Holt SAC 7th Leg Summer Accumulator (Report)

Sunday 5th June 2016 - Salthouse

The Club’s 7th leg of the Summer Accumulator was played out on the shingle at Salthouse and again it was another match that was in total contrast to the previous two matches. As we expected there was no sign of the Hounds seen at Bacton 2 weeks ago and no sign of the bucketful of Dabs the following week at Kelling. Instead, just for a change the Schoolie Bass appeared to give us some sport and at a few decent Flounders in excellent condition at last started to show.   The small Schoolies have been rather scarce over the last few years so it was good to see them and not surprising they were there as the rough over the previous week had removed most of the stinking May weed sludge. With yet another different variety of species which once again led to another cracking competitive Club match.

This roughness of the week had helped to “sharpen” up the water and with a nice sea running with a moderate Northerly and a 3 to 4 foot swell it was certainly conditions for those silver bars and the smaller specimens duly obliged. An overcast sky with the odd sunny spell helped to make it comfortable for a change and gone was that chilly blast in your face of the previous few weeks. Fishing the ebb on a big tide meant chasing the tide and in this one the shingle unusually seemed to keep going down for ever. With such a changing seascape this really did test everyone’s ability to adapt and change tactics as the match progressed and it certainly did this.

With a 9:00 start it was going to be a struggle to make it particularly those who had been on Humber duty the night before, well done Henry with his 2nd on Courthauld Straight. Even so, the usual club diehards had booked their slot on Salthouse beach road car park and were soon in the usual banter mode. Crazy that the “politicians” haven’t reinstated a car park here which would benefit all the general public. Thus allowing people to enjoy this smashing beach but maybe the local “politicians” from away don’t want this to happen, they just want to keep it to themselves. Anyway the car park was soon a distant memory and everyone was focused on a good peg selection although the only good selection was presumed to be an end peg. The size of the shingle at Salthouse is probably the worst to walk on and with no one opting for a close peg a few were rueing this decision at the end.

Pegging for this one was between the remnants of “Great Eye” mound and “Little Eye” mound which seems to be the most productive near stretch on this beach. The remnants of the flood tide was just lapping over the small seaward bank and everyone were soon safely set up behind it. Well nearly everyone, as “the consultant” and “asian ace” were caught out by a rogue wave with the latter just sustaining a little dampness but the former had serious metal fatigue and ended up buddyless for the whole match. At the off tactics played a major part in this match and dictated success or failure. There were those that opted for the gutter and close gully for Bass and Flounders out of choice and others that had to go there as they didn’t have a choice. There were others with a bit of distance opting to pick up those bucketful of Dabs, they were there but not in buckets. Then there was the odd one or two, well just one who was banging it out after a prized Hound or two. Bored? Suppose better say something about the fishing.

With the flood only just starting to ebb and still plenty of water , rods were soon rattling. Those in the gully were picking up small Bass but the Flounders were very elusive. Those with a bit of distance were finding Dabs mostly singly with odd doubles but not of any quality and certainly not of the quantity of the previous match.   This pattern continued whilst there was tide and water but the very small Bass were the first to drop off although the odd good Schoolie kept coming ashore. The Dabs were still being found even as slack water arrived but as what usually happens all fish switched off as slack water took hold. A definite quiet period until the tide started to pick up again as the final part of the ebb started. The odd Dab still appeared but it was now getting shallow and they eventually pushed off. With the extent of the flat gutter and gully clearly visible the Flounder at last appeared along with some bigger Schoolies and a decent Bass of 44cm. Those that were able to exploit the gully were picking up some decent Flounders with some just into the 30cms. With these Flounders came big points which started to change the face of the match for some but in the main the result of the match had been determined early on when the Dabs were around. Still bored? How about a bit more!

Down on the pegs, “asian ace” was most disappointed as his favourite peg 1 had been taken by “silver fox” Neave. A good hike on soft shingle but our Octogenarian never complains and never has a close peg in Club matches, what an example! His usual tactic to go for Dabs at a little distance got off to a roaring start as a decent Dab and good Flounder were soon on his card. However, as the ebb became serious his train hit the buffers and he struggled to find more ending up with 1lb 15oz from 6 fish. Next on peg 2 was the man who had set his stall out from the off in “take it easy” Tovell. None of his usual Dabs stuff for him, he was after the serious Hounds that gave him success here in previous years. Unfortunately, they just weren’t there and all this banging out resulted in, yes! Dabs and what appears to be from his card a Turbot for 1lb 8oz from 7 fish. “the consultant” Allison was struggling from the off with just 3 small Dabs and his day got even worse when he was labelled as being deaf and blind requiring maths lesson. However, the drama of the 23cm or should we say 33cm Bass on adjacent peg was soon forgotten when he decided to re-cast a massive Pete’s lug bait that had not deployed probably. Within minutes his rod was banging around and soon had a nice proper 44cm Bass on the beach. Unfortunately, this didn’t do any damage to others as he ended up with just 2lb 5oz from 5 fish.

“asian ace” Loke peg 4 was in usual flatty mode but could only find a few of the smaller versions. After that disappointment of missing out on peg 1 his 33cm Bass experience did help to liven up his and others day and get the adrenalin flowing but still could only manage 2lb 3oz from 8 fish. The ever consistent “the boss” Morley (peg 5) had set his stall out from the off and was in the gutter and was soon into the small Schoolies and had a couple on his card within minutes. Persisting with this tactic throughout the match this was all he could find along with a few small Dabs and for once a serious fish eluded him ending with 2lb 11oz from 12 fish of which 8 were Schoolies. “yoda” Thomas’s (peg 6) game plan was Bass and Flounders in the gully and when he immediately got a tap tap and a small Schoolie on his card he thought right move here we go. Wrong! that was it on the Bass front and when next peg started hauling in double shots of Dabs it was time to change tactics but it was all too late and with just a few Dabs recorded they dried up. As slack water finished and the tide picked up it was back to the gully and with a drifting lead the reward was there with a reasonable Bass and Flounders up to 31cm all of which gave him a shot at a podium finish.

The metronome “last cast” Watts (peg 7) was straight into his Dab mode placing his 3 hook clip down crammed with lug, crab and squid at just the right distance. This was again doing the trick as a succession of Dabs up to 26cm were being piled up on his card and then interspersed with some decent Schoolies up to 29cm. This flow of fish started to dry up as the slack petered out and water disappeared and with some decent points earning Flounders being taken next door he was starting to get concerned that all that sweat was going to be usurped. He then had another trick to halt this and a drifting lead on his last cast gave his a 31cm Flounder and more than enough to see off the opposition ending with 6lb 2oz from 26 fish. In the fray again was young “dabber” Brierley (peg 8) and you can see he’s learning a thing or two when I spotted his ‘red’ snoods, now where he get that from?   He doesn’t quite have the distance yet but knows where to put his bait as he was into fish early on. Then there was a 30cm Flounder and whilst attending this his rod started to bang away resulting in a 34cm Schoolie on the beach. He certainly was finding the Bass with 7 on his card helping him into the top end of the leader board with 4lb 4oz from 12 fish. At last all the practicing is starting to pay dividends for “taxi” Kendrick (peg 9) as he kicked off with a nice 27cm Dab and in contrast to everyone else was into some Flounders early on. His card then took a big boost with 32cm and 33cm Schoolies along with a 31cm Flounder giving him 4lb 10oz from 13 fish at the end with a shot at podium finish. Final man on the stretch was “steady” Carter (peg 10) who was in Dab mode from the off with 6 appearing on his card early on. Although he hadn’t forgotten his crab this time this didn’t help him find a serious specimen but a 30cm Flounder for 32 points did give his score a welcome boost ending up with 3lb 0oz from 14 fish.

In the end it was a hat rick for Mike “last cast” Watts for his third victory in a row with 6lb 2oz from 26 fish. Runner –up was Tony “yoda” Thomas with 4lb 11 1/3oz from 15 fish followed very closely by Paul “taxi” Kendrick with 4lb 10oz from 13 fish. Heaviest round fish was Ivan “the consultant” Allison’s 44cm (1lb 13oz) Bass with the heaviest flat a Flounder of 31cm (12oz) shared by Mike, Tony and Paul (K). Altogether there were 118 fish (64 Dabs, 29 Bass, 24 Flounders and 1 Turbot) recorded weighing in total 33lb 5oz.

Another really competitive match where determining tactics correctly throughout the match was key to success. The feeding pattern of the fish at the start was totally different to that at the end and we now know yet again that slack water is a barren time which is difficult to avoid in a 5 hour match. We have been very lucky in the last 3 matches which have been on different tide states and at different venues with the majority recording some good bags. It may be a totally different story in a month’s time when the water shears out and the vermin start feeding and come on strong although this year has been totally different to the past.

Next Club and Open match is the 3rd Round of the West Norfolk Challenge Series at Kings Lynn on Sunday 12th June fishing 10:30 to 3:30 HW 12:32 4.2m. The venue for this match will still be on the West Bank but just South of the A47 bridge in front of the Palm Paper complex. To get to this venue take the A47 exit to Wisbech from the big Pullover roundabout (near MacDonalds) and just 200 yards along the A47 when the duel carriageway ends there is left turning which has size restrictions. Follow this road (aprox. 300 yards) until you come to the EA Gate where will do the draw from around 8:30 onwards. For those that are fishing please text or call Tony on 07780793141. Will club members please bring a raffle prize.

Club Match Result Top 5

1……Mike Watts….…..6lb..2oz………..(26 Fish)

2……Tony Thomas….4lb..11 1/3oz..(15 Fish)

3……Paul Kendrick….4lb..10oz……...(13 Fish)

4……Luke Brierley…..4lb..3 2/3oz...(12 Fish)

5……John Carter..…..3lb..1/3oz…....(14 Fish)

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