Fred's 31 tench in three days

As a result there have been some marvellous catches of both species. One of the most outstanding catches recently was made by Alan Carter, of Bexhill, who in two days' fishing landed four magnificent specimens.

Fishing Dove Lake, at Hawkhurst Fishery, Alan fished with small yellow pop-ups over a bed of maize, hemp and pellets to catch two mirrors, including a personal best 36lb 6oz and 24lb 14oz, plus two common carp at 25lb 2oz and 23lb 10oz.

The catch is even more remarkable when one considers that at the time only three carp had ben caught from the lake since it was restocked with carp from 20lb to 39lb 8oz.

Still in among the specimens is Fred Healey, of Uckfield, who made a trip to a Kent club lake where he caught 31 tench in three days' fishing plus a number of big bream.

His biggest tench scaled: 10lb 5oz, 9lb 14oz, 9lb 12oz, two at 9lb, 8lb 9oz and 8lb 6oz. All the others were between 5lb and 7lb.

He also caught bream at 13lb 2oz, 12lb 1oz, 12lb 6oz and 10lb 4oz.

Fred fished the method feeder with Vitalin groundbait mixed with brown crumb and maggots on the hook.

Another remarkable catch of tench was caught by Steve Potter, of St Leonards, who fished at Normanhurst Lake at Catsfield for one of the best catches of the species ever to come from the lake.

Fishing with two rods, one ledgered and the other float fished with maggots and luncheon meat, Steve caught 42 tench in just one day. The fish averaged 4lb and the biggest weighed 5lb 14oz.

He also caught a mirror carp at 17lb 8oz, a perch, a roach/rudd hybrid and six brown goldfish hybrids.

Last month at Chalk Springs, 365 anglers caught 843 trout of which 141 were over 4lb and the average catch rate per angler as 78 per cent.

The biggest brown trout, weighing 16lb 6oz, was caught by Hugh Pollard who fished the west lake with black Lead Bug.

There was also a brown of 13lb 10oz taken by Alex Hill from the south lake and Alex Dainton, fishing the east lake with a Montana, caught the biggest rainbow at 14lb 6oz.

Ian Mitchell, of Brighton, landed a rainbow weighing 12lb 12oz from the south lake on a Damsel Nymph, and Barry Young banked a rainbow at 12lb 4oz from the east lake on a black lure.

Results of a competition at Wylands Snake Lake '“ 1: Tim Relf (Clive Vale) 95lb 14oz; 2: Lou Nightingale (Wylands) 69lb 8oz; 3: Dave Calway (Wylands) 66lb 12oz; 4: Ian Oliver (Wylands) 50lb 6oz; 5: Trevor Little (Wylands) 50lb 6oz; 6: Richard Lovewell (Wylands) 46lb 13oz.

The Rye DAC Club League was fished at Wylands Angling Centre Snake Lake: Results '“ 1: Geoff Borden (Marsh Tackle) 35lb 9oz; 2: Doug Moffatt (Tenterden AC) 24lb 12oz; 3: Chris Pope (Tenterden AC) 19lb 13oz; 4: Kevin Coultrap (The Railwaymen) 18lb 14oz; 5: K Potter (Hastings Angling Centre) 18lb 10oz; 6: Bob Turner (Environment Agency) 14lb 12oz.