HOUR 1
The low pegs had windy swims while those with high draws had still water to fish into. Matty bagged up on minnows instantly as did Chris Barker and Bear Barker.
Tom Hoare got off the mark with a small fish while Shaun Truscott bagged 2 in the first hour. Rick was blank after an hour and Brummy had 1 fish in his net.
HOUR 2
Matty was happy to keep catching the smaller stuff at this stage along with Chris Barker. Brummy had a tough 2nd hour having little luck at all as well as Shaun.
Gary was finding a few bits but not a lot. Rick finally started catching some smaller stuff near the surface. Jason bagged a big bream on sweet corn to put him near the top of the leader board.
HOUR 3
The sun was now very hot and the smaller fish really picked up for Chris Barker and Rick as it was a fish a chuck. Bear, fishing tight to the
lilies was finding very small fish in his peg.
It had gone quiet for Jason and Tom Hoare in the middle pegs however while Gary continued to struggle along.
Shaun had nothing else to show after hour 3 and Brummy got a small perch. Matty was now fishing further out and began picking up some bream up to about a pound.
HOUR 4
Jon Brummy , Tom Hoare, Jason Hoare and Shaun Truscott all looked beaten by now as the sun never let up. Gary needed a monster at this point also if he was going to feature. Bear Barker was now catching small fish every cast and was beginning to put a bit of weight in the net but only slowly.
Matty took a couple more average sized bream to boost his weight. Rick had to use his landing net for the first time as a good roach came in. Chris Barker was still catching a few in the end peg.
HOUR 5
By this stage it was a 4 horse race really. Gary couldn't get much in the final hour, and Jason had been ages without a bite by this stage.
For the minor placings, it was close between Tom, Shaun, and Jon. Rick had a bad last 45 minutes catching nothing at all. Chris Barker had made the most of a difficult peg but it didn't look enough as Bear was still going well in his peg although the fish were still very small indeed.
Matty Barker went back for the minnows in the last hour after bagging some good bream which gave him the extra 2lb he would need to win the event.
REVIEW
Matty Barker - 1st- With a new venue, everyone believed he was going to be weaker... but he wasn't. He found the fish he needed to give himself a pretty good weight considering the heat. He didn't have the best peg although it looked good. He failed to dominate totally this year as he missed out on the biggest fish prize by 1oz ! Top stuff again and roll on title number 4 next year. 9/10
Bear Barker -2nd- This is Bear's first ever top 2 placing and it took him 5 years. In this match he caught fish a plenty most of the time and there were rumours amongst some anglers on the bank that he'd stolen it. Bear drew a very shallow peg but had what every angler wanted ---
lily pads. It wasn't to be but he had more fish than anyone and he stuck to the task all day. A solid show and about time. 7/10
Rick Barker - 3rd- A blank first hour always meant it was going to be a hard
fight back but he certainly did and eventually he got the fish fizzing like crazy near the surface. It was a good peg with reeds to the left and bushes the right and Rick made sure he took plenty of fish.
However without a big fish he was always going to be just off the winners pace. Average performance. 6/10
Chris Barker Snr -4th- It must be said that he drew the dead peg. It was shallow, there was no wind and the sun was baking hot. The old master used his experience though to find those fish and he had a very respectable net of fish by the end. For him to win the match on his first trip in 25 years and from that peg was asking too much. So he
definitely did well to finish just behind the top 3. 7/10
Gary Haley - 5th - It's a known fact that Gary hates the sun and it showed again with a well below average performance here. He was drawn alongside the champ with possibly a better peg as there were
lily pads everywhere to fish up to. Gary couldn't find the fish though and this is a major set back for him. No silverware this year. 4/10
Jason Hoare - 6th- Beavis decided he was only going to use bread and sweet corn for the match which was an interesting approach. He couldn't catch bits on bait that size and with only bits about, he obviously struggled to keep up and was soundly beaten to the title by 4lb 8oz. He deserves some credit however as he walked away with the biggest fish award. His 15oz bream meant Matty lost his big fish title of 2002. 5/10
Jon Collins - 7th- Brummy doesn't seem to care about winning because he just loves the fishing. He struggled in his peg but kept the odd fish going into his net which hasn't happened in his previous matches. No chance with the winner but he can say he beat 2 anglers. Good effort Jonny ! 3/10
Tom Hoare - 8th - The brother of Jason could be big in the future but to do that he must become good in the present. His first match and he bagged 2 fish to take 8th. His brother only got 2 fish as well so it could have been a worse show. To catch anything in that heat was a solid effort. 2/10
Shaun Truscott - 9th - Was never going to win and he knew it but the fact that he turned up, meant he was already a winner. Victory 1, he turned up to fish and Dash didn't. Victory 2, he ended up last again but Shaun netted 2 fish in the match and he was the only angler to catch a golden rudd. Victory 3, Dash was water licked on his only trip to Oakside in overcast conditions which would have been every anglers dream on match day. Shaun caught more than Dash at Oakside in the heat --- on borrowed tackle ! Well done.
3/10
Page last updated
on 15 / 7 / 2008
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