Being off work this week on holiday I was able to fish the Jubilee fishery Wednesday affordable open, this week held on the Withes pool. These matches generally attract 15-20 anglers each week and today saw 15 fishing. They have a bonus peg each week which is capped at £50.00 and then another one is started. Today there were 4 bonus pegs in as no one had won one for a while. I was lucky enough to draw Withies 3 which was one of the four bonus pegs.

Withies 3 is a good peg but hasn’t thrown up a good weight for a while but I was confident with the form I’m in at the moment on this pool. With not much colour in the water I decided to cut the feed down and plumbed up 4 swims. One over to the island at 13 metres fishing the top of the shelf in 12 inches of water. A mid track swim at 9 sections at about 11 o’clock to my left in 2 foot of water. The right margin and a semi margin to the left about 1.5 metres out from the bank at 6 sections in 2 foot of water. A bomb rod was also set up if I needed to cast around looking for fish. 

I began on the far island swim and kindered in a few micro’s, alternating between corn and expander pellet on the hook but after 45 biteless minutes it was time to change tactics. I decided to try the mid track swim and kindered in some 6mm cubes of meat with meat on the hook and this was more successful, hooking two Carp in 20 minutes, however I lost both of these at the net and I thought I was going to have one of those matches. The two bites did give me the confidence to stay on this line but I began loose feeding the right margin with corn as a backup swim and also kindered a few 6mm cubes of meat into the left semi margin with the intention of leaving it for a while. I carried on with the mid track swim and caught a couple more carp but it was still a bit slow.

After another hour in the mid track swim with no other fish it was time to change again I tried the left semi margin again kindering in another pot of 6mm cubes of meat. I caught two more carp straight away and fed again and then had another carp. Then the bites stopped, I thought the carp were coming in for the loose feed and then swimming out of the peg So I decided to up the anti and cupped in half a pot of 4mm pellets and meat, but 8mm cubes this time. I then rested the swim for 10 minutes while I tried the right margin where I’d feed corn. I thought with it being a bright day and it only being 2 foot deep maybe the carp didn’t want a pole over their heads.

After a biteless 10 minutes on the right margin and I went back over the left semi margin which I had rested and I caught a carp straight away. The carp had responded to the feed, so changing to 8mm meat had worked. I began kindering in 8mm cubes of meat every 10 minutes and caught a few carp doing this and had a good hour. I was getting bites only when I fed!

It was getting near to the end of the match and bites were slowing down and I was concerned I was feeding too much for a cold October day in water that wasn’t as coloured to the previous week. So I cut the feed down and began to feed just 6mm meat and 4mm pellets, but keeping an 8mm cube of meat on the hook. This helped and the bites began again and I landed several more carp doing this.

In the last 10 minutes I felt I needed a couple more carp quickly so I stopped feeding and tried to catch a feeding carp by catching on the drop. I caught two more Carp doing this but as it proved at the weigh in I already had enough weight to win the match anyway, but I didn’t know this at the time. I weighed in 53lb 1oz which on a cold October day was pleasing, I think with careful feeding and changing the feeding throughout the match was the key to the win.

A key item of tackle was a 4m long landing net handle which enabled me to land hooked fish away from a snaggy margin.

Rigs 

Mid track rig – 0.2g Nick Gilbert XT Decker HD pole float on 0.18mm Silstar matchteam mainline, a small bulk of no.10 stotz’s above a 6 inch 0.16mm hook length to a size 16 B911 spade end hook set up on purple hydro.

Semi margin rig – 0.2g Nick Gilbert NG XT mini diamond pole float on 0.18mm Silstar matchteam main line, a small bulk no.10 stotz’s about a 6 inch 016mm hook length length with size 14 B911 spade end hook, set up on Red hydro.