Leadership changes along with weather

IT was hard work for the anglers that entered the Maryport and District SAC open.

Just like everywhere, anglers are hard pressed to get a decent cod, but a winning fish is a winning fish regardless of the size and I am sure Workington angler Eddie Richardson wouldn’t have been bothered as he picked up the title with a codling of 2lb 14½oz,.

He was followed closely by N Hodgson with one of 2lb 13oz with Ged Stevens of Barrow with one of 2lb 7½oz.

The heaviest flatfish prize went to Brian Holliday of Workington with a plaice of 1lb 8¾oz. In total, 89 anglers fished with 22 weighing in ten cod, eight dogfish, three plaice and a flounder.

The Whitby uptiding festival is certainly being battered with the weather with a lot of the days being canceled. But there has still been a change in the leader with Tony Barrett taking a cod of 5lb 14½oz to put himself in contention for the £1,000 first prize for the heaviest cod.

Alex Leadley of Whitby is well in contention for the heaviest bag after taking 23 cod for 51lb 1½oz – his bag showing the stamp of the fish that have been taken from both boat and shore.

Bags of up to 20lb taken from beaches and rock marks with Blyth and Whitley Bay beaches the best venues, but only a few venues between Whitby and Eyemouth have seen fish over 3lb with the odd one around 6lb... a great start to the winter numbers wise but when are the bigger fish going to show?

The region’s piers have also seen decent catches of codling with the Durham piers also producing whiting and coalfish along with a few floun- der. The best pier for codling has been South Shields with anglers taking up to eight a session. The rock marks around Marsden, Whitburn and Souter have seen the best of the better codling with a few around the 4lb mark.

The Tyne has again proved to be the best river venue for codling although numbers have dropped with the smaller tides, the Wear has again been the top river for flounder with the upper reaches the best venues, with the lower reaches giving codling and whiting.

The beaches at Warkworth, Embleton and Druridge have proved to be the best open beaches for flounder and the odd bass with a few bass to

Tony Barrett with his codling which is in the running for the top prize of £1,000 in the Whitby uptide festival around 3lb being taken at Druridge.