Lakeview Fishery, Leics, the venue for the fifth qualifier, has a history of providing tight results irrespective of conditions and although it tends not to produce massive weights it is always difficult to predict where matches will be won from.
With only 3lb separating the top three positions it was Simon Medd from Stockton on Tees, fishing for Cleveland Angling Centre, who took the winning spot. Simon drew Canal peg 6 and started down the edge on pellet to catch 20lb of carp in the first 30 minutes. He then switched to the far bank using the same tactics and feeding little and often and, using only half a pint of loose fed pellets through the whole match, gradually built up his weight of 65lb 8oz made up of carp to 5lb to run out the eventual winner and the fifth qualifier for the final.
Only 2lb behind him was Sean Huggins, a regular Fish ‘O’ Mania competitor and past finalist, drawn on Serpent peg 1, weighing in with 63lb 8oz. Sean openly admitted that he thought he was being battered on both sides and never thought he had a chance of being this close to the winner. He again fished short and across, picking up two or three fish from each line, but lost three fish during the match which turned out to cost him dearly.
Third place, and 3lb behind the winner, also losing a number of fish, was Ben Roberts from Flintshire, drawn on Serpent peg 24, fishing for Drennan North West and weighing in with a weight of 62lb 8 oz. In fourth place was Stephen Barraclough of Doncaster, drawn on Serpent peg 8 and fishing for Ultimate Barnsley Blacks, with a weight of 59lb 7 oz, fifth place went to Gary Miller of Cuffley, Hertfordshire, drawn on Stream peg 20 with a weight of 55lb 8oz.
The next Fish ‘O’ Mania qualifier heads to Peatling Pools in Leicestershire on Wednesday 02 May 2012.
