Joint leaders after first two matches in the Match Series but many fish lost when the North Pond dried up

Match Series off to a good start in match 1, but slow for match 2

With two matches gone in the Match Series there are now joint leaders for the trophies. These first two matches, attended by seven anglers, were held in September. The draw was at 7am, just after sunrise, which gave a spectacular view of the pond and Palace ruins in the early morning light. The weather in September was very pleasant with mild nights and warm days making perfect days for sitting by a lake, pond or river and fishing. The matches finished at lunch time giving time for anglers to get home for their Sunday lunch.

Early morning over the pond and ruins

In the first match, Peg 1 was drawn by Paul Collins, producing 26lb 10oz of small carp with Roland Palmer on peg 19 coming in second place with 18lb 14oz. Roland's fish were also mostly small carp but included a specimen bream of 2lb 3oz (a candidate for this season's Bream trophy). All other anglers caught fish, with the majority targeting the small silvers. Rod Langthorne, one of our resident associate anglers, landed some excellent roach and skimmer bream from peg 17. The final results were:

Members:

Paul Collins	26 lb 15oz	10 points
Roland Palmer	18 lb 14oz	8 points
Roger Pilling	13 lb 6oz	7 points

Associate members:

Rod Langthorne	16 lb 8oz	10 points
Chris Shepherd	6 lb 5oz	8 points

Roger Pilling setting up for the match

The second match fished at the end of September saw the same seven anglers attending and the same weather conditions. Carp were again the target fish. This time round Roland drew peg one so he was the one to beat. Throughout the match very few fish were caught and things remained very slow. Those with maggot started fishing for the silvers and once again there were some lovely roach and skimmers weighed in. Roger Pilling managed to find some carp by fishing past the pump in the middle of the pond and at the end weighed in 25lb of carp. Chris Shepherd one of our other associate members landed some stunning roach from peg three whilst Rod over on peg 13 weighed in 6lb of skimmers. Final results were:

Members:

Roger Pilling	25 lb	10 points
Roland Palmer	8 lb	8 points
Paul Collins	5 lb 12oz	7 points

Associate members:

Chris Shepherd	6 lb 13oz	10 points
Rod Langthorne	6 lb	8 points

As a result, the current leaders are:

Members		Associate Members
Paul Collins	17 points	Rod Langthorne	18 points
Roger Pilling	17 points	Chris Shepherd	18 points

Many fish lost when the North Pond dried up

The north Pond dried within two days and despite the help of the EA (Environment Agency) only a few fish were recovered. After the heavy rain in August the level in the North Pond had risen and was flowing over the sluice. It seemed as if water might be retained all year. After a very dry September however, the water dropped steadily, and suddenly disappeared over two days. Earlier in the year many large carp had been seen from the footbridge, taking advantage of the ducks being fed with bread. Shoals of small fry were also in abundance which indicated a successful breeding in the Spring. Rescuing the fish was very difficult and only a few were saved. At least the Heron and Egrets were able to take advantage of the situation. Competition weights are down compared to previous years, which probably has something to do with the numbers of large fish which migrated to the North Pond and were lost. Weed has also been a problem this year, which is unusual after years of trying to get it to grow, and may have affected numbers of fish caught. We will continue monitoring.

November and December activities

Writing in early October in warm sunshine and 20degC, it seems strange that the "Hangover Match" after Christmas will be less than two months away when you read this (providing it is not postponed by the pond being frozen!). Leisure fishing continues as usual during November and December, and there are several matches. Although competitive, the matches are always very friendly affairs. Come along and try your luck! The Match Series continues during November, all matches are on a Sunday. There is also the Silver Fish match, where carp do not count in the weigh-in, and the Hangover match at the end of December.

Joining the Club

If you are interested in joining the club please contact our membership secretary Cathy Naylor on 07934-895513, or contact our chairman Roland Palmer (after 6pm) on 01489-894063 for an application form. More information is available, and a form can be downloaded, from our web site. The membership year runs from mid-June.

Membership is open to anyone who lives in Bishops Waltham, plus a number of Associate membership places (for those living outside the Parish). Priority is given to Parish membership (especially juniors), but anyone living outside of the Parish wishing to join should contact Cathy to see if there are Associate Membership spaces remaining for the 2014/15 season.

It is rare for anglers not to catch fish at the pond, which makes it ideal both for more experienced anglers and for youngsters starting out. As a mixed fishery, with fish like carp, roach, rudd, bream, perch and the odd eel - there is something for everyone. There are carp to 10lb plus, many between 6lb and 8lb, lots of roach, bream and also perch over 1lb. If you love your fishing and don’t want to travel far then join us - your local club. Its always nice to see new anglers on the bank and hopefully we will also see you at the matches.

Club web site

For more information about the club and its activities, the club's web site can be found at:

www.bwpfc.org.uk

Paul Collins and Barry Jerome