Denholm at the double in sea angling matches
WITH RESTRICTIONS NOW EASED, COMPETITIONS ARE BACK...
SEA angling matches returned again this week and there was double delight for Paul Denholm.
Fishing Friends match organiser Steve Robinson took no time in getting things underway after the restrictions on match fishing were lifted.
On the Monday night, 16 anglers turned up to fish the shallows behind the Novartis factory on the Humber Bank Wall. It was a very windy night, but warm. The wind did make it slightly difficult to see the bites. As the match progressed, the wind did die off. Top local angler Denholm was on one of the high numbered pegs and was catching from the off, but he did slow down towards the end.
At the other end of the match stretch, Richard Wong and Jim Nicholson were having a battle and catching flounders at a decent pace. I was nearby and my rod was laying motionless.
In the middle of the stretch, Jack Barlow was also catching. But for others it was turning out to be a frustrating evening. As the tide turned, I changed my tactics and then, until the end of the match, it was all go.
But for others, the fish had turned off because of the strong tidal current - and debris which was floating about due to the high tide.
Back at the meeting point, Denholm’s total was 12 flounders for 294cm making him the clear winner on the night. Then it was yours truly with 10 fish for 249cm, much to the annoyance of my usual fishing partner Barlow as I beat him by 4cm. He also had 10 fish.
Fourth was Wong - who was well ahead of everyone around him but for some reason decided to stop fishing close in where he was catching and then started to cast further out, which resulted in not as many fish. He had nine fish 215cm.
It was great to be back fishing and meeting up with some of the anglers who had been self isolating most of the time.
They were very happy to be out again. The following night it was back on the wall for the Promenade match, but it had to be moved due to the restrictions on parking in the area.The match was pegged the other way from the previous night down towards Grimsby. It was a glorious night and a pleasure to be out.
I was pegged next door to top Cleethorpes match angler Gary Hutson, who had not fished since last November. To my left I had the in-form Denholm, so it was going to be an interesting night. Well it was for Denholm who once again was off to a flier and there was no stopping him. Hutson and I were in amazement as Denholm was bringing in fish at an alarming rate and our rods lay in the rod rest fast asleep. At the other end of the match stretch, the anglers did seem to be having more action with Ian Nelson and Barlow managing to find a few fish. Something though did grab hold of Brian Tuck’s line - and decided it was not coming in. After a bit of a tussle, the fish made its escape and left a straightened-out hook for Mr Tuck, who was not very happy.
Things did not improve for Hutson or myself, and once again Denholm was the winner on the night. He had seven flounders for 177cm. Then it was Nelson, also with seven fish for 176cm - so it was a very close match. Third was Barlow, he had seven fish, but they were on the smaller side for 156cm. Fourth was Tuck - and it was nice to see him back fishing; he had six fish for 129cm.
On the Tuesday night while we were on the Humber Bank Wall, Kurt William Dolphin was in action on his favourite spot on the North Wall, Cleethorpes, and he could not stop catching bass. He had nine in total. Further down, off Fuller Street, Ollie Call had two good size bass and also a cod.
There had been several bass caught off the Suggitts Lane area with one fish going to 8lb. This is great for the area. Several years ago you would not catch any bass in the area. Now they are growing and returning which is excellent. Just a reminder that you are only allowed by law to take two fish home and they must be over 42cm. The coarse angling clubs will be out this week for their first matches of the season, so hopefully there will be a few coarse matches to report on next week - keep your reports and pictures coming in to me at a.burman@ntlworld.com