ENGLAND international Helen Dagnall broke a section of her pole, a landing net handle and smashed the championship record when she captured the individual title in the Embassy Women's National Angling Championship at Woodland View near Droitwich on Saturday.

Dagnall, the 25-year-old owner of Cheshire Angling tackle shop who lives in Thelwall, Warrington, hammered out a superb winning weight of 41.300kg.

It was the largest individual weight since the nationals started in 1974 and shattered the previous record of 23.900kg set by Denise Hudgell at Gold Valley Lakes in 1997.

And there was a golden double celebration for Dagnall as her Starlets AS quartet raced to victory in the team event for the first time since 1993 with a massive total weight of 91.160 kg.

At the end of the match, Dagnall's fellow competitors twice threw her into the water to mark her success.

A soaked but happy Dagnall said: "This is one of the best moments of my fishing career - to win a double gold is superb."

Twelve months ago, Dagnall was third in the individual event and then she said: "It would be great to win a gold medal one day."

She struck gold with a superb performance from a fancied corner peg on Back Deans Pool, fishing in only 18 inches of water tight to the bank.

Using a worm and caster cocktail on a size 14 hook to 5lbs line at 15 metres, Dagnall landed 29 carp to 2.75 kg plus some bream and roach and finally put her Woodland View hoodoo behind her.

She said: "Woodland View is a great fishery but I've usually had a nightmare when I've fished here before. I began slowly but then the wind changed and blew into my peg - that's when I started catching regularly."

However, Dagnall, who won a team gold for England in Slovenia last year, must have thought her 'nightmare' was continuing as she cracked a pole section at the start and then broke her landing net handle.

She said: "I had to use a bank stock with my landing net for the rest of the match."

Dagnall was well clear of her Starlets AS teammate, Julie Abbott, who was second with a weight of 21.140kg.

Starlets AS, third last year, included Dagnall's sister-in-law, Claire Dagnall, a former women's national champion, in their line-up.

Warrington AA Gold, hoping to complete a hat-trick of team gold medals, had to make do with third place and a total weight of 42.740 kg.

England international Wendy Lythgoe, on Back Deans Pool, finished eighth with 15.220kg while Wendy's mum, Lynda, was, after a slow start, 12th with 14.040kg from the peg opposite Sandra Scotthorne.

Former World champion Wendy Locker came home 16th with 12.740kg on Back Deans while Linda Cooke, the record-breaking individual winner on three occasions including victories in 2001 and 2002, was way down in 74th place with 0.740 kg from Front Deans.