Big catches off beach

DELIGHTED members of the Potter and Heigham Sea Angling Club enjoyed their best results for years while fishing the Great Yarmouth South Beach where double figure catches that included 11 codling and quality whiting were put on the scales at the end of an all-action session.

The winner was Gary Hewitt with 13lb 15oz, then came Terry Watson with 12lb 6oz and John Hearle with 11lb 7oz with Scott Watson the top junior with 2lb 9oz, writes Roy Webster.

Club secretary Terry Watson said: “We weighed in more than 100lb of fish and hope this magnificent sport continues to encourage more sea anglers to join clubs like ours.”

Results from the two Sam Hook League rounds on Yarmouth North and South Beaches were equally impressive, the winners Keith Morley with 12lb 12oz and Kelvan Chilvers 9lb 9oz.

On the freshwater match scene a name that conjures up memories of those great open fresh water tournaments on East Anglian rivers has reappeared on the match returns - The Yarmouth Dream.

The Dream was a quartet of young matchmen who cut their competitive teeth fishing for the now defunct Great Yarmouth, Gorleston and District Anglers' Association.

They went on to win every teams of four championship staged on the Broads, the Great Ouse system, the Welland, the Witham and on Holkham Lake where they filled the top four places with roach catches that totalled around 154lb.

That day the individual winner was young David Docwra who has resumed fishing again as a veteran following successful surgery.

Last week he won the Norfolk and Suffolk Veteran's match in Beccles Cut with 9lb 4oz and followed that with a third place in the Burgh Castle Open with 14lb 7oz behind Lee Arnold (Jolly Boys) 24lb 7oz and R Silverwood (Sportsmans) 23lb.

Daniel Bradford, one of the Yarmouth area superstars won the Barford Silverfish with a splendid net of bream totalling 50lb 12oz then followed by Browning/Pownall's men Tony Anderson with 40lb 8lb and then Chris Sykes with 22lb 8oz.

Other match results. Norfolk Division of the National Sea League (Mundesley): T Elliott 10lb 5oz, K Morley 8lb 12oz, J Lacey 8lb. Teams: East Anglian Baits four points, TCX 12, Dad's Army 14. Leading standings: EA Baits 10, Norfolk Lads 23, TCX 25.

Stalham AC (Club Water): C Jonas 14lb 4oz, R Farmer 14lb 2oz, J Beck 13lb 4oz.

On the rivers, sport picked up on the Thurne above Potter Heigham Bridge in the stretch that sprang back to life after seeming completely baron seven days earlier.

Fishing below Martham Cess Yarmouth rod Geoffrey Brown caught some of the heaviest bream in the river with at least four specimens well over the 8lb mark.

Declared Geoffrey who was unable to locate any silverfish on his fish finder the previous week said he couldn't go wrong and added: “It was amazing. Suddenly this river was teeming with fish that appeared to have left the river during the high tides.”

On the big fish scene barbel enthusiasts will be delighted to learn that Norfolk's River Wensum has produced a new British record for the species.

This fish came in at 21lb 2oz, beating the previous record taken from the Great Ouse by just one ounce, was caught by Elsing angler Chris Mack who had baited his size eight with a piece of black pudding left on his breakfast plate.

He has lodged a claim with the British Rod Court Fish Committee who is expected to ratify the specimen as the official Untied Kingdom barbel record.

Following the disclosure last week that the first pike casualty due to anglers' mishandling had been discovered in the River Thurne some of the nation's top predator experts have sent this stark warning: Stop weighing pike or risk losing them.

Well-known television angling celebrity, a recognised pike fishing expert, Matt Hayes declared: “Anglers in this country have developed an unhealthy obsession with the weight of fish and pike stocks are suffering,” he declared. “In many countries it is the measurements that count and measuring fish does not damage the internal organs as much as weighing does.”