Patience is a virtue..................
[move]Here you go[/move]
Well what can I say…………….? Don’t really want the ‘publicity’ from this report
There’s gruellers and there’s gruellers.
Despite the wailing and gnashing of teeth, match nine was only a par boiled grueller in comparison to some I’ve fished in the past…………..honest
In fact – in what some might describe as a perverse sense of way - I quite enjoyed the day and had many a laugh along the way……………much better than spending ‘alternative’ Saturdays standing outside Next
The curse kicked in straight away for me………I’d walked the bank – up to the pub, back to the bridge, down the common and back again pegging out. Sorted out the draw discs and away we were………..
Changing the habit of a lifetime………..I decided to dip in the bag first.
Aghhhhhhhhhh…….peg 1 another hoof up and longest walk up the tow path to come.
Draw done, I set off with Simps to peg 15 to clear his peg of ice, being as he’d never been on a breaker before. No probs – less that ½ inch thick. A couple of nibbles on the inside with the hammer and line………waste of time might as well break from far over as its only thin and can drag the sheets back.
3rd chuck and a problem…………shrieks of hysterical laughter from Simps as the cord follows the hammer………..I thought my foot – at at least Simps’ – was on the end of the cord.
Sh*te…………Simps get the pole out, the cord is recoverable from half way. Setting it up the curse strikes again………..Simps curses as he reckons one of the sections has ‘gone’ whilst assembling the pole.
Cord recovered and his peg his soon cleared.
Of I trots with Simps to clear my peg………collect all my gear by the bridge, noticing Cheslynboy has drawn another flyer…….the junction where a winter section record of 32lb of skimmers came off his peg during a winter league match several years back.
Bezza is also on Cottis favorite peg.........'He's gunna empty it today I think to myself'
Despite the walk I was relatively pleased with peg1, although I’d have preferred 2 – 7 really. A decent depth, usually plenty of silvers.
A little chuckle to myself on the way at some of the antics of others who've obviously never fished a ‘breaker’ before.
My pegs soon cleared and time to tackle up.
3 top kits are set up………..punch and joker rings for both close in and doubling up for a line across, and a rig for the track where it deepens off another 9ins to five foot.
Looking around I twig something, but it doesn’t quite ring home at this point.
Cheslynboy blows up just as Ball it In saunters up to ask me to tie him a hook on
Line are then fed – 2 joker – middle and across, near and long punch lines.
A look on the closest punch line at 4 mtrs……………….5 mins pass………..oh no, I quickly realize I’m in trouble………no bites.
20 mins go by, cant see anyone ‘doing owt’ Goughy shouts up from peg 3 ‘You had a bite TK?’
‘No’ is my response, ‘Nobody down here’s had a touch either’ is his retort.
Half hours gone and the dog and bone starts ringing………nobodies catching although Big Col’s snared a perch off peg 19.
Well not long after, bodies are seen walking the bank. The rumour is that there has been some dredging work…………..is that why there was a ‘reasonable colour’ in the cut, not just cuss of the ice beakers.
What had I twigged

Yep, the tree right by the bridge, along with that opposite peg 3, have been severely lopped.
Well, I did have written notice from BWB that there was work being carried out along the 4 mile stretch between Jan and March.
‘It’s gunna be a grueller, but I’ll still snatch a few bits and pieces’ I think to myself.
I’m working my nuts off, never leaving the box, trying to make something happen.
Yamo comes for a walk half way through and lies besides me, relating a tale of an open he fished last week, at Curborough of all places, 19 fished………………………19 dry nets.
Well today aint that bad………..at least Big Cols got something……….and at the mo its worth quite a few quid.
Anyway the 4 hours flyby for me……………………………
……………without so much as a bost joker………...but I’ve enjoyed it all except the walk.
Anyway, records are always there to be broken…………….I’ve never had a dry net on the Curley Wyrley in 25 years…………….that’s that record gone.
Due to a cock up with the scales…………and not my cock up I would add……….here’s the results……………
PEG
1 TK - BDM DRY
2 BALL IT IN DRY
3 GOUGHY DRY
4 ZORRO DRY
5 SPRUCEY DRY
6 SHARK DRY
7 GERRY 1st
8 COTTI DRY
9 CHESLYN BOY DRY
10 BEZZA 3rd
11 BUDGIE DRY
12 PHIL B DRY
13 YAMO DRY
14 VESTE DRY
15 SIMPS DRY
16 M PEARCE DRY
17 MARKV DRY
18 KOD DRY
19 BIG COL 2nd
The first second and third were apparently decided by a count of fish ……..
Grueller – what grueller
Who was it that said - If you’ve never had a dry net, you’ve never been fishing’