Leicester angler Lee McManus has continued his blistering start to spring with the capture of this 12lb 14oz tench – the biggest reported so far this season. It beats his previous best for the species by over 2lb, and follows hot on the heels of an 18lb 10oz bream he banked in April.
It was caught from a large Midlands pit, where Lee decided to try for tench after the bream had spawned. Having found a clear spot at range on a weedy gravel bar, he used a bait boat to deploy a handful of chopped worm and caster over his fake caster hookbait. This was fished on a size 8 Gardner Barbel hook and a coated braid hooklink on a lead clip system.
Alongside the 12-pounder, Lee added two ‘nines’ in what was a memorable session.
THE TENCH ARE ON THE FEED, MAKE SURE YOU'RE USING THE BEST TENCH RODS!
After battling traffic on the M25, and enduring wallet-draining Dartford Crossing charges as he travelled to Kent in search of tench, James Crosby was finally rewarded with this 11lb 8oz fish. The Hertfordshire angler was targeting a large pit, where he fed groundbait, hemp and pellets to the back of a raised gravel area at 40 yards.
Over the top, he fished maggot feeders, and topped up with his Spomb after each fish. Alongside the 11-pounder, James added fish of 9lb 6oz, 9lb 5oz, 8lb 12oz and 8lb 8oz in what turned out to be a fantastic session.
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Although finding a spot, baiting up and fishing it accurately is a key part of catching specimen fish, acting on signs in your swim can be just as important – as Neale Woodward proved on a trip to a Kent pit.
He was targeting tench, and had endured a slow start to the session. However, as he was packing up, he noticed a few fish bubbling. He decided to have a quick cast for them, dropping in-line feeders and worm hookbaits on to the area.
His session was transformed from that point, as he went on to land tench of 11lb 2oz, 10lb 4oz and 9lb 6oz.
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