THE British roach record has incredibly been beaten for the second time in two weeks – and this time the monster has come from a named venue in England.

Cambridgeshire based army engineer Mark Smith (34) landed the 4lb 5oz giant from Bassington Barrack, an army controlled lake on the Cambs/Herts border.

Mark was fishing for carp at the time and the giant roach snaffled his 14mm boilie offering. Bassington Barrack is a syndicate only water.

Once again it’s hats off to the Angling Times news team for getting the exclusive pictures and story.

The photographs are top rate and the fish does look to be a true roach alright.

Only last week the AT reported that Ray Clarke’s 1990 Dorset Stour record had been beaten by an ounce by a fish from Northern Ireland.

Secretive captor Keith Berry was unsure whether to make the claim, although there is no doubting the authenticity of his catch.

Mark Smith, who is the current UK Army Carp Champion, took his fish at 60 yards after casting to a carp he saw roll. He fished a 14mm Richworth Ultra-Plex boilie fished in conjunction with a PVA stick mix, 12lb sensor line and 25lb Sufix Stealth Skin hooklength.

The fish was weighed on a set of Reuben Heaton scales which are currently being tested for accuracy.

Nigel Hewlett, senior fisheries scientist for the EA, advises the British record Fish Committee on record claims.

He has identified Keith Berry’s fish as a true roach. He has also seen pictures of Mark’s fish. He says he is unable to identify the fish 100% because a couple of key features are obscured. However, he does say that on the balance of probability, it’s a true roach. So it’s now over to the BRFC.

Geeps