2008 S&DAA Summer League - Week Eight

Sunday 10th August 2008

Holiday season is still upon us, which resulted in slightly lower numbers than usual. Weights were also down, with nobody reaching double figures. Blustery conditions saw quite few people resorting to the tip rod as their weapon of choice - victor on the day Roy Davies using his to good effect to take a 1lb 10oz Perch in amongst his winning weight of 9lb 11oz. Dave Hodge's long walk to the end peg was rewarded by second place - again on the tip, with 7lb 4oz. Dave Humph was third off the 'town crier' with 5lb 13oz.

RESULT:

1 - Roy Davies 9lb 11oz
2 - Dave Hodge 7lb 4oz
3 - Dave Humphries 5lb 13oz

Southport & District Angling Association's Summer League matches are held every Sunday from June until September on the Association Match Length at 1st Plank, Cabin Lane. All S&DAA members are very welcome to enter.

Draw: 8:45am sharp

Fish: 9:45am - 2:45pm

Pools: £6.00 all in.

2008 S&DAA Summer League - Week Seven

Sunday 3rd August 2008

Three bites, two micro-Roach - end of match. Slightly alarming when you can't even get a bite on squatt, but it summed up the match with few anglers seeing anything of the small silvers which should normally be the weight-builders.

Brian Woods won from peg 3 with 5lb 3oz, Dave (it's one o'clock - I've caught nowt - I'm going home) Humphries was second off the far end peg with 4lb 2oz and Colin Cliffe was third with 4lb dead.

All the frame weights included Tench which seem to be the only species feeding with any consistency. Mel Bates actually hooked eight Tench without landing any from Peg 2, which (had she netted any) would've made a big difference to the placings. Lets hope some rain and more overcast conditions have an encouraging effect.

RESULT:

1 - Brian Woods 5lb 3oz
2 - Dave Humphries 4lb 2oz
3 - Colin Cliffe 4lb 0oz

Southport & District Angling Association's Summer League matches are held every Sunday from June until September on the Association Match Length at 1st Plank, Cabin Lane. All S&DAA members are very welcome to enter.

Draw: 8:45am sharp

Fish: 9:45am - 2:45pm

Pools: £6.00 all in.

2008 S&DAA Summer League - Week Six

Sunday 27th July 2008 - Tommy Gregory Trophy.

Nightmare match for me - I drew (wait for it) Peg 3 again. I thought I had the method sorted having won off it the previous Monday so I was pretty comfortable before the all-in. Graham Johnson was back from his jaunt to Ireland (three bathroom suites in 3 days and he still managed two days fishing) and was next to me on Peg 2. The conditions looked good at the start - warm & overcast. First chuck I was soon into a nice hybrid about a pound which came off at the net. Back I went to the caster line and - n o t h i n g. For an hour and a half I couldn't buy a bite on any of the lines I was feeding . All that separated me from an empty net were four micro-Roach and four Ruffe. Fearing an absolute trouncing from either side, I stuck it out to the end in the faint hope of a bonus fish, which never came. Graham DNWed as did Steve Simpkin on the other side - I was in good company.

Elsewhere, it seemed that the high numbers produced again with Brian Woods winning with 12lb 6oz off Peg 9. Second was Colin Cliffe who drew end peg 1 for the second successive week with a nice net for 11lb 2oz. Third place went to welcome returnee, Mick Gadd who fished Peg 8 and had a bag of 9lb 12oz

Although the frame weights weren't bad, there were an awful lot of anglers who struggled - the bright and hot weather undoubtedly having a major contribution.

RESULT:

1 - Brian Woods 12lb 6oz
2 - Colin Cliffe 11lb 2oz
3 - Mick Gadd 9lb 12oz

Southport & District Angling Association's Summer League matches are held every Sunday from June until September on the Association Match Length at 1st Plank, Cabin Lane. All S&DAA members are very welcome to enter.

Draw: 8:45am sharp

Fish: 9:45am - 2:45pm

Pools: £6.00 all in.

2008 S&DAA Summer League - Week Five

20th July 2008

More heavy winds hampered the angling today for those who ventured onto the Sluice. The bright weather and Northerly winds put paid to most people's efforts, but for those who were in the fish it was quite an active match.

Top spot went to Alan Birchall who drew end peg up towards the pylons and caught several hybrids and a large Tench for 13lb 11oz. For a change, I asked Dave Humphries to draw for me and his left hand pulled out (surprise, surprise) peg 3!! I had two clonking Tench around 4lb apiece and a nice hybrid, along with a few bits for 10lb 12oz. The vast majority of my fish fell to chopped worm & caster, with a few bits down the side on pinkie. The session didn't look like getting off to the best of starts when I took the cap off the tube labelled IM8 to set up the bomb rod. It should've been labelled I'M EMPTY - because all that was in there was an empty IM8 sleeve and my little home-made 8' canal tip rod. That had to suffice for a bomb rod today, and surprisingly I did actually catch on it, so it's staying in the holdall for the Monday nighter!

Third was Colin (I'm just fishing a squatt line) Cliffe who drew the rarely fished peg 1. After seeing the Atlantic-esque waves breaking in front of him, he declared his intention of just fishing with a margin pole, but still managed to bag a 3lb 13oz Tench and a few bits for 5lb 8oz.

The attendances have remained a lot higher than at this stage last season and there are still several anglers on holiday and/or on other match bookings. Next week is the Tommy Gregory Trophy and already looks likely to be a bigger field.

RESULT:

1 - Alan Birchall 13lb 11oz
2 - Mark Rimmer 10lb 12oz
3 - Colin Cliffe 5lb 8oz
4 - Roy Davies 3lb 5oz

Southport & District Angling Association's Summer League matches are held every Sunday from June until September on the Association Match Length at 1st Plank, Cabin Lane. All S&DAA members are very welcome to enter.

Draw: 8:45am sharp

Fish: 9:45am - 2:45pm

Pools: £6.00 all in.

2008 S&DAA Summer League - Week Four

13th July 2008

Wasn't at this match thanks to prior-arranged domestic duties, but the result was relayed to me later. Colin Cliffe is still baggin' by the looks of things, with some more league points after finishing in top spot. He and Brian Woods have taken advantage of Graham Johnson's absence by taking points to make up the gap.

RESULT:

1 - Colin Cliffe 4lb 13oz
2 - Brian Woods 3lb 5oz
3 - Steve Simpkin 3lb 3oz
4 - Dave Hodge 1lb 8oz

Southport & District Angling Association's Summer League matches are held every Sunday from June until September on the Association Match Length at 1st Plank, Cabin Lane. All S&DAA members are very welcome to enter.

Draw: 8:45am sharp

Fish: 9:45am - 2:45pm

Pools: £6.00 all in.

2008 S&DAA Summer League - Week Three

6th July 2008

Another improved turnout with over twenty anglers fishing round three of the Summer League. Again, as with previous weeks, the winning weights were from the top-end, Steve Simpkin taking the honours with 11lb+. There are plenty of fish blowing & fizzing in all the pegs, but they won't feed under match conditions. Pleasure sessions see decent nets of fish falling to a variety of baits, so there could be some truth in comments made about bank pressure walking the fish up the length.

Aside from the fishing, as the stormy weather moved across the West Lancashire plain, the anglers were treated to the very rare sight of not one but two funnel clouds; one of which sucked up a washing-line full of clothes drawing it up into the black cloud above.

I was on peg 3 (again) and was quite busy with 2lb 12oz of small stuff from the nearside margins (again). Nothing showed on the far side to the tip or the waggler and both pole lines at 11m and 6m drew blanks. Colin Cliffe made better progress on squatt & caster with some nice fish for a finishing weight of 5lb 2oz despite his best estimate before the scales arrived being "I'll be lucky if I've got 3lb" - aye, right-o Col...

RESULT:

1 - Steve Simpkin 11lb 3oz
2 - Derek Hodkinson 6lb 11oz
3 - Colin Cliffe 5lb 20z
5 Joint - Graham Johnson & Brian Woods 4lb 6oz

Southport & District Angling Association's Summer League matches are held every Sunday from June until September on the Association Match Length at 1st Plank, Cabin Lane. All S&DAA members are very welcome to enter.

Draw: 8:45am sharp

Fish: 9:45am - 2:45pm

Pools: £6.00 all in.

2008 S&DAA Summer League - Week Two

29th June 2008

With the NFA National Division 2 practice match being held on the Wigan & DAA stretch of the Leeds - Liverpool canal on the same day a reduced turn-out was anticipated by some, but the attendance equalled last week's John Ball Trophy match which was good to see, as were (following on from last week) some more familiar returning faces.

Aside from Paul (I've eaten a Badger and left the tail hanging out) Clegg's clear winning weight from the top end of the permanent pegs on the match length, the other weights reflected the inconsistent form so far this season. Several pumping sessions towards the latter stages of the week had introduced some much-needed colour to the water, but with no pump activity for over 24 hours anglers were faced with a return to clear water which made fishing hard for the majority of the field. The fish are there in abundance, they just need some persuasion to get onto the feed which has recommenced in the last two weeks.

I had a month's worth of aerobic exercise with a jaunt down to peg 27. Graham Johnson followed later - sweat blinding him as he staggered to peg 28 - without a trolley (the hero). Expecting great things from the winning peg of a couple of weeks ago I 'went for it' with a big cup of chop and three big balls down the middle from the off and trickle fed two margin swims. What followed was a lesson in self-torture, with only Steve Barrett's rhythmic feeder casts for entertainment. He had a couple of 'flirters' on the feeder from the far side and I was neck & neck with two small 'uns from the middle. On the other side, Graham unveiled yet another new parallel extension for his pole and proceeded to haul a 4lb+ Bream from under the grass on the far bank with his first chuck - that was at 19m !!! I sat back expecting him t come up with another emptying session, but he never had another bite . We were agreed it was a match to forget.

RESULT:

1 - Paul Clegg 11lb 2oz
2 - Graham Johnson 4lb 70z
3 - Paul Clayton 4lb 4oz
4 - Bob Moss 3lb 10oz

Southport & District Angling Association's Summer League matches are held every Sunday from June until September on the Association Match Length at 1st Plank, Cabin Lane. All S&DAA members are very welcome to enter.

Draw: 8:45am sharp

Fish: 9:45am - 2:45pm

Pools: £6.00 all in.

2008 S&DAA Summer League - Week One

22nd June 2008 - John Ball Trophy

Wind, wind & yet more wind. Conditions started bad and got steadily worse as the match went on. The majority of the anglers who took part resorted to the tip rod as the storm force winds made pole fishing almost impossible.

One angler who braved the elements and fished on the pole was match and 2008 John Ball Trophy winner Graham Johnson, who finished with 30lb 9oz of Bream.

Second was Dave Wright, who took small skimmers and three Bream including one just under 5lb for a finishing weight of 13lb 10oz. Third was Melanie Bates who fished the short pole at 5m to take three Tench for 11lb 3oz.

RESULT:

1 - Graham Johnson 30lb 9oz
2 - David Wright 13ib 10oz
3 - Melanie Bates 11lb 3oz
4 - Frank Simpson 7lb 0oz

Southport & District Angling Association's Summer League matches are held every Sunday from June until September on the Association Match Length at 1st Plank, Cabin Lane. All S&DAA members are very welcome to enter.

Draw: 8:45am sharp

Fish: 9:45am - 2:45pm

Pools: £6.00 all in.