Having gleamed a bit more info


Sprucey and KOD had pegged out

Where did I want to be? Well the wides - pegs 8 to 13 - were supposedly the ‘form’ pegs along with 1-3 up by the radar gate or down in the 20s.

With just myself, Sprucey & KOD to go, peg 5 stuck to my donny.

But had to laff


Golden pegs 2 & 7 came out of the hat…………hum………..cut crack Hotlips - victor on our last match last season down here - could be a danger, but in all honesty I thought the GP would be safe and the wides would blow peg 2 away.
So off I trots to set up. Just setting up and Mark T - captor of a few crocks out of the cut - wanders by and we exchange a few pleasantries between us.

Whilst the cabbages and lily pads are evident and coming up, they are still a week or two behind schedule after the poor spring we’ve had
But today it’s cooking being the hottest day of the year so far - it’s in the 80’s and the towpath is busier than usual……….
The off. Now armed with that ‘info’


First look on the inside punch line and a bite.



A look on the longer line and nowt.



Back short, this time on pinkie and a few bits are snatched to avoid the dreaded DNW.





Meanwhile Sprucey had rung me - ‘Sprucey 1, Tincas nil’ was the message………..hum I think to myself, well the GP is probably safe today, teammate Sprucey’s gunna end up with 30-40lb.

I’m struggling my nuts off, whilst Rich C to my right is sitting on an aquarium of rudd in his cabbages and he’s snatching them on his top two.

Meanwhile round the corner, whilst I can’t actually see him, Hotlips on the golden peg hooks 3 or 4 lackie stretchers that are all successfully netted.

It’s now nearly two hours in. Bits aint gunna protect that GP cuss Hotlips has now had 5,



First look and a sail away straight away………….

Lift and the lacky come out - fish on.

Shipping slowly back…………
It comes off

Bait back on I ship out and I’m about to ring Sprucey to tell him I’ve just had one come off and find out whether he’s in double figures yet and the float goes straight way again

Fish on - the pegs ‘solid’ now I think to myself

Safely netted

Next look………………and nowt after 10 mins.

Meanwhile Cotti decides to open his white bag, get snipping (cuss that’s what Hotlips is sitting on) and not long after nets a better sample round the 3lb mark, wiping me out.

Time for some more snap? Yep lets give em some more. In fact during the match I get through two trays of the stuff.

But it’s all to no avail…………as OBI pops down for a ‘reconnaissance’ ;)and we have a good chat,

Surely they can’t find that snap I’ve put in irresistible can they?
But they can. I’m sure others must have seen specimen fish cruise past them too during the match……….probably with other things on their minds

So 3 hours slip away as I sat on the double caster apart from a 3 minute stretch of the legs (and reefed again)…………for nowt.

Here’s the results of the stretch of the legs - just a couple of pickies for Joffie


Hotlips looking in a sulky mood - smile man,


Cotti next door

Zorro

Was my beastie rig - all of 2.6lb straight through to a 16 - off putting for those ‘canny’ fish




I shouted up - was it still hot or what - and wandered how Juan Chub who had posted elsewhere on these forums that he was looking forward to this one had got on………….
Well here’s how he did………….
PEG
1 YAMO 6.8.14
2 HOTLIPS 25.0.14 5 tench, 1 skimmer and bits
3
4 COTTI 3.7.10 1 tench and a few bits
5 TK 2.2.7 1 much smaller tench and a few bits
6 R CASHMORE 4.12.15 All bits - rudd
7 ZORRO 1.4.15
8 HAHA 0.10.14
9 SPRUCEY 3.4.11 1 tench and a few bits(?)
10 G CASHMORE 1.12.3
11 PHIL B 0.2.8
12 BRAMBLES 0.1.7
13 TOMMY COOPER 5.12.8 2 bream
14 HARRY THE HITMAN 2.0.4
15 F K 4.7.9 1 tench and a few bits(?)
16 GEOFF DNW
17 MRV 1.7.9
18 BIG BAZ 3.13.11 1 tench only
19 KOD 2.4.8
20
21 MILLIE DNW Lost a 'massive un'
22 JUAN CHUB 10.15.13 3 tench - presume some bits?
23 VESTE 1.10.14
24 JONAH 12.13.7 4 tench and lost 4(?)
So hat’s off


Note for Joffie and co - whilst I’m not sure what 3rd placed Juan Chub caught on - perhaps he’ll post and let us know how his day went - 1st and 2nd were using the white bag bait………..

