Pic: Match Fishing Magazine
The victorious Starlets team following the 2012 Match Fishing Team Champs. Pic: Match Fishing Magazine
A brilliant Match Fishing Team Championships saw Midlands based Kamasan Starlets snatch the title from reigning champions Daiwa Dorking, and a new festival record to boot.
Fittingly it was skipper Mark Downes who sealed the win for Starlets. The Birmingham based angler was in the last section to weigh in with the result still in the balance. His 8-7-8, the third highest weight of the 70-peg event, was too good for Dorking’s Simon Willsmore, who took 6-9-0 to the scales off the end peg, sealing the victory by just two points with Barnsley Blacks in third.
Anglers fishing the river were probably one of few to welcome the bank holiday rain as it switched the river’s big fish onto the feed.
And after a big bream weight to Alan Scotthorne the previous day, Daiwa Gordon League’s Martyn Howard set another new festival record.
After drawing peg 27 Martyn went all out for barbel fishing open ended feeder with crushed pellets and an 11mm hair rigged pellet on the hook. He had to wait two hours for his first bite, but it provided the first of four big barbel for a 39-12-0 total.
It was a highly satisfying win for a Starlets team including the likes of Sean Ashby, Simon Fry and Darren Cox, and Mark Downes told Match Fishing magazine: “I was delighted with our draw this morning- though I knew that Dorking and Barnsley had good draws as well, and that we would have to get things right on the day if we wanted to take victory.
“While many anglers sat for the big fish that so often figure in the frame weights at Evesham, we got our heads down with bloodworm and joker – trying to eek as much as we could from the river to gain valuable section points.
“After an initial bombardment of groundbait and soil, we started off targeting roach, and many including myself had a good first hour.
“As is often the case at Evesham, things got tougher as the day wore on, and it was only by swapping between rigs, and targeting other species such as perch that we were able to edge in front of rival teams. After several near misses in recent years, it is great to finally get our hands on the winners’ trophy! ”
For full results, check out October’s issue of Match Fishing Magazine.
2012 Match Fishing Team Championships Result, Warks Avon, Evesham
Teams: Kamasan Starlets 59pts; Daiwa Dorking 57pts; Ultimate Barnsley Blacks 52pts
Individuals: Martyn Howard (Daiwa Gordon League) 39-12-0, peg 27; Tony Skinner (Shakespeare Superteam) 10-4-0, peg 14; Mark Downes (Kamasan Starlets) 8-7-8, peg 7.
