I arrived at the lake today to find quite a few cars in the carpark today, which is the start of John and Pauline Bennett allowing pleasure anglers on a Wednesday { maximum 15 pre booking required } as they had had many requests about pleasure fishing the lake which can be upto 18 months booked ahead. John was seeing if the match and pleasure anglers could fish together on the lake which would make full use of all the swims.

I popped down early as John said that my son Edward could have a couple of hours fishing on peg 11 out of the way and after spending some time hooked up in the tree managed to hook a few fish, loose a few fish and end up with a 11-08 mirror which he was more than happy with { well done son and thank you John }.

At 1.30 sharp the draw was made and the anglers were placed on both the car park bank and the motorway bank in the big lake as all the other swims had anglers on, and as i drew my peg it was a short walk to peg 28. As the all in was called there was not the usual frantic start of fish being caught except for the pleasure anglers so today was going a match of endurance. Pete Arnold was the only angler i could see making the regular trips to the weigh station with my boy acting as the witness for his fish as he was certainly not seeing any fish from his dad as it was quite hard except if you had one of the four end pegs 32, 23, 9 or 18 as they all seemed to be catching the odd fish.

The winner of todays match and not on an end peg just to make things confussing was Rolfslake regular Mick Jones who after a slow start fished three lines the two margins and a line straight out at about 6-7 metres all fished on the deck. Mick fished his usual meat hookbait feeding pellet to keep the fish in his swim and Mick caught big fish in high doubles in his final weight of 163-12 { well done Mick } . In second place was Andy Quarmby who was on End peg 23 ,and Andy fished most of the match up in the water and also caught big fish to 17lb by fish pellet hookbait feeding regular to keep the fish coming. Completing the frame was Pete Arnold on peg 32 who looked to be building a big weight as evertime i looked up he was playing a fish but he also lost a few and in the end caught a much lower weight than most anglers thought of 142-08.

Todays winner Rolfslake's Mick Jones.

As far as i was concerned i brought the boy with me to show him dad catching a lot of fish but by the end of the first hour i was playing my first carp and turned round to talk to my boy only to find him asleep, i had bored him to sleep i was told but i woke him up to take the photo below.

Eddie Taylor-Green senior with a 14 mirror.

At the end of the match i weighed a poor 43-12 to come 9th and i managed to beat John Bennett by 12 ounces but this result is being investigated by the stewards as John tells me a skimmer he had was thrown back and not recorded so he wanted to call it a draw, but as it was not on the final weight sheet i am taking it as a victory to move into a 9-8 lead in our year long battle { sorry John }.

Results.

Pleasure fishing at Rolfslake.

Today was a great day for the pleasure anglers at Rolfslake as there was plenty of fish for the 17 anglers that had booked with lake owner John Bennett for a special chance to catch the big fish at Rolfslake. Also down on the lake was a beauty model who was fishing with her husband {how great is that a great looking wife who likes fishing } who were happy catching fish down the bottom end of the small lake. Elsewhere the anglers on pegs 6,7,8 and on 19,20,21 and also 34,36 and 38 where all having a good day catching fish to 19lb on all methods in the nice sunshine, so if you would like to have a great days fishing give John Bennett a call you will love it.

Edward Taylor-Green Junior also had a great days fishing with dad with this 11-08 mirror

The battle between The Minx and Simon Mound.

On arriving at the lake today i was greeted by a near full lake of anglers already into their second hours fishing in todays Bank holiday Mondays open. I was not fishing today having just arrived back from holiday in Spain the evening before so i was pretty tired but not that tired to stop giving the regulars their normal helping of banter. As a prank directed at me their were a few anglers sporting the new in head gear created by me of the bandana cap which was being modelled by a few anglers today { thanks John , Paul and Niel }.

Crew members Paul and Neil.

Around the lake the usual suspect were catching fish with Chris Lovelock on peg 16 catching regular on a long line out fished on the deck, Hugh Crawford was on 8 , John Bennett on end peg 18 and Trevor Stanley on form peg 6. Elsewhere the other anglers were struggling to catch fish with Pat Pritchard on 23 having lots of fish up in the water but was struggling to get them in any numbers, Geoff Edwards on peg 26 was giving me a great demonstration of brilliant bites on paste but no fish in return.

On peg 30 my web partner Simon was claiming to a few fish on all methods so was quite happy also because his girlfriend Gemma { aka Mrs Mound } had not caught anything as there was no usual scream to be heard when she caught her first carp so there was no minxing to be had for him, and Paul Jay was doing his usual catch one fish lose the next three so at least he was keeping busy.

After about another hour i left Geoff to see a few guys around the lake and take a few photo’s and ended up at Gemma’s peg which was peg 4 and now she had caught two small roach but was struggling to catch any carp, a bit of advice on coming a little bit shorter in at about 5 metres seemed to sort this out as on her first put in had a carp of 13lb then lost one and then started to get more bites. I left Gemma having caught 5 carp and went around to watch Geoff for the last hour and passed Simon on the way around who was now sweating as he knew Gemma was catching him up and the chance of a minxing was deffinitley on so i have never seen Simon concentrate so much to add to his catch.

On arriving at Geoff peg he was now bagging as was Chris on 16 ,Paul on 10 Pat on 23 and John on 18 so it was going to be a good finish to the match as everyone seemed to into fish as the match reached the last few minutes, and as time was called it was difficult to workout who had actually won as Trevor on peg 6 had also had a good days fishing.

In first place today was eventually Geoff Edwards who after missing all those bites had managed to get the fish lined up by fishing the bush to his right and by using paste managed to get the bigger carp to 19lb to feed and after 5 hours caught 208-14 for another win { well done Geoff }.

In the battle for second place was three anglers Neil on 32 ,Trevor on 6, Pat on 23 and in the end only one fish seperated the three of them and after the weigh-in Trevor on 6 got the decision with 188-08 with Neil second having 185-00 and in fourth was Pat with 179-06.

As for the battle between Simon and Gemma this was also close with Gemma eventually having 6 carp and two roach for 61-06 and Simon then having to sweat for thirty minutes whilst everyone else got weighed in and when the scales arrived after two weigh-ins weighed 75-08 and this meant more to him than winning the match as he went off to do his victory dance { who said there is no love in fishing }.

Results.

All that was missing from todays match was Noah and the Arc.

As the anglers gathered at the draw the black clouds were covering the lake meaning only one thing a wet match, so water proofs were the order of the day but that did not help the anglers in todays match.

As the match started the rain started only light drizzle then it came down heavy for the next 4 and a half hours making it very difficult for all the anglers concerned except if you were drawn in the small lake where a few fish were happy to feed.

As i had a miserable time i never had a chance to look around as the rain was blasting in my eyes, but what i can tell you is that in first place was Chris Lovelock who was drawn in the small lake on peg 4. Chris fished with pellet at short range and down the edge and was rewarded with fish to double figures in his final weight of 208-04 { well done Chris }.

In second place and only 2 fish behind was Mick Lane who again drew another flyer this time peg 8 and Mick fished a combination of long across against the grass on the far bank and down the edge to his left. Mick used banded pellet feeding heavy and caught on both lines and after five hours caught 187-00 and another frame for the RTG team captain.

Completing the frame was Andy Quarmby on peg 7 who was way behind Mick after 3 hours but the fish moved in on Andys long shallow line and by using pellet Andy put a great weight together of 160-08 for only two hours fishing.

After the match the anglers were treated to a nice warm soup and a chance to get out of our soaking wet clothes but i don’t think i have ever seen that much rain come down at Rolfs ever.

After returning from holiday i was hoping for a good days fishing but the rain put paid to that and even worse was the fact that John Bennett has now managed to beat me again to level the score to 8 – 8 roll on the next match.

Until our next report tight lines Eddie and Simon.

John has informed me that this match is now cancelled due to a private match that will now go on till late evening so will now be arranged for a future date. so please watch out for this date.

Sorry for the confussion till our next report tight lines Eddie and Simon.

Edit…. The Next night match is on the 20th August. 6.30 draw.

John has informed me that there will be the 4th night match on Friday the 13th of August draw time 6.30pm fish 7.30 – 12.30 so if you would like to take part in this popular event you will have to book a place with John on the number in the contact section.

The previous 3 matches have been won with over 200lb and this years top weight has also come from the night match with nearly 400lb and after the match the anglers are treated to a barbeque served up by John and Pauline ,so if you fancy fishing after dark give John a call before the night matches end for the year.

Some where over the rainbow way up high, Mick Lane draws another flyer why oh why can’t I.

Report to follow.

Me with a last gasp fish of 18-08 but you should of seen the one i lost earlier.

Rolfslake pleasure fishing.

On arriving at the lake today i saw Richard Doolan and his daughters Chloe and Milly fishing peg 36 and as i arrived to see them the rain really lashed down and i can tell you it is very difficult to fit four people under an umbrella and expect everyone to stay dry.

After seeing Chloe catch small roach and perch on maggot, Richard gave Milly { who is young and with a Rolfslake personal best carp of 19lb } a go and within a few minute was into another big carp on maggots and after about 10 minutes safetly landed another double figure carp to bring a smile on her face {well done Milly}.

Chloe happy catch fish.

Milly with another double figure carp.

Also pleasure fishing on the small lake was Mark Orchard and his highlight of the day was a pair of 20lb carp caught from big fish peg 38 which has thrown up 6 20lb carp in the last three weeks so if you draw it be well prepared with your tackle as there are a lot of doubles in this peg at the moment.

As Rolfslake entered its 3rd night match of the year, news had got out of the prize on offer to the angler that broke the lake record of 530-00 of a Lamborghini Gallardo or a Vespe / Rolfslake tee shirt and these prizes i am sure helped swell the attendance on tonights match.

Prize to the angler that broke the lake record on tonights match only.

Also tonight we had the rare treat of the Jinx Minx aka Gemma Doyle join the guys for a nights fishing but as the regulars are not part of the Jinx League they are unaware of the term minxing or the significance of her scream when she caught her first fish.

Stupidly i was talking to Simon the day before when he told me that Gemma was going to fish and i muttered the words i will never be minxed at Rolfslake but would these words come back to haunt me ?.

The Minx Gemma Doyle on the prowl for new victims.

As for me i spent all night foul hooking fish and losing fish in the bush to my left and after spending 4 and a half hours swearing to myself i was very lucky to have four doubles in a row on paste to catch 74-10 and 11th place and only 2-06 in front of Gemma so i saved myself a minxing just, but i will not be stupid again to think that i can’t be beaten by Gem { sorry }.

If you would like to experience an enjoyable match with great company and a great barbeque give John Bennett a call to book on as places are limited due to health and safety of all our visitors.

Geoff and Vicky Edwards looking for cloud 9 on their way home.

Results.

Early morning fishing.

As i woke up at 6.30 am i was greeted by John Hague and his son Brandon who were happily bagging from peg 33 by the hut and after a short while Brandon’s float dissapeared and he was hanging on to a nice common carp of 14-08 which brought a nice smile on his face and even a bigger one on his dads { well done Brandon }.

John and Brandon Hague working as a team.

One of Brandons double figure commons.

Mark and Billy Chard.

Billy Chard with a common 13-08.

After watching Brandon catching a few carp young Billy was tempted into having a go and again by float fishing using banded pellet Billy was into a carp after a few minutes and with a little help from dad was able to play and land a nice common of 13-08 {well done Billy}.

Until our next report tight lines Eddie and Simon.

Today Rolfslake welcomed the Hare and Hounds angling club from the Telford area, and John tells me that the day was overcast and blustery to start with getting sunnier and warm as the day went on. The anglers had their best visit to the lake yet and all the anglers caught fish but coming out in first place was Steve Rouse who was fishing Wednesdays winning peg 7. Steve fished the feeder across to the far bank grasses and caught fish to double figures fishing meat as hookbait and after 5 hours joined the 200+ club with his final weight of 223-00 { well done Steve }.

In second place was Kye Faulkner who was next to Steve on peg 8 and Kye started off down the track but ended up fishing the bush to his left and again had fish to double figures by fishing paste and meat fished on the deck to catch his weight of 158-00 and keep ahead of the chasing pack. Completing the frame and having a good family battle was Andy Braley who was on form peg 16 on the motorway bank and Andy also had good fish which just kept him ahead of his son Kevin with his weight of 140-00 and 10lb clear of Kevin.

Results.

John and Pauline would like to thank all the visiting anglers and hope to see you all again soon.

Until our next report tight lines Eddie and Simon.

The calm before the storm at todays match.

As the anglers arrived at the draw today what they wanted was an enjoyable days fishing at a lovely venue, what we actually got was rain of biblical proportions and i expected to see Noah and the arc go past us. What i also found out was that that my tried and tested Halkon Hunt clothing that i had had for a few years was not up to the job as it acted like a sponge and did not repell the water. This is not because it is no good but the reverse as i have had it for many years and it has given me many great years protection but it has now reached the end of its life.

The reason i talk about clothing is because we at Rolfslake had experienced fantastic weather for the last six weeks so it was by luck that most anglers had brought wet weather clothing rather than the shorts and flip flops that had been worn in previous weeks as it was supposed to be summertime in this country.

Even the horse Beauty was stunned when John Bennett did not draw peg 9 in todays match.

With the little lake being used for todays match as it gave the regulars a different view for a change and also gave the pleausre anglers a different area to fish. With the draw completed and the big lake out what was not a surprise was that draw bag John Bennett had drawn end peg flyer peg 7 in the gap between the two parts of the lake. Elsewhere around the small lake master float maker Jon Walker was to have another special day ,Paul Jay was going to turn a great peg into an average peg { only joking Paul } and both Pat Pritchard and myself were going to be peg kings if we could catch as pegs 39 and pegs 3 were in.

After about 30 minutes the rain started and after an hour the sky turned black and the heavens opened but it did not hamper the fishing it actually improved it as anglers could be seen playing fish all around the lake as i suppose it added oxygen to the water. Today also saw the return to the lake of Festival winner Andy aka Pellet King and i had a great view of him as he started catching all types of fish fishing shallow at the start and then he came closer as the match went on . Both Pat and myself had a slow start fishing corner pegs but towards the end the fish moved in and we could not catch them fast enough. Jon Walker was up to his normal specimen hunting tricks as his first fish after half an hour was massive and it went 21-12 so he was off and running and from where i could see both Mick Jones and Paul Jay were catching so good weights should be had by all.

Todays winner John Bennett.

The winner today was lake owner John Bennett who was on peg 7 and after catching a few fish from the far bank on the bomb fished with meat noticed his edge line that he had been feeding to his left towards peg 8 was boiling with fish and never looked back. John fished this line with paste fished tight to the edge and had fish to double figures { in fact 101lb of them } and had a real struggle with some of the bigger fish as he was broke 4 times as the real big fish moved in in what he said was a really enjoyable / frustrating match but still had 245-00 { well done John }. In second place was specimen hunter Jon Walker on peg 38 who was also chasing the peg king for this peg put fell just short in the end.

The amazing thing about Jon’s weight was he had no carp to weigh -in at the end as they were all on the board but had a fantastic 14 fish for 195lb and had carp of 21-12, 20-08 and 20-04 and many other doubles in his weight. I have been fishing Rolfslake for over 10 years and never had a 20 but Jon has a nack of catching 20′s as he has caught a few over the years, and Jon today caught a few carp fishing long but the majority of his carp at 6 metres fishing paste and pellet hook bait in his weight of 205-12. Completing the frame was Andy on peg 4 who had a very close battle with me but in the end ended one fish in front fishing his usual pellet hook bait. Andy started fishing long shallow catching carp and skimmers but fishing was slow for him but in the last two hours was able to get the fish closer at a range of 6-7 metres and this helped his final weight of 151-08.

Results.

New peg kings ,John Bennett peg 7 ,Pat Pritchard for peg 39 and me Eddie Taylor-Green for peg 3.

The score between John and myself stands at John 6 Eddie 7 .

Elsewhere around the lake the pleasure anglers have been catching big fish with Taff catching big fish like this 18-08 common carp.

Taff with a 18-08 common

Until our next report tight lines Eddie and Simon.

Brilliant John Hague takes Lake King in night match.

As Rolfslake entertained its 2nd night match of the year, it was great to see a good attendance and also some wives and children coming to watch their dad or husband hopefully catch some fish. The weather today was a warm evening with very little wind and with the big lake in play today { hopefully for the next match the small lake will be in } the anglers were pegged between pegs 32 and 9 which left John Bennett on peg 9 and John Hague on 32 both on end pegs.

As the match started  it was an omnius sign when both the two Johns were up quite quickly weighing fish so a big weight could be on the cards for the both of them. Around the lake anglers were finding catching fish quite a challenge even with anglers facing lots of bubbles in their swim but no feeding fish so a frustrating time was had for the anglers at the bottom of the big lake and also on the car park bank as with no breeze the fish would not settle down and have a go. However at the top end of the big lake in the bowl all the anglers were having fish with Dave Whiteman and John Bennett having a good fish for fish battle on pegs 9 and 10.

The big winner today was Brandon Hague for after drawing peg 32 for his dad negotiated a deal that would give him a cut of his dads winnings if he won with some added bonuses .

John however after being drawn on form peg 32 which also won the last night match, John fished a masterclass of banded pellet fishing which brought him a great run of big fish. You always know when a big weights on the cards when an angler is running to the weigh station in the first hour, but John had to run to the weigh station a total of 21 times as his weighed fish totalled a massive 301-00. John started in front of the bush to his left and caught fish to just under 17lb in a very strong first half of the match but it was in the second half that slowed John down as he moved to a 5 metre line which still brought him fish but stopped him from catching in his words between 500 and 600lb ,but after 5 hours John caught a fantastic 397-08 and also topped the king of the lake with his new personal best from one of the nice guys down on the lake { very well done John }.

Father and son John and his fishing manager Brandon.

In second place was John Bennett who has amazingly drew peg 9 again and you know when John is catching for he always is talking and calling for me, but it must of been his new pirate outfit that brought him good luck as John for a change managed to convert a good peg into a framing peg. John fished down the edge to his left and also short out in front and used this in conjunction with paste which brought John fish to double figures in his final weight of 233-04 and just one fish in front of third place. Completing the frame was Hydro 2000 sponsored Dave Whiteman who was fishing next to John on peg 10 and by using a combination of pellet and paste caught from down the edge to his left and also just out in front for his weight of 221-12.

After the match John and Pauline treated us all to a lovely barbecue which i think finished at 3am but i am not keen on the San Miguel beer that i had which had a taste of chilli sauce { thanks Jon W } so thank you from all the anglers.

New king of the lake John Hague.

New peg kings John Bennett for peg 9 and Dave Whiteman for peg 10.

The score between John and myself stands at John 5 Eddie 7 {well done John }.