Improve Your Coarse Fishing (UK)
Worsbrough Reservoir
Nick Speed
TOMMY Pickering, Alan Scotthorne and Denis White are all true legends of the sport, with plenty in common. They’ve all won more titles than they care to remember, bagged gold medals galore fishing for England and become household names among anglers all over the UK.
But before that trail of glory began, they still had something in common – they developed their world- class skill set on Worsbrough Reservoir.
The Barnsley water is steeped in history and was arguably the North’s most popular venue in the 1970s and 1980s prior to the commercial fishery boom. Anglers used to compete for the best pegs, with matchmen clambering for places in the sell- out competitions.
Fast- forward to the modern day and the venue is still a major hit, but the scene has changed drastically. Dynamite Baits and Shimano star Nick Speed has watched all the drama unfold and, like the famous trio namechecked above, he has
a long- running affinity with Worsbrough.
“It is such a special venue to me and it was one of the places where I first gained my huge buzz for fishing,” revealed Nick.
“It was the place to be if you wanted to catch big bags of bream, and when I was a teenager I’d cycle a 40- mile round trip with all my kit strapped to my back just to get a piece of the action.
“Things have changed a lot over the years, and as a result, there’s no shortage of visitors.”
The big restocking
All the large reservoirs in the Yorkshire region have a rich history of producing phenomenal silverfish sport.
The majority of them still promote that as their main attraction, but Worsbrough has gone down a different route entirely. Having gone through a spell earlier in this decade where anglers abandoned the fishery and switched to the swathes of nearby commercials, bosses had a major rethink. A plan was hatched to bring the masses back, and it’s fair to say it whipped up its fair share of controversy.
“It was announced that thousands of carp would be stocked to try to win back the anglers that had gone elsewhere,” said Nick. “Those that loved Worsbrough solely for its bream sport were against the move, but something needed to be done to get the buzz back and the idea got the go- ahead.”
There were fears that it would effectively become a giantsized commercial, but those concerns were put to bed pretty quickly.
“It’s a huge sheet of water and there is enough natural food for everything in their to thrive. There are so many options for anglers now. You can fish a short feeder for small skimmers and silverfish or go longer with a Hybrid for the bream or carp,” he said.
And it is the latter that Nick often chances his arm at.
“As teenager I’d cycle a 40- mile round trip with all my kit strapped to my back just to get a piece of the action”
Swim selection
There are three areas to fish from at Worsbrough – the Sheffield Bank, dam wall and Barnsley Bank.
The deepest water is located in front of the dam wall in the mid- 30s and the venue gradually shallows as it goes down to the bottom end, where 4ft can be found in the early and late numbers.
Peg 50 on the Sheffield Bank was Nick’s pick of the bunch on the day and he revealed that Worsbrough is the simplest of all venues to fish.
“It is a one- rod job all day long and those that catch consistently stick to a single line and build it up until the fish finally arrive,” said Nick.
“I’ll aim to chuck anywhere between 60 and 80 yards, recasting every 15 minutes to build up a bed of bait that will eventually draw the shoals.
“It is all about belief. You could go a couple of hours without so much as a liner, but stick stringently to the plan and the bites will come, even in the most torrid conditions.”
A large 45g Guru Hybrid was Nick’s feeder of choice, convinced that the frame surrounding the hookbait and loosefeed plays a pivotal part.
“You need a feeder that will keep the bait packed in, as it is going to hit the water with a fair amount of force when you are casting a good distance.”
Pellets are the only loosefeed, with 3mm Dynamite Baits Swim Stim Betaine Green a real winner. These are soaked in a 50/ 50 mix of water and Pellet Soak from the same range the night before the session to add plenty of flavour that oozes off.
“I pour enough of this solution on to the pellets so that they are pretty much covered and then place them in the fridge for half- an- hour to soak it all up.
“I then chuck them in a food bag to spread the colour and flavour over all the pellets, put them back in the fridge sealed and they’ll be perfect come the morning.”
Just rewards
British winters can test the most committed anglers to the limit, and the conditions Nick faced when IYCF visited were challenging to say the least.
A sharp overnight frost had left the first few metres of most pegs frozen and a sharp wind was battering him with teeth- chatteringly cold drizzle.
“It’s not going to be easy but I’m convinced that if I stick to my plan we will get a few pulls,” he said.
The first two hours passed without anything of note happening. Most would consider throwing in the towel but Nick knew that his ‘ recast every 15 minutes’ rule would be building a carpet that would soon come good.
Well in to the third hour and on perhaps his tenth cast of the day the motionless tip suddenly sprang to life.
Tap, tap, thud! Gently picking the rod up, the resistance was solid but sluggish. In such chilly water either of the major species could have picked up the yellow 7mm Dynamite Baits Speedy Washter hookbait.
As it came close to the bank the resistance didn’t increase and a 3lb plus bream was the first reward of the day.
“They’re rarely on their own so let’s get back out there and try again.”
The next cast didn’t produce but there was no panic as the one after did, this time in the shape of a stunning 6lb common carp.
Another bream and two carp came in the final hour, fully proving Nick’s theories.
“I always knew we would get a few bites today, and when the fish are as good looking as this, you realise the waiting game is worthwhile,” said Nick as he glanced down at his final fish of the day in the net.