Hamptons Pool on form

6:14pm Thursday 8th May 2008

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THANKS this week go to the Cheshire Constabulary at Warrington for their speedy response to calls from Warrington Anglers' Association members when thieves gained access to Grey Mist Mere on Tuesday and helped themselves to our palisade fence panels and posts.

The thieves presumably gained access to the waterside by using one of our keys or, worse still, because the gate was left open.

The locks have not been changed since we started with our secure' car park scheme and as a result there are keys now in the possession of non-members.

A change is therefore long overdue which will inevitably lead to much extra work for club officials as well as extra expense and inconvenience for members.

We are looking at the changeover towards year end when the fisheries are at their quietest. We envisage a key exchange scheme with a small cover charge.

On the fishing scene, Grey Mist is really slow with just a few upper doubles and tench being caught.

There are a lot of fish in the margins, presumably getting ready for spawning.

It is the same story at Sandiway where the carp have vanished from the scene and those bream that have been caught are really rough and devoid of protective mucus after rigorous cleaning off in the reeds.

Hamptons Pool fished well over the bank holiday weekend with plenty of roach, skimmers and a few crucians being caught. Three new members made the trip on Sunday and had almost a fish every cast to maggot.

Similarly our other small complex at High Legh produced lots of small tench and rudd but the carp, although visible on the surface, were not feeding.

Maggot is the best bait for plenty of bites there and thanks go to our volunteers for the peg repairs and clean-up during the past week.

Members missed out on our fish-of-the-month competition for April, which carried a prize of more than £100 of Bait-Tech bait products and a Korda carp care kit, as there was not a single entry.

I find it hard to believe that you are all too shy or cannot make good use of the prize.

Simply send in a couple of photographs of fish caught during May with a member as a witness to put yourself in the frame. It's open to all species but in the case of carp we need a picture of both sides of the fish. I don't know what you are waiting for!

We need to have a major refurbishment of the car park at Pickering Bridge where members of the public have kindly dumped timber and roof tiles.

Do not be surprised if the lock has been changed to enable this work to take place.

For our junior members, the Thursday summer series matches start tonight at Euclid Avenue and the minnows commence on May 22.

Let me have your catch reports on 01928 716238, fax 01928 713898 or e-mail frank@warrington-anglers.org.uk.

HQ Parker Street will be open as usual tomorrow, Friday, between 7pm and 9.30pm for subscriptions and new memberships.

Results: Honorary and OAPs match: 1, Alf Seddon 8-13-0; 2, Brian Pilkington 4-10-0; 3, Ed Warburton 1-6-0; 4, Alan Baldwin 11-0.

Forthcoming events: Today, Thursday: Junior Summer Series, draw 6pm on bank opposite Euclid Avenue, Grappenhall. Sunday: Bridgewater Canal Series (Manchester), for details and booking contact Albert Morris on 0161 7922684. Monday: Disabled and Over 60s, draw 10.30am at Star Inn. Tuesday: Honorary and OAPs, draw 11am on Bridgewater Canal bank at Keckwick, pegs 160 to 135.