THE RIG THAT WON DEEP HOLE PROVES KEY TO WINTER LEAGUE GLORY

A change in depth held the big carp – and the key to victory – at Decoy Lakes

LEE Gibbon showed that inside knowledge can reap big rewards when he won the individual race in this year’s Angling Trust Winter League Final.

Weighing in 85-435 of carp from Yew Lake on the Decoy Lakes complex, Liverpool rod Lee did it from the peg next door to where fished in last year’s event. Using what he’d learned from 12 months earlier, he landed a string of double-figure carp to end a windswept five hours ahead of runner-up Chris Barley’s 80-625 from Oak Lake.

Long pole and banded pellet were key to victory, the bulk of his catch coming from a spot in peg 11 where there was slightly deeper water. Last year, Lee had been on peg 12 and caught from this same spot that borders both swims, hoping the carp were still at home – and they were!

“Last year I caught most of my carp fishing at 14.5m to my right where there was a deep hole. This time I plumbed up to the same spot that was off to my left and that hole was still there!” he reveals. “With the wind over my shoulder it was no hassle to fish there and provided the carp were still in the area, I was fancying the job quite a bit.”

Tapping in five or six 6mm pellets on every drop-in and using a 6mm pellet on the hook, Lee kept things tight with a dotted down float, constantly lifting and dropping the bait and using the pellet as a plummet to just rest it on the lakebed.

Fish weren’t slow in coming, and across the match he reckoned on having to wait 10 minutes for a bite at most.

“The peg was solid with fish and I also reckon I lost around 60lb from foul-hooking carp and being broken by a couple as they were massive,” he continues. “Even when I got broken, I carried on catching as I cast the bomb out to 16m while tackling up again and caught three big carp in that time! I honestly believe I’d have caught over 300lb if the weather had been calmer, because presenting the rig properly in a gale that was lashing all over the lake was a right game.”

Liverpool matchman and a regular at Blundell’s Fishery – third in last year’s Winter League Final too!

Lee in action on a windswept Yew Lake at Decoy. Top individual Lee and the carp that won glory for him. 1 FLOAT: 0.75g hand-made pattern to combat the wind and tow on the lake. 2 SHOTTING: Olivette just over 1ft above the hook and a No11 dropper shot in between. 3 LINE AND HOOK: 0.15mm line fished straight through to a size 16 barbless hook.