ANGLING LEGENDS
In the 1990s and early noughties Terry Lampard became an inspiration for countless coarse fishermen, thanks to his remarkable big-fish-catching prowess
Terry Lampard
TERRY Lampard was to specimen fishing what Dick Walker was to carp anglers. He lifted the Drennan Cup seven times, a record which will surely never be beaten.
Terry began fishing at the age of 13 on the carrier streams of the River Itchen, where he used a 5ft fibreglass rod to catch small brown trout. In the late 1960s and early 1970s he progressed to carp fishing, before a permanent move to Dorset in 1975 prompted a lifelong love affair with the rivers and gravel pits of the Avon and Stour Valleys.
He was adept at turning his hand to any species, as his remarkable catches of huge roach, tench, barbel, bream and just about every other type of coarse fish reveals. Terry passed away in February 2013 aged just 65 and is remembered as a modest, unassuming man, always happy to help others.
Here we look back at what he had to say about some of his most historic catches.
First 30lb carp – 1973
After being given the nod about a new, secret wonder bait, Terry recalls the incredible impact sweetcorn had on his catches, helping him to bank a thirty when even 20lb carp were rare.
“I was up at dawn catapulting a few free offerings of corn into the channel between two weedbeds. Fish that had been so difficult were now a doddle to catch. The free offerings were followed by my usual swan shot link legers and size 6 solder-blobbed salmon hooks, crammed with corn.
“My morning breakfast routine was first interrupted by a fat mirror of 21lb 2oz within 10 minutes and within the hour I found myself attached to another big fish. I recognised it as one I had seen from a punt the season before, when I’d estimated it at around 30lb. After netting the fish I remember my friend Geoff, who was watching from the far bank, shouting “f ***** hell!” as I struggled to lift the beast from the water. My estimate from the previous season was spot-on, as the fish weighed 30lb 8oz.”
Roach milestone – 1986
Terry had to wait until the winter of 1986 to achieve the holy grail of a 3lb-plus roach from the Dorset Stour.
“Conditions were superb – a mild, misty afternoon with light drizzle and no wind. I worked my way down the crease with quivertipped flake and after 20 minutes the quivertip signalled a nice, gentle lead-shift bite as something picked up the flake and bumped the two-swan-shot link leger across the gravel.
“The usual thoughts crossed my mind – chub or roach? Then I saw the pale flanks and red fins as the fish rolled on top.
“Heart in mouth, I gently guided what was obviously a very big roach into the net. It measured 16.5ins long, had incredibly thick shoulders, and weighed 3lb 1oz.”
“Terry was always happy to help other anglers catch personal bests”
Giant tench success – 1991
In later life Terry would bank plenty of double-figure tench, buthe got the ball rolling nearly 30 years ago on his very first night fishing at Englefield Lagoon, near Reading.
“I turned in for the night but at 11pm I woke to a beeping Optonic on the rod with a maggot bait. When I picked it up I found myself attached to my first Englefield tench. I netted it and carried it up to my unhooking mat, but it wasn’t until I found my torch I realised it wasn’t just big – it was bloody enormous!
“It measured 26ins and I knew it had to be a double. When the scales read 11lb 2oz I had to check and re-check what I was reading!
Monster chub – 2004
Terry is perhaps best known for the remarkable catches of big chub he made later in life, banking more than 40 over 7lb. Here he recounts catching a 7lb 15oz fish from the Stour.
“The capture came at the end of several frustrating and uncomfortable hours sitting in a tree watching and waiting for the fish to make a mistake and pick up the boilie with the hook in it.
“The chub didn’t make the mistake as I watched, but I introduced a little more bait and left the swim to rest as the light started to fade. When I crept back in just after dark I knew exactly where to lower the bait and was rewarded within minutes by catching the fish.”