NOT CONTENT WITH A 5lb PERCH, ANDY LANDS TWO!

Long journey to the river rewarded in spades

Andy Cheetham, perch of 5lb 11oz & 5lb 2oz, Midlands River

IN MARCH Andy Cheetham hit the headlines when he banked the biggest pair of perch in history weighing 5lb 11oz and 5lb 2oz from a ‘Midlands river’.

Both fish beat his previous best for the species, and the dream brace was just reward for Andy’s perseverance in repeatedly making the 200-mile round trip from his Manchester home.

“I’m still in disbelief because to catch a five-pounder is a dream, but to have two in a session is something I’m finding very hard to get my head around,” Andy told Angling Times shortly after making the catch.

“When I looked down into the water after a great scrap the biggest perch looked like a breezeblock laying in the bottom of my landing net. It’s days like this that make all the blank sessions, hard work and effort so worthwhile.”

The Perchfishers member banked his historic brace with

three half lobworms threaded on to a size 4 wide gape hook fished in conjunction with a cage feeder rig.

Andy’s 5lb 11oz perch is the fourth-biggest ever landed.