith ......... 7-3
4. Alan Healy .......... 6-8
5. Eddie Wynne ...... 3-9
6. Steve Burgess ..... 1-14

Christmas Match, Westerleigh, 15 Jan (19 pegs)

No big weights today but a very tight result with only 6lbs separating the top 10 places.
The old lake was the place to be with peg 19 producing the top weight of 18lbs 8oz for Paul Elmes (despite his reservations at the draw) followed by Adam Caswell on peg 1 with 17lbs 2oz. Third overall and top weight on the new lake was Neil Mercer with 15lbs 6oz from peg 26.
Thanks, as ever, to Tony for the tackle prizes and also to Dean (who was sadly missed at the evening do), and to Bob Warren for his invaluable help with the pegging.  In addition, a big thankyou to my good wife for doing the food (bless her) and to Mike Smith's wife, Jacky for folding up the raffle tickets.
And thanks to everyone for supporting the club throughout 2010!

Full Result:

1. Paul Elmes .... peg 19 ..... 18-8
2. Adam Caswell ....... 1 ..... 17-2
3. Neil Mercer ......... 26 .... 15-6
4. Ryan Jordan ........ 2 ..... 15-0
5. Trigger ............... 10 .... 14-10
6. Simon Belcham ... 33 .... 13-13
7. Steve Wynne ...... 15 ..... 13-12
8. Ade Crawley ....... 6 ....... 13-9
9. Eddie Wynne ...... 21 ...... 13-6
10. Rich Jones .......... 24 ..... 12-6
11. Adam Woodland .. ? ....... 9-14
12. Mike Smith ......... 8 ....... 8-12
13. Bob Warren ........ 29 ...... 8-9
14. Steve Burgess .... 23 ....... 7-1
15. Alan Healy ......... 31 ....... 5-0
16. Stuart Ashton ..... 22 ...... 4-12
17. Paul Reed ........... 11 ...... 4-2
18. Mark Radford ....... 4 ....... 3-11
19. Derek Lucas ....... 28 ....... 3-4

Westerleigh, Old Lake, 31 October (12 pegs)

More often remembered for his monumental Sunday morning hangovers and string of ex-wives than his match fishing pedigree, Southmead's finest (only) Steel Fixer, Stevie Wynne turned the form book on it's head to produce a comfortable win.
Drawn on peg 13, Steve alternated between corn, meat and maggot at 13m and in the margins ending up with a 53-7 mixed bag which included a 10lb 7oz lump caught on double red maggot.
Surprisingly that now makes it eight matches in a row that Steve has fished without breaking a pole section or having a rod towed onto the lake!

The Southmead fishing bus was a happy place to be on the journey home as Steve's long-term partner and soulmate, Rich Jones, took second spot with 38-14 from peg 4.
Richard fished similar tactics to the winner but had more success with 8mm banded pellet on the hook. Unfortunately he did manage to lose two good sized fish which spent the rest of the day feeding in the safety of Adam Woodland's peg where they were in no danger of being caught!
Third place went to Simon Belcham on peg 19 with 38-2 caught on maggot and meat while Ryan Jordan completed the frame with 36-3 from peg 9 using the same baits in the margins and out at 13m.

Mike Smith was not far behind with 34-1 from peg 18 but lost ground however, due to a couple of spells of goose wrestling while Bob Warren chose to go for a swim after the "all out" to retrieve his new hook.  Luckily Bob's wallet is watertight so his Green Shield stamps, pension book and bus pass were all perfectly safe and dry!

Ade Crawley playing a feisty 2lb carp ........

...... and landing it 30 minutes later.

A very cold, wet, but happy Bob Warren after successfully retrieving his brand new size 14 Tubertini 808 and half a pint of leftover casters.

Full Result:

1. Steve Wynne ....... peg 13 ...... 53-7
2. Rich Jones .................. 4 ....... 38-14
3. Simon Belcham ........... 19 ...... 38-4
4. Ryan Jordan ................ 9 ....... 36-3
5. Mike Smith ................. 18 ...... 34-1
6. Darren North .............. 12 ....... 25-2
7. Ade Crawley ............... 2 ........ 18-14
8. Paul Reed ................... 15 ...... 17-10
9. Stuart Ashton .............. 1 ....... 17-3
10. Bob Warren ................. 11 ..... 16-12
11. Alan Healy .................. 10 ...... 11-7
12. Adam Woodland ........... 6 ....... DNW

Christmas Match, Westerleigh, 29 November (21 pegs)

1. Neil Mercer .......... 43-5 .... peg 2
2. Darren North ........ 38-3 ..... 15
3. Ryan Jordan .......... 31-0 ..... 1
4. Tony Rixon ............ 17-0 ..... 23
5. Mark Radford ........ 16-12 ... 31
6. Paul Elmes ............. 15-6 ..... 9
7. Rich Jones ............. 14-9 ..... 27
8. Bob Warren ........... 13-12 .... 5
9. Steve Wynne .......... 12-5 ..... 19
10. Alan Healy ............. 9-8 ....... 13
11. Adam Woodland .... 8-15 ..... 10
12. Simon Belcham ...... 8-8 ...... 32
13. Mike Wilson ........... 6-0 ...... 22
14. Mark Britton ........... 5-0 ...... 26
15. Derek Lucas ............ 4-13 ..... 12
16. Dean Malin ............. 4-4 ...... 33
17. Steve Burgess ......... 4-0 ...... 35
18. Paul Reed ............... 3-0 ...... 25
19. Dave Tippet ............ 2-0 ...... 21
20. Stuart Riddle .......... 1-11 ...... 4
21. Adam Caswell ......... DNW ... 24
    

(Old Lake)

Special thanks to all of the following ....

• Marie (Paul Elmes' mrs) for the excellent buffet
• Mike Wilson (with help from Darren) for all the organisation
• Brian Shanks (and Darren) for the pegging
• Tony Rixon for supplying the excellent tackle prizes
• Dean for suppling pellets & groundbait
• Dave Tippet for the raffle ticket sales
• Simon Belcham & Dean for providing the day's entertainment!!!

For Tony Rixon's blog report click here
For Roy Garland's report and pictures click here

Westerleigh, Old Lake, 1 November (13 pegs)

Overall Result:

1. Darren North .... 41-7 (peg 1)
   
2. Mike Wilson ......... 39-4 (13)
3. Simon Belcham .... 30-0 (8)
   
4. Mark Radford ....... 29-12 (15)
   
5. Alan Healy ............ 25-12 (4)
   
6. Adam Caswell ....... 20-3 (2)
   
7. Steve Wynne ......... 19-11 (11)
   
8. Bob Warren .......... 15-8 (9)
   
9. Adam Woodland .. 9-10 (6)
   
10. Ryan Jordan ......... 8-2 (14)
    
11. Derek Lucas .......... 8-0 (9)
    
12. Paul Reed .............. 4-10 (10)
    
13. Mark Britton ......... DNW (5)
    

Pairs:

1. Darren North / Adam Caswell .... 32pts ... 61-10
2. Alan Healy / Mark Radford .......... 27 ...... 55-8
3. Adam Woodland / Mike Wilson ... 26 ...... 48-14
4. Derek Lucas / Simon Belcham ...... 15 ...... 38-0

Pairs To Date:

1. Alan Healy / Mark Radford ........ 425pts .... 2,018-6
2. Darren North / Adam Caswell ... 380 ....... 1,571-1
3. Paul Reed / Steve Burgess .......... 284 ........ 1,282-9
4. Derek Lucas / Simon Belcham .... 276 ........ 1,084-11
5. Mark Britton / Dave Tippet ......... 112 ......... 433-3
6. Adam Woodland / Mike Wilson ... 95 ......... 469-10