AAF Individual Championship, Heronbrook Fishery

Day 2 saw me having a lay in, gently pack my room up and then mosey to the venue, to be honest my heart wasn’t in it as I knew that my chance had been blown the day before so it was a big or bust day.  I had a leisurely breakfast, grabbed my kit out of the car and then drew peg 16 on meadow out of the bag.

It is a really good edge peg with bags of room to my left so as I had decided to try and win the match I set up an edge rig for paste down to the left at 14m, paste at 2+2, meat down the edge at 2+2 to my right and finally I decided that I would fish dead maggot and groundbait at 14.5m across.

The all in came and I wasn’t ready but I put some bait in on a couple of lines, finished setting up and then went onto the short paste line looking for an early fish but it was not to be, so I went across and managed a gudgeon and a couple of small perch.  As I was going nowhere and Jase on peg 15 had had a couple of fish across I decided to feed a bit heavier so the plan became big pot loose groundbait and dead mag.  I managed an F1 on the short paste line whilst waiting for something to happen at about 45 minutes in and then had to wait until an hour and a half from the end for another F1 and three carp to trip up, one on maggot across and two on paste at 11.5m

At the all-out Jase had had 10 or more carp and some F1’s mainly from across and a couple down his edge, my edge had been a massive flop with one foul hooker from the left edge and nothing from the right.

I tipped back, tried to get to the café early but was then told that I was on the board, so that was a good way to finish the day.

I ended up driving back to work that night so it had been a poor end to my Championships, Colin had won the section with 40kg+ and Jase was second with 30 odd kilo.

What would I do different?

I could have been better prepared at the start but as I was going big or going home I wasn’t really bothered and was largely relying on the left hand edge, which never happened.

Try again and harder next time.

Tackle used:

Pole, Paste edge and Short:

Elastic: Colmic Red Hollow Edge

Line: 0.19mm powerline to 0.18mm Cenex

Hook: 5 Tubertini 175,

Float: Margin, KC Carpa Margin Paste 4X10, Short Dino Paste 0.2g

Margin Meat:

Elastic: Colmic Red Hollow Edge

Line: 0.19mm powerline to 0.18mm Cenex

Hook: 3 Tubertini 175,

Float: Drennan Carp 3 in 0.4g

Across:

Elastic: White Hydro

Line: 0.17mm powerline to 0.14mm Cenex

Hook: 2 Tubertini 175

Float: Drennan AS4 0.3g