A win at last

Once again it has been a while since I had done some fishing but I had committed to Shane that I attend the annual BOS v Barclays match. This time I was looking forward to taking part but a bit nervous about whether I could properly compete. The BOS team is full of cracking anglers these days and feel that the last few times my thought process has been naff and keep doing the right things but at the wrong times. We had a good trip up and a few walks around Stirling before my obligatory Haggis Supper - Mmmm fantastic! Practice day on Lake of Menteith was overcast in the morning and then as the mist and cloud lifted the sun came out gloriously. It did put the fish down a few feet but if food was in front of them they would still take. The wind was a big factor and with a gentle breeze they were more confident to take.

While everyone was on Midge tips this cracking fish took on a Di7 which gave me great confidence that is was more about the depth and presentation than anything else and that stayed with me. At the team talk in the evening there were fish over most of the water with the two main concentrations in and around Loch End or from the cages to Mallin Shore. The lines were mainly midge tip although Ross and Ash had done well on Slow and Fast Glass. The flies were similar with 2 small boobies (Cat, candy, Coral) with small flies in between (crunchers, buzzers, cormorants, daiwls). The team was great and sharing of flies and tactics really helped me to get my head in the right space. On the competition day it was similar weather with the sun changing the conditions in the last few hours. I was drawn with Derek Purves and I was really looking forward to a good fishing day out.

The first bay we went into and I was 3 down in a very short period of time to Derek’s Midge tip and the doubts started to creep in. I knew I hadn't quite got the depth right on the midge so decided to change to the slow glass. As we turned back into the bay for another drift I soon connected and two on at once. The fish were so hard fighting that there was no way I was going to get both so when one dropped of it was a relief and I was up and running. I then had another 2 on the next few drifts and all was well with the world at Loch End. We then traded fish until Derek's Midge came into its own and caught a rapid 5 fish. I was pleased at the end to have done as well as I had although being beaten 12-8 is not always so good for the team. We took the Jeff Bailey trophy for the best boat and I the top bag for Barclays. The rest of the team put up a great consistent performance and we were able to pip the Scots by 67 fish to 60 and take our first win for a good number of years.