Angler Steve Slade in full swing to net Bridgnorth win

Armitage-based Digger Conway (Carthy’s Tackle) left the others in his wake to make it two on the bounce at Wednesday’s Izaak Walton (Stafford) AA Open held on the Shropshire Union Canal in Little Onn Wood at Little Onn. Drawn on end peg 8, the fish were tightly shoaled up, pole-fishing caster and bits of worm Conway graced the scales with a cracking 22-5-0 of various-sized bream to 3lb, a couple of chub to 3lb bolstered by skimmers and perch. The weights then plummeted and Wolverhampton AA VDE captain Paul Turner managed to find 0-14-0 of punch-roach at peg 2, dramming Brownhills rod Dave Holbrook (Four Ashes AC) into third who did the same as Turner on Ivy Stump peg 5 for 0-13-15.

Twenty two anglers lined the towpath of the Staffs & Worcs Canal at Slade Heath in Coven for Sunday’s Goodyear AC Open in rainy conditions. Fordhouses-based Dave Richards (Four Ashes AC) had cause for a double celebration when he won the match on Golden Peg 23 which was the end peg with an admirable 16-12-8 comprising of a 5lb chub caught on poled caster plus bream and skimmers snared on chopped worm and caster. Fellow Fordhouses rod Richard Guest (Dynamite Maver Midlands) followed with mainly roach gathered on poled caster for 11-4-0 from peg 20, leaving Wolverhampton’s Johnny Benness (Goodyear AC) in third on peg 13, with chiefly roach and gudgeon taken on pole-fished bread punch and squatt and pinkie over groundbait for 5-8-0.

Conditions were mild and dry during Saturday’s 17-entry Stoke City DAA Open held on the Shropshire Union Canal at Norbury Junction which remained gin-clear as only three boats passed through the match length during the event. Stoke legend, Fred ‘the Bread’ Cheetham (Team Eclipse), fourth in the last match, upped his game to win with an impressive 15-4-0 of quality roach to 12oz captured on pole-fished bread punch and hemp at peg 2. Fordhouses rod, Dave Richards (Four Ashes AC) came second on adjacent peg 3 with a hearty 13-5-4 net of roach and skimmers caught on poled pinkie over groundbait, to leave Stoke’s Keith Hulland (Team Eclipse) in third with 9-14-4 of roach and perch from next peg 4, tempted on the same tactics as Richards.

The Linley Bank stretch of the River Severn in Bridgnorth was in flood at 10ft. up during Sunday’s Bridgnorth AS Comrades Christmas Match held on the Golf Course and High Rock Sections. The river was the right colour for barbel, a light brown and it fished quite well despite being spate. The top three all caught on straight legered luncheon meat with Wolverhampton’s Steve Slade taking the winner’s purse on peg 140 at the top of the golf course, where he banked a trio of barbel; the largest being just over 8lb, for 18-4-0. Kingswinford rod Jez Williams (KDAA) caught a brace of barbel; one on his first cast plus a chub and an eel to record 13-14-0 at peg 198, the last peg on the golf course, ahead of Wolverhampton-based Dave George who netted two barbel for 9-14-0 at peg 187 near the dairy.

Saturday’s Blackfords Progressive Open on Calf Heath Reservoir, near Gailey saw Wednesfield-based feeder expert Kevin Tipton (Sensas) rise to the fore on peg 48 with 22-13-0 of skimmers to 1lb 4oz snared on the conventional feeder with red worm. Shifnal’s Dave Ridgeway followed at peg 53, just on the point where he fished the conventional feeder with dendrabaenas to net a brace of bream plus skimmers for 18-10-0, leaving Chris Brown (JCB) in third with five bream and one skimmer caught on the Method feeder with pinkie and groundbait to weigh in 16-4-0 at peg 5, on the slabs.

Saturday’s round five of the CDC Decorators Winter League on the Match Lake was also fished as the Fur & Feather Match at Wassell Grove Fisheries in Hagley. Clive Munslow (Moorlands) fished a 17 metre pole line off peg 16 to the floating duck house using maggot and caster baits to catch eight F1s, carp to 6lb, stockies to 1lb plus a few silvers to tip 32-10-0 onto the scales to pocket a festive prize of £60. Fishing a long line near to the island in deeper water off peg 20, Andy Morrison (Fisherman’s Friend) secured second with 26-10-0 of carp to 4lb, stockies to 1lb, F1s and 8lb of silvers to pick up £45, ahead of fishery owner Paul Padmore (Wassell Grove/Phoenix AC) drawn on peg 25, who fished two long pole lines with corn in deeper water off the point of the island where he caught a trio of carp to 8lb and a brace of skimmers to over 1lb for 21-9-0. At the halfway stage in the competition, Mick Dudley (Wassell Grove) and Adam Jones (Mosella/Elwell Floats) are currently tied at the top of the league on 7 points apiece. Andy Ward (Wassell Grove) is hot on their heels on 8 points. Adam Jones is presently also heading the cumulative silvers weight table.

Saturday’s Moorlands Farm Fur & Feather Open was held across the Bank, Moors and Island Pools at the Hartlebury venue. Jon Newton (Smithy’s) led the way with 109-2-0 of F1s to 3lb caught on pole-fished maggot at Moors peg 12. The next two framers both caught carp to 6lb on poled maggot on Island Pool. Fishery manager Dave Highfield (Moorlands) gained second on peg 14 with 67-12-0, ahead of Stourbridge’s Iwan Mills (Robin’s Timber) who bagged 49-6-0 at peg 2.

Shakespeare Superteam/Bait-Tech’s Richard Knowles topped Saturday’s Lark Pool Open at Monkhall Fisheries in Monkhopton, nr. Bridgnorth. Pole-fishing maggot over and down the edge of peg 7, Knowles caught carp to 5lb and F1s to 4lb for 98-6-0. Telford’s Morgan Davidson (Monkhall/MH Floats) ran him close on peg 1 with 96-12-0 of carp to 7lb and F1s around the 3lb mark, gathered on poled maggot fished short and in the margins, ahead of Stourbridge rod Sam Parker (Stevens Tackle) who poled bread and maggot well-across and maggot close in for 82-6-0 of carp to 12lb and F1s to 2lb.