Reports 2000

Fishing Match 2002

 

Odds to win Comments
Matty Barker 2/1 Looking to retain the title
Rick Barker 4/1 Faces a tough challenge for win number 3
Bear Barker 5/1 He's had easier matches than this to win
Jason Hoare 5/1 His form reads well, should be a threat
Gary Haley 8/1 A lot on his plate here

PREVIEW

This is the most anticipated day of the year. It seems a complete lottery as to who is going to win.

Matty Barker must start favourite after a solid catch in MATTY FM 2001 where he won the title. He has kept the catches coming in this season and he has to start as the main man.

Of the challengers to steal his crown, all are going to prove a big threat in one way or another. Jason Hoare has had some big fish catches this season and he must be in with a shout. His only other FM event was in 2000 when he narrowly got beat into second place.

Rick Barker will probably be the biggest danger of all. Challenged Matty all the way in last seasons match and has never been out of the top 2. Being a double FM winner also reads well and although he's had better preparations running up to a match, he will be close at the finish.

It's hard to predict what Bear Barker will do in this years event. Every year he says he'll win it and everyone is worried he will but so far he's done nothing when it really matters. He has too many 3rd places on his CV and it isn't going to be easy to win this year. Must find a bit extra really.

Gary Haley is back for another crack. His big fish prize from FM 2001 keeps him interested for more silverware but it must be said, he was soundly beaten then in terms of total weight and it's going to take something very special to win this match.

 

 HOUR 1

 Mathew found the fish in his peg pretty quickly and was leading after an hour while most of the others sat it out for a big fish.

One hour gone though and everyone still had a great chance. The weather was good for a change.

 

HOUR 2

Once 2 hours had passed Matty was catching plenty of fish close in and had even lost a carp by this point.

Bear was finding the going tough along with Rick while Beavis had a small eel to show for his efforts.

Gary was catching a bit of small stuff.

 

HOUR 3

Beavis was drawing big blanks at this stage and had little to show for 3 hours fishing.

Rick had a few small fish in the net but no monsters and Bear was not enjoying this contest as he began walking around to see other anglers.

Matty continued to catch fish quickly and the weight was building up nicely. Gary had nothing special in the net.

 

HOUR 4

By 4 hours it was going to take a big fish to catch Matty Barker now as he had been catching lots more than anyone else.

Bear got back into things with a good 9oz chub that would challenge for the biggest fish prize, but Mathew had a bream already bigger in his net.

Rick's plan wasn't working and he realised the win was looking less likely while Beavis remained inactive on the catching front.

Gary kept the bits coming in and would have a chance of beating some of the other anglers.

 

HOUR 5

 Matty seemed good for the win but it was going to be difficult to separate the others.

Rick bagged lots of small stuff in the remaining 45 minutes as did Bear, while Gary kept at his usual catch rate.

Beavis looked like he had had a bad match with another bad, final hour.

 

Rick didn't have a great FM 2002 at all

 

REVIEW

  The match proved difficult for all the anglers, although Matty did seem to find plenty of fish in his peg.

The weather was pretty calm and settled for the first time in an FM event and the big fish tended to hide away. It was a well organised event and their were trophies for the individual winner, the biggest fish caught, the best team and prize money for the individual winner.

There were also lots of photos taken by the anglers of all the catches.

 

  • Matty Barker, 1st- It's 2/2 for Matty as he continued the tradition of the favourite for the match not being beaten. He won in some style, over 4lb clear of the next man. There were some good anglers behind him and he looks difficult to beat, even for next year. He rules.9/10

     

  • Gary Haley, 2nd- The 8/1 outsider finished a shock 2nd proving he's not just there to make up the numbers. Gary didn't take it convincingly but he showed he can battle to the finish. It's an improvement on last year and he can only get better from this.6/10

     

  • Rick Barker, 3rd- A massive disappointment this year. He never got going at all and he was out of the top 2 for the first time ever. Admits he was soundly beaten and that means he has to find new tactics for next year. Poor 4/10

     

  • Bear Barker, 4th- Yet another flop. He just cannot do it when it counts and he seems to be going backwards at the moment. His only consolation was that he caught a 9oz chub. Apart from that, he's got it all to do from now on. Found a dead 1oz fish in his net after the weigh in which would have given him joint 3rd ! 4/10

     

  • Jason Hoare, 5th - This is a bad result for Beavis. He was expected to challenge for the title but he got left behind from the start. He knows he can fish a lot better than that and he will be back for a better crack at it next season . 2/10

     

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