Summerhayes – Open – 23rd November 2025
It was back to Summerhayes the following day but on Longs this time and after my drawing arm had misbehaved yesterday, I was hoping it would buck its ideas up for this one. My name was near the top of …
It was back to Summerhayes the following day but on Longs this time and after my drawing arm had misbehaved yesterday, I was hoping it would buck its ideas up for this one. My name was near the top of …
Saturday it was a silvers match on Sellicks which had just received an injection of quality roach and skimmers from Big 8. I was really looking forward to it even though a few had fished it mid-week with just one …
Talking to Russ after yesterdays match he said I’d probably draw 39 today (as it seems to be a recurring theme that I end up on pegs soon after he’s fished them) and I was hoping that wouldn’t be the …
I say it every year but this is one of my favourite matches that I’d love to win although my record in it is quite frankly, pants! 19 anglers fishing today and when Pete announced the draw, he called up …
Something a bit different this week, I’d joined the Angling Trust so I could enter my first ever Fisho qualifier at Todber and then Russ Hilton asked if I’d like to fish the AT Pairs Qualifier on the T & B canal and I thought ‘Why not?’. I’ve known Russ for a fair few years now, he used to write an excellent …
For the first Summer League match we had 16 anglers booked in which is great to see, especially as it was touch and go whether it was actually going to happen with nobody to run it! Fair play to Jake and Leighton who basically had it dumped on them, Jake actually didn’t fish because he had a bad back but still gave …
For the Bank Holiday matches, Pete splits the pools equally between carp and silvers which I think is a great idea. Originally it was going to be on Sellicks which I was really looking forward to as it’s my favourite lake but it was moved to Longs. The weather forecast for Monday was atrocious with 50mph winds predicted and heavy rain – …
Since matches have resumed, although it’s been nice to get back on the bank, I’ve had a pretty torrid time of it fishing-wise with the only highlight being a win at Harry’s pond, a venue I always enjoy fishing. We were back again for another charity match although it was only me and Rob from The Breakfast Club this time. We met …
The next Stoke match was on Longs at Summerhayes and it generated lots of interest with 23 anglers booking in. A few of us met at Greggs in Bridgwater (my third different one in as many weeks!) before we headed to the fishery in convoy with Mr Parker in the lead. We turned right coming out of the services which was fine …
Regular readers of the blog will know I hadn’t done much feeder fishing for years but then I fished Bob’s match two years ago which was rod only and since then I’ve been doing a bit and really enjoying it. The trouble is, it means having to buy even more kit! I ordered lots of bits and pieces including some feeder links …
Bird’s Quarry is owned and run by HMS Heron Angling Club, as part of the MOD, it’s a private club for serving members, veterans and their family but Stoke have an arrangement where they can fish it a couple of times for charity matches. I wasn’t on the list for this one and was gutted as I really wanted to fish it …
The charity matches run by Stoke are always very popular but with only a dozen swims around the pond, there are always more people wanting to fish than available pegs. In a bid to try and make it as fair as possible, everybody who wants to fish puts their name down and for the first match, twelve names are drawn out of …
My third match in four days and I must admit I was starting to flag a little as I struggled to get my ancient aching bones out of bed! I stopped off at Greggs but it wasn’t open so had to settle for a bacon roll over at Costa, so not the best start and I hoped it wasn’t an omen! It …
Before I get on to todays blog, we had the awful news in the week that Pete Lonton had passed away, he was an Ilminster AA stalwart who I knew and fished with for many years, very sad and our thoughts are with his family. When it was looking like we might get back match fishing, I was talking to Rob about …