SLADE GRABS A MONSTER HIT
THE heaviest pike of the predator season was banked by Paul Slade at a weight of 39lb 3oz.
Slade slipped the net under the giant at Chew Valley.
He presented a legered joey mackerel hookbait in 9ft of water, carefully positioning the trap at dawn using a bait boat for accuracy.
And at 9.30am his bite alarm signalled a take and a solid strike saw him connect with the new personal best.
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A colossal perch weighing 5lb 5oz has completed a spectacular double for Matt Atkins. His latest super stripey comes hot on the heels of a 5lb 6oz perch caught last month from an undisclosed Lea Valley venue.
Remarkably, Atkins also lured a 4lb 3oz perch and a brace of ‘threes’ in the same trip using feederfished lobworm.
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A 300-mile round trip to tackle the River Trent proved worthwhile for Mick Taylor, who tempted two personal best barbel weighing 13lb 10oz and 16lb 7oz. The 62-year-old, from Berkshire, tackled the middle reaches and landed two bonus doubles.
All the barbel fell to a legered 15mm Scopex Squid Liver boilie presented with a PVA bag of pellets for extra attraction. °Ê
Lifelong friends Dave Gough and Paul Middleton have won the national Canal Pairs Championship on the Staffs-Worcester and Trent and Mersey Canals.
The Derbyshire lads recorded a combined weight of 24lb 9oz to see off 54 other pairs.