by John W Preston

BRIGHT but chilly conditions greeted the competitors last Sunday when they lined up to fish the fourth match in this season’s eight match series on the Bay Horse length of the canal at Skipton.

As the match progressed, a sneaky northerly wind gradually picked up and blew down the match length bringing plenty of leaves with it.

In spite of the cold, sport turned out to be better than expected and the top weights were reasonable although they soon tailed off to amount to little more than a few grams with most catches consisting of small roach or perch.

In first place was Malcolm Mawson who managed to catch the resident chub that resides near the road bridge and weighs 1110g. Bill Davenport was runner-up with 610g which included a perch of about 450g which he hooked in the edge whilst waiting for a boat to pass and Andy Wharton was third with 550g of small fish. Other leading weights were: 4 Russell Heaton 510g, 5 Roy Veevers 500g and 6 Rob Thornton 400g.

In the pairs event most weights were almost the same as the individuals with just a few small fish added. Top spot again went to Malcolm Mawson and partner Ernie Ramsbotham with 1130g. Other weights were: 2 Rob Thornton and Simon Chenier 760g, 3 Russell Heaton and Jason Aldis 730g, 4 Andy Wharton and Andrew Thomas 680g, 5, Bill Davenport and Mark Bradley 610g and 6 Roy Veevers and Steve McIlroy 500g.

At the half way stage in the league, both the individuals and the pairs are very close at the top with everything to fish for in the remaining four matches. Individuals: 1 Rob Thornton 15 points, 2 Bill Davenport 16, 3 Jason Aldis 17, 4 Russell Heaton 21, 5 Andy Wharton 26 and 6 Kenny Wright 27. Pairs: 1 both Heaton and Aldis and Thornton and Chenier 10, 3 Wright and Eason, Davenport and Bradley and Mawson and Ramsbotham all 16 and 6 Wharton and Thomas 17.

The next match in the series will be fished on the Aireville Park length of the canal at Skipton on Sunday, November 11.