It is many a year since local anglers had it so good fishing either freshwater or saltwater venues of their choice, writes Roy Webster.Beach anglers enjoyed their best sport with codling for more than 20 years with the North Sea at Yarmouth, Gorleston and Hopton relinquishing up to a dozen or more prime fish with the odd one in double figures throughout the autumn and early winter.

It is many a year since local anglers had it so good fishing either freshwater or saltwater venues of their choice, writes Roy Webster.

Beach anglers enjoyed their best sport with codling for more than 20 years with the North Sea at Yarmouth, Gorleston and Hopton relinquishing up to a dozen or more prime fish with the odd one in double figures throughout the autumn and early winter. Boat anglers fishing off shore reported many more.

For beach matchmen, and women, it was bonanza time with double-figure winners week after week, and even when the codling were beyond casting distance there were always legions of quality whiting making up the weights.

Just how long this splendid sport will continue following a 30 per cent increase in commercial cod quotas in the North Sea for the year 2009 is open to doubt. In addition, proposals to inflict catch quotas on rod and line anglers have not been well received.

On the freshwater front, Ali Jermy of Ormesby beat many of the men on the Taswood fishery by landing a giant 30lb ghost carp. However the Caister clan of the Stamp family trio, Duggie Collins and Alan Waldron had more than their share of the 367 Taswood carp over 20lb landed during the eight months season which closed at the end of November and reopens in the spring.

Hall Farm, Burgh Castle, was one of the most popular carp fisheries with weekly reports of superlative catches such as the 32 fish apiece reeled in by Cobholm's Frank Rose and Gorleston's Steve Aldous just before Christmas.

For local matchmen, the in-form venue was the fishery formerly known at Green's Pits at Burgh Castle which has now been transformed into a top-class tournament water. Right now manager Darren Squires is still carrying out adjustments to fish stocks with plans in the pipeline to bring in more bream, rather than carp that are subject to the disease that ran rife among carp waters throughout the summer months.

“A good idea,” declared Gorleston Jolly Boys' ace Lee Arnold who won Sunday's event there with a catch of 21lb 14oz consisting mainly of bream.

On the main broads and rivers sport was rated above average for pleasure and match anglers alike right into the autumn months.

Skimmer bream and small roach featured in all the main events where members of the newly-formed Great Yarmouth Browning Pownalls squad featured among the top three on a regular basis.

Hickling Broad and Horsey Mere were popular in the summer months with bream catches well into three figures. Similar sport was reported from Candle Dyke and Heigham Sounds and from the South Walsham Fleet Dyke at the entrance to the main broad.

Prospects for the new year, at least for the immediate future, appear less encouraging following repeated frosts. However, while the Trinity Broads remain clear pike fishing there should prove rewarding.

Result: Burgh Castle open: L Arnold (Jolly Boys) 21lb 14oz, M Jenkins (Brundall) 11lb 10oz, P Woods (Brundall) 5lb 12oz.