Wednesday 31 August 2011

St.Johns Autumn League - Otherton Pool 28th August 2011

Weather: 16C-18C sunny for most part with a torrential downpour 10 mins before the end.
Water: Muddy Brown

Peg: 24
Baits: Screttings Micro's, Got Atomic Paste, Ringers 4mm Expanders, Bag'Em Krill Seaker groundbait, Worms and White Maggots
Weight: 80lb 7oz (1st)

After missing the first of the St.Johns Autumn league matches on my favourite Tooby's pool I was looking forward to a days carp bashing on the prolific Otherton pool. Now this venue is full of fish that are often very difficult to catch in a match so this often gets my head whirring. Today though I had decided to make them have it short and down the edge.

I set up 3 lines, only 2 produced so I will just talk about those. Firstly I knew paste has been out fishing the pellet on the pool so this was the first line I went about setting up on the shelf at 4m in front of me in just over 3ft of water. I set up a SconeZone Jadz 0.2g to 0.17 straight through to a size 12 B911, this was matched to black hydro. On this line I also set up a pellet/maggot rig incase the paste did not produce; a 0.2g Maver invincible series 7 was set up on 0.15 - 0.13 hooklength with a 18 B911 on grey hydro.



The final line was tight into the edge next to some boarding holding the bank up in 18 inches of water. I set up a Hillybilly ratcatcher 2 to 0.17 straight through to a Kamasan animal size 14, again matched to black hydro.


At the all in I potted a medium cad pot of micros onto my line at 4m and went over the top with a double maggot to see what was in the peg... couple of roach later and carp being caught to my left on the paste on that line I immediately had to change. A change on to the paste saw carp coming reguarly for an hour and a half before starting to slow.


Showing peg position and the lines fished.

I pilled in 2 large pots full of loose groundbait down the edge and went over with 4 maggots on the hook, before the float settled a fish was streaming elastic out of my po
le tip. I went straight back over and had another quick fish. After this I could see a number of fish coming in and spooking off, I pressumed that they were spooking from the pole being held over the edge so came off that line.

I re-fed one pot full and went back to the paste line. It was solid again with fish and I mistakenly fed micros with my paste which resulted in a couple of foul hookers pulling out and one coming to the net. It was far better not feeding a thing on that line. I fished this line for another hour and a half until 13:00, whilst feeding a big pot of groundbait down the edge every 30 mins.

The penultimate hour saw me catching reguarly down the edge on 2 halfs a worm and on occasions changing to 4 maggots on the hook. The trend seemed to be that if fish were visible down the edge then the maggot would catch quicker whereas if I could not see any movement the worm would catch quicker. The final 30 mins saw me get one liner with a minute to go from the all out which was frustrating, I had gone back on the paste line to no avail and tried the other margin but there seemed to be no fish about.

At the all out I reckoned I had 65lbs which I thought was enough for a win but was very surprised when my nets went 80lb. If the fish had of kept coming and not lost the 4 foul hookers I think I could have easily done the ton from this peg. In reflection I am glad I went for an attack where the fish usually feed on that pool, I think the fish are always close on this pool it is just a matter of getting them feeding over these lines. Next up Laugherne Island for Whitehall and Tooby's for St.Johns, two matches I quite fancy getting something from lets hope so!!



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