MICK Farran was top rod in the latest Over 60s Winter League match at Curborough Fishery.
One feature of the series is the joviality among anglers from the moment they arrive at the venue.
Another on this occasion was the fact that goldfish took the place of the all-pervasive chub that dominate everything on the rivers during the winter.
Cold was the obvious problem for half of the field who were pegged at the top end of the venue and sitting in the face of a wind that gradually cut through them.
Most of them struggled to pick up many fish at all.
All of the action was at the other end of the fishery where there was just a little more protection from the high hedge behind them.
Maggots were the favoured bait, which was evident from the fact that all of the top anglers used them — either natural or, as is the modern way, dead ones.
Farran had an exceptional net of 13lbs 9ozs, fishing a 13-metre pole.
Like many of his rivals, he surprisingly found the fish right up the ‘rat holes’, as close to the far bank as possible. He netted a mixture of good-sized goldfish and carp for his weight.
Farran had plenty to spare over his nearest rival, Jeff Eardley, who just happened to be on the next peg — but it was there that any similarity ended.
Eardley struggled to find any fish after taking a carp of at least 5lbs on his first cast (he kept that quiet!) but by alternating between a swim down the middle of the track and one tucked up against the far bank, he netted goldfish and a few very small carp to make up his weight of 9lbs 11ozs.
Third place went to Terry Carpenter with 6lbs 8ozs, all caught from up the ‘rat holes’ and almost all goldfish along with a few small carp, a catch that push Tony Scott on the next peg with 6lbs 1oz was pushed into fourth place with around two dozen fish, all caught using similar tactics.
Just how hard it was on the upper stretch can be judged from the fact the Pete Gourlay was top rod here with 6lbs exactly, almost all of that weight being taken up by one carp of 5lbs with three goldfish as back-up John Adams was expected to win the match after drawing another ‘flier’ — he’ll just love me for saying that! He failed to find any fish of consequence and finished with 5lbs 4ozs and finished in sixth place. He was much derided (jovially) after the match, for weighing in that weight off that peg.
But it was winter — that was his excuse anyway).
STOPPOS Fishery still fished well despite an overnight frost and low temperatures during the day.
It is a deep water and once again that saved the day as the winner, Dave Kinson put 25lbs of carp on to the scales.
He fished the feeder filled with chopped worm and used casters on his hook for the majority of his fish.
The runner-up was the previous week’s winner, Pete Johnson, and he used the same tactics to take 17lbs 9ozs of carp.
John Harper much prefers to fish the waggler and once again it paid off with 11lbs to put him in third place.
He fished casters under his waggler and took at least 7lbs of roach towards a final weight that was boosted by a couple of carp.
