The John Roberts Memorial Pike match

Yesterday morning, a little before 07.00 hrs, Benno and I arrived at the carpark of the fishery where the Canterbury/Thanet PAC Region were holding their annual John Roberts Memorial event. The venue is a highly regarded, and much sought after, Carp syndicate which I won't name. Suffice to say, before Andy had arranged this event, I never imagined I'd ever get to cast a line into the hallo'ed waters. Our motley crew assembled in the clubhouse where we enjoyed a sausage & egg roll plus a hot cuppa prior to the swim draw. Despite the freezing conditions, spirits were high and the banter incessant! 

The motley gang who make up Canterbury/Thanet PAC Region

On the drive over, Benno and I agreed that a Pike each would be a great result. The main objective was to allow us to spend a day on the bank, enjoying a social, not something which occurs often these days. I came out last, in the draw, so our original plan had to be scrapped and, thanks to some helpful input from Matt, the fishery owner, we were pointed towards a different area of the lake where we would be able to fish close enough together to share the day, whilst our rods were covering different areas of the lake. As it happened, this worked out very well indeed.

My swim for the day. Two ABU Cardinal 66X's on my trusty Duncan Kay rods, with a pair
of "back-biter" alarms which were made by my brother Sye

The match started at 09.00 hrs and concluded at 16.00 hrs during which time Benno and I both had three bites each. Ben converted one into a Pike in the net and I, two. The water was gin clear and the bites extremely tentative.

My first Pike of the session - 8 lbs 4 oz
In a match situation, every fish is worthy of placing on the scales!

Benno's Pike of 6 lbs 15 oz

The time passed quickly and we really had a great time on the banks of this superb fishery but, like all good things..... We packed up as the sun went down and headed back to the clubhouse for the conclusion of the day's proceedings..What I need to add, here, is that my second fish was a proper "scraper" double of 10 lbs 4 oz and, as such, a target achieved for the 2024/25 season. A double from a new venue!

Target achieved

Back at the clubhouse, after much banter and general silliness, it was time for Nick (our R/O) to announce the results. As it turned out, Ben and I had experienced a very good day with most of the gang drawing a blank for their efforts. I finished runner up, whilst Ben was third! Tom Lane, the youngest member of the gang, was this year's winner. He's now won it three times! However, all was not lost, as my "double" was the heaviest Pike of the day, by 1 oz, and resulted in me picking up the cash pot! 

Nick handing over the spoils, whilst young Tom gloats in the background.
It was a brilliant day spent with a great bunch of fellow Pike anglers.

I purchased a couple of beers on the way home, but will be donating £50 to Macmillan Cancer as it's a charity which played a big part in 2024 whilst Bev underwent her medical treatment. It was a wonderful day and a very fitting tribute to the memory of John, who played such an important role in the development of the PAC during his time as President of the organisation.