Old Baggers Angling Club

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Whitmore
King of East Canal Match 4.
Pegs 1 - 23
Usual Sunday outing with the "Old Baggers" Angling club 3/8/2025

This is the fourth match of a 6 match series to be fished solely on East Canal. 20 anglers split into 4 sections scored 1 to 5 points depending on position.

Golden Peg Pot stands at £100
Today’s peg was the 1 and it will rollover as it has not been won today.

There were 16 anglers booked on for this one with 4 anglers using 1 of their 2 dropped match options.

Into the draw bag and I pulled out peg 11 which due to the tighter pe***ng today gave me a free peg either side. However it was definitely not a renowned flyer peg.

Decided on two lines, one at 24” across to the right next to the bush and a top kit plus two in 48” of water.
Margin lines at the same depth as across would be fed for later in the day.

Started short on expander and had 3 small carp in the first hour.
Was adamant I was going to stick to my lines today and fished long and short rotating every few minutes.
Had the odd fish intermittently for the first 4 hours then upped the feed on the short line for the last hour hoping the fish would get their heads down.

On to the weigh in and 50lb in the net for 2nd.
Well fished John🥇 Me🥈and Keith🥉for being today’s winner and framers.

Next match Sunday 10th August on Hudson’s Farm Donut.

Tight Lines👍🎣

Whitmore
King of East Canal Match 3.
Pegs 2 - 34
Usual Sunday outing with the "Old Baggers" Angling club 27/7/2025.

This is the third match of a 6 match series to be fished solely on East Canal. 20 anglers split into 4 sections scored 1 to 5 points depending on position.

Golden Peg Pot stands at £95.
Today’s peg was the 27 and it will rollover as it has not been won today.

There were 19 anglers booked on for this one with 1 angler using 1 of their 2 dropped match options.

Into the draw bag and I pulled out peg 16 which I was happy with today as it is a frequent placer in the open matches.

Decided on two lines, one at 24” across to the left next to the bush and a top kit plus short No. 3 in 36”.
Margin lines at the same depth as across would be fed for later in the day.

Started short on expander but nothing in the area so quickly went across.
First putin and a carp takes me up the bank to the right and snags me. 1 nil to the carp.

Caught 2 small carp and small ide on maggots / worms for most of the match but couldn’t tempt any larger fish.
However it was putting something in the net so I was happy to continue, as they say “never come off feeding fish”.
Fed my short line all day with casters and my left margin with micros and dead reds.

Fish could be seen coming in the margins with an hour to go so I concentrated on this. However they wouldn’t go down so a wasted effort today.
Not sure how much effect the Saturday open is effecting fishing when they fish later in the day.
Them carp are “wise old”.

On to the weigh in and 28lb in the net for 3rd in section and a disappointing 3 points.
To be honest I should have stayed on the far line and continued to catch ide or fish top kit short as I did last time out on here.

Well fished Tony🥇 Mark🥈and Dan🥉for being today’s winner and framers.

Well fished Mark on another 1 pointer.
You are topping the league so pressures on you even if you are missing for the next match of the series.

Next match Sunday 3rd August on Whitmore East Canal Match 4.

Tight Lines👍🎣

Mere Lane (Old Lake).
Usual Sunday outing with the "Old Baggers" Angling club.
20/7/2025

There were 11 anglers booked on for this one.

Weather was as forcast with intermittent showers but no evidence of lightning.

Into the draw bag and I pulled out peg 7 which by all accounts is a flyer.
My confidence for a good day was a little better than the last two occasions I had fished this lake so let’s give it a go.

Had a good plumb around and decided on one line at 10 metres in about 4’ of water and one line down the right hand margin in 3’.
Only set up my margin pole today as these carp are known for heading for the rushes which proliferate the lake.

Simply bait tray today of pellets, sweetcorn and expanders over micros and groundbait.

All in and fingers crossed.
However the peg seemed again to be void of fish willing to feed. Plenty evidence of carp surface patrolling further out than my 10 meter limit.

Couldn’t be bothered to get my 16 meter pole out so consentrated on the right margin at various positions down the bank.

The few bites I had would only come when the rig was place next to vegetation. This on most occasions resulted in the fish darting for cover.
It’s amazing how much stretch they can get out of bungee elastic.
Carp 7 angler 1 on the day for another frustrating match.

On to the weigh in and 8lb for my one carp.

Congratulations to Big Chris on his win today.
Few worrying moments on peg 6 but the Old Lake will furnish results if you are willing to gamble with the rushes.

Tight Lines

Whitmore
King of East Canal Match 2.
Pegs 2 - 27
Usual Sunday outing with the "Old Baggers" Angling club 29/6/2025.

This is the second match of a 6 match series to be fished solely on East Canal. 20 anglers split into 4 sections scored 1 to 5 points depending on position.

Golden Peg Pot stands at £75
Today’s peg was the 19, it will rollover as it has not been won today.

There were 17 anglers booked on for this one with 3 anglers using 1 of their 2 dropped match options.

Into the draw bag and I pulled out peg 2 which I was happy with today as walking the early pegs before the match I said I would be happy with that one.
After last week’s disaster I needed to get my act together to redeem myself.

Decided on two lines, one at 24” across to the floating structure and a top kit plus short No. 3 in 36”.
Margin lines at the same depth as across would be fed for later in the day.

Started short on expander but nothing in the area so quickly went across.
Switched to my across line on maggots as it was looking like a slow start from what I could see from the other anglers.

Caught small ide on maggots for most of the first half of the match but no sign of any carp.
However it was putting something in the net so I was happy to continue, as they say “never come off feeding fish”.
Fed my short line all day with casters and my right margin from 14:00 with micros and dead reds.

Finished on my short top kit line for half a dozen barbel and a couple of carp.
Nothing much happened on the margin line so canned that off.

On to the weigh in and 43lb in the net for 1st place and 1 point.
Just the result after last weeks 5 points 👍

Well fished me🥇 Mark🥈and John🥉for being today’s winner and framers.

Well fished Mark on another 1 pointer.
You are topping the league so pressures on you for the next match on 27th July.

Next match Sunday 6th July on Whitmore Fisheries Donut lake.

Tight Lines👍🎣

Whitmore
King of East Canal Match 1.
Usual Sunday outing with the "Old Baggers" Angling club 22/6/2025.

This is the first match of a 6 match series to be fished solely on East Canal. 20 anglers split into 4 sections scored 1 to 5 points depending on position.

Golden Peg Pot stands at £70
Today’s peg is 23 and it will rollover as it is not occupied today.

There were 18 anglers booked on for this one with 2 anglers using 1 of their 2 dropped match options.

Into the draw bag and I pulled out peg 34 which I was happy with today as a practice on this peg a couple of weeks ago produced some good action from both carp and barbel.

Decided on two lines, one at 24” across to the vegetation and a top kit plus short No. 3 in 36”.
Margin lines at the same depth as across would be fed for later in the day.

Started across on expander but the wind was gusting and causing issues with presentation.
Switched to maggots so I would have something more substantial on the hook.
Wind did me in and I came short for the majority of the match on maggots waiting for something to happen.

Switched between near and far when conditions allowed but had no decent bites or signs of fish activity for most of the match. I do think the wind had pushed the fish to calmer parts of the lake and today was going to be one of those days when nothing would work.

Had a few small bits and one barbel at 14:55 with 5 minutes to go for a very disappointing match.

On to the weigh in and 4lb in the net for last place and 5 points. Not the start I wanted.

Well fished Little Chris🥇 John🥈and Pete🥉for being today’s winner and framers.

Next match Sunday 29th June on Whitmore Fisheries East Canal.
This is the second match in our King of East Canal series so hoping for a better match and a section win 1 pointer🙏

Tight Lines👍🎣

Hudson’s Farm (Donut).
Usual Sunday outing with the "Old Baggers" Angling club 15/6/2025.

Golden Peg Pot stands at £65.
Today’s peg is 9 with Big Chris doing his best to take the 💰.

There were 14 anglers booked on for this one.

Into the draw bag and I pulled out peg 13 which I was happy with today as a sneaky practice on peg 15 on Thursday had resulted in some excellent skimmer fishing.

Decided on two lines at 45” deep @ 14 metres in the far vegetation and down the track in the deepest water @ 5’.
Margin lines at the same depth as across would be fed for later in the day.

Started @ 14 metres on expanders over micros with nothing much to show for the first half hour.

Switched to 11 meters down the track, again on expanders but still no action.

First fish was a 4lb carp that I mugged as it swam through my peg.

Back to the far bank and tried a few different spots and baits with the best being maggots resulting in a few decent ide.

Right hand margin was good for one 4lb barbel but like elsewhere the carp couldn’t be seen.

On to the weigh in and 23lb in the net.
This consisted of one carp (4lb), two tench (2lb)apiece, one barbel (4lb), some decent ide and some bits.

My rig for the day when the conditions allowed was a Nick Gilbert Gimp 0.2 & 0.3G, 0.17 down to 0.15 and a size 16 or 14 Drennan Power Carp.

Well fished Mark 🥇 Lee🥈and Martin🥉for being today’s winner and framers.

Next match Sunday 22nd June on Whitmore Fisheries East Canal.
This is the first match in our King of East Canal series.

Tight Lines👍🎣

Hall Lane (Bess’s). Pegs 53 to 75.
Usual Sunday outing with the "Old Baggers" Angling club 8/6/2025.

Golden Peg Pot stands at £60
Today’s peg is number 56 with John McKerney trying to take the pot.💰

There were 17 anglers booked on for this one.
Into the draw bag and I pulled out peg 66 which is at the left hand side of the central split. I was happy with the draw and looking forward to some action but it would be hard to beat the end pegs 62 and 63 with the wind blowing into their pegs.

Wind was blowing left to right and although blustery at times the pole @ 16 metres was manageable.

Had a good plumb around and decided on one line in 4’ @ 16 metres a 2’ off the rushes and another in 4’ @ 11 metres down the track.
Margin to my left and right was 6” shallower for later in the match.

Bomb and small Pellet feeder was also in my armoury for the day.

Started on the Pellet feeder in the far vegetation giving me time to feed my track line.
No bites in the first 20 minutes so switching to long and track lines on hard or soft pellets. Again nothing happening and very little evidence of fish in our area.

Switching to my far pole line but pushed into shallower water on the mud. Two small stockies and a few ide came to the net over the next couple of hours. Still no sign of a carp so I swapped to a worm along the far bank as a last resort. Two carp in quick succession and I thought I had a plan. No such luck as nothing else but ide or skimmers came my way.

I was switching between lines for most of the day without much progress and in all honesty was waiting for the last hour when the fish usually move in for a feed.

I concentrated on my left margin for the last hour on paste or worm and connected with 4 carp which for what ever reason shed the hook ( or were they foul hooked? )

On to the weigh in and 14lb in the net.

My rig for the day was again a Matrix 0.5 Matrix Power Slim, 0.20 down to 0.17 and a size 16 or 14 Drennan Power Bandits (bands snipped off for worm / maggots.

Well fished Keith 🥇, John🥈and Chris🥉for being today’s winner and framers.
3 end pegs taking the coin today, sometimes you feel like cannon fodder………….😂

Next match Sunday 15th on the Hudson’s Farm (Donut).

Tight Lines👍🎣

Old Bagger’s on Tour May 22nd to 25th.

Thursday 22nd Tollerton Ponds (Heron).
11 fishing today.

Into the bag of doom and out comes peg 25.
I was happy with my peg as it was on the sleeper bank and I had done well this side previously.
I set up 2 rigs, one at about 5’ in front of my nets and 1 for my left and right margin in 18” of water.

All in and I started in front of my nets on 6mm meat over h**p and corn.
Caught steadily throughout the match with mainly stocky carp and the odd barbel.
Switched between the right and left margins to rest the longer line but the fish would not come short in any numbers.
Switched to corn on the hook later in the match as bites were more positive and I missed less.
For some reason the fish were not as aggressive as previously and the elastic was not being pulled out on the bite.
Last 4 fish were carp of about 3 to 4lb being the biggest I caught all match. The larger carp didn’t seem to show in numbers for this match.

On to the weigh in.
I had about 100lb (not including my silvers net) on my clicker with a net limit of 60lb set by our club.
Anything over 65lb and you are knocked back to 50lb.
I weighed 53lb first net and 67lb (knocked back to 50lb) in my second net. Third net of silvers and barbel made my total of 131lb for the day.

Well fished Tony for a 246lb win and John and Big Chris todays framers with 180lb and 159lb respectively.

Friday 23rd Forest Lane (Furlong).
10 fishing today.

Furlong is a canal like stretch around 14m wide and suits my type of fishing in the mud and short in the margins.

The weather was sunny with very little breeze allowing for far bank mud line fishing.

Into the bag and out comes number 10.
Would have preferred to be on a higher number peg but still it looked fishable and I was looking forward to catching some fish.
I set up a far mud line, net and margin rigs with sweetcorn / groundbait my preferred bait for the day.
Fishing was hard for the day with me struggling to make the far line work. I consecrated mainly on my left margin just short of the next pallet.

On to the weigh in and 36lb for me and a no coin 4th place.

Well fished Big Chris for a 94lb win. John and Keith today’s framers with 51lb and 38lb respectively.

Saturday 24th Woodlands (Partridge).
12 fishing today.

My thoughts on Woodland’s never changes.
Expect a 4 hour slog waiting for the fish to come in. All hands to the pump and do the damage in the last hours.

Into the bag and out comes peg 5.
I am advised it’s a good peg by John Mac as he had it last time out.
Anyway started on 2 + 2 on 8mm pellet hoping to catch an early carp. Nothing but two small roach and a skimmer for 4 1/2 hours. Did try method and bomb but again no bites or liners.
Looking a bit daunting as John on my left had 9 in the bag up to this point.

On to the left margin in front of the next pallet, single corn over ground bait and that’s where I stayed for the remainder of the match.
Finished with 103lb for a match win.

Well fished John (91lb) and Roy (64lb) being today’s framers.

Sunday 25th Woodlands (Kestral).
12 fishing today.

Similar to Saturday’s match and out of the bag comes peg 19 end peg.
Wind blowing like Blackpool sea front straight into my corner.

Not a great deal to say about this one.
The peg seemed devoid of carp.
I had half a dozen skimmers to the left hand end bank and two carp on the method in open water.

Well fished John McKerney who finished with a 56lb 🥇win, Pete Smith 49lb 🥈 second and Eddie Gould 🥉third with 47lb.

I finished last with a dismal 12lb. How the mighty fall…☹️

So that was it for this May, roll on August it’s all booked up.

Hudson’s Farm (Donut).
Usual Sunday outing with the "Old Baggers" Angling club 11/5/2025.

Golden Peg Pot stands at £80.
Today’s peg is 1 with me doing my best to take the 💰.

There were 16 anglers booked on for this one.

Into the draw bag and I pulled out peg 1 (Golden Peg) which is one I haven’t fished before.

Had a good plumb around and decided on two lines at 30” deep @ 14 metres and 11 metres to my left.

Started @ 14 metres on maggots over micros but the scum in the bay was hindering presentation. Came back to 11 meters again on maggots and stayed there for the remainder of the match due to visibility and presentation issues.

On to the weigh in and 20lb in the net.
This consisted of one carp (4lb), four tench (2lb)apiece, some decent ide and some bits.

Me and Lee did the weigh in today starting at peg one. Not having any idea of the weights from elsewhere I was surprised to find I had not only won the match but taken the Golden Peg pot as well.

My rig for the day when the conditions allowed was again a Matrix 0.4 Matrix Power Slim, 0.17 down to 0.15 and a size 16 or 14 Drennan Power Carp or a DS Margin Pig when visibility or presentation was reduced due to the scum.

Well fished Me🥇, Tony🥈and Eddie 🥉for being today’s winner and framers.

Next match Sunday 18th @ High Heyes (Catteries No. 2).

Tight Lines👍🎣