Double success is just so sweet for veteran Candy

CARDIFF Nomads veteran Richard Candy was the match angler of the weekend and he started on his way to that title when he turned in a neat display of float fishing to win the fourth round of the Silver Fish League at Mathern Mill on Saturday.

The Canton angler used a waggler float with maggots as bait to catch 43lb 9oz of roach and small bream.

Sean Wilson, from Trethomas, was on the opposite side of the lake and runner up with 34lb 2oz and was followed by Newport anglers Phil Weaver and Nick Bevan with 16lb 3oz and 14lb 5oz.

Sunday found Richard in the line up for the open match at Riverside Fishery and this time he picked up his feeder rod, used worms as bait and reeled in 33lb 9oz of bream for another win.

Dennis O’Leary, from Ebbw Vale, worked with a whip and maggots on the hook to put together a 31lb 15oz catch of roach and come second and it was also roach for the winner’s club mate Clive Roberts, from Roath, in third place with 23lb 13oz.

Phil Rawlings, from Newport, was way out front in the Wednesday match for the over 50s at Cefn Mably Lakes.

He netted a steady run of carp to end the day with a weight of 122lb 6oz while Bill Gronow, from Cwmbran, made it to second place with 55lb 2oz.

Another Cwmbran angler Martin Challenger was in third place and as his total weight of 39lb 2oz included 20lb 2oz of roach and bream he also won the silver fish pool.

Arron Williams, from Tredegar, pole fished bread to win the Wednesday open at Redhill Fishery.

He caught 100lb 8oz of carp from peg 12 on Sophie’s Pond while four pegs away Pontllanfraith angler Howard Green made his usual appearance among the money winners by catching 88lb of carp on pellet baits.

After winning the two previous matches Tredegar carp pool specialist Mike Yandle was third this time with 85lb 10oz and in fourth place was Alan Davies, from Trealaw, with 80lb of carp.

The Saturday match at Redhill was also on Sophie’s and this time the first prize went to Gary Williams who used pellets as bait and caught 54lb 11oz of carp.

Another Tredegar angler Seb Davies was runner up with 45lb and then it was Mark Williams, from Abertysswg, with 36lb.

Cefn Fforest AC chose Penny’s Pond at Redhill for the club fixture and it turned into a strange day as the anglers on one bank caught well while those facing them had to work hard for a bite.

Three times Welsh National Champion Bob Giles was on form and by offering his pellet baits at 16 metres and also in the margins came out on top with 125lb 6oz of carp.

Second place went to James Allen with 78lb 4oz; Ray McDonnell was third with 77lb 10oz and Craig Cox fourth with 71lb from the next peg to the winner.

Pontymister AC held an away fixture at Grange Springs where bream, perch and small carp made up the catches and Steve Dash, from Cross Keys won with 26lb. Second placed Darran Evans weighed in 22lb and Kevin Melhuish was third with 20lb.

Lee Edwards, from Caerphilly, just failed to qualify for the Fish O’Mania Final when he was runner up with 145lb of carp caught on legered pellets at Somerset’s Viaduct Fishery.

Only the winner of each of the qualifying matches held at venues around England goes through to the final in July when the winner will take home a £50,000 first prize.

The Sunday open match at White Springs was another win for Sirhowy AS member Rob Jones who was on the New Canal and pole fished pellets to the island to put 119lb 14oz of carp in his keepnets.

Gavin Jones made it to second place with 108lb 8oz, again carp caught on pole fished maggots; Dan Bowen’s 87lb 15oz was third best and Ryan Thomas weighed in 52lb 12oz for fourth.

Cormorants have drastically reduced the stock of everything except carp in Glamorgan AC’s Sue’s Pond at Barry so it wasn’t surprising when the top three anglers in the club match were on adjacent pegs on the point, an area where most of the carp can be found.

John Cox, from Bridgend, netted eight carp when he offered pellet baits on feeder tackle and they gave him a winning 40lb 8oz. Dave Pike was on the next peg and also caught seven carp for 39lb 12oz while next to him was another Cardiff member Austin Roberts with six carp weighing 30lb.

Adam Toomey decided to leger pellet baits close to the island when he drew peg 20 for the Aberglais AC match on the Match Lake at Cefn Mably and it proved to be the right one when the 62lb 11oz of carp he hooked there turned out to be the day’s top catch.

Merthyr members took all the prize money as Gary Lewis was just behind with 61lb 7oz, Paddy Payne finished third with 55lb 10oz and Terry Jones fourth with 40lb 13oz.

The fourth match in the Newport Spring Series is on Sunday at School Pool with the draw at 8.30am and fishing from 10am to 3pm.

Glamorgan AC starts the carp competition series with a 24-hour fixture at Sue’s Pond, Barry on Saturday and Sunday April21/22.

The club’s junior competition calendar kicks off on Saturday, April 28, at Gribbles Covert Pond.