When he woke up to a hard frost and bright sunshine, Marek Nieweglowski didn’t fancy his chances with the perch of the Grand Union Canal. Undeterred, he ventured out to an area he’d fished the day before and landed a decent stripey, and was this time rewarded with this superb fish of 4lb 7oz.
It was caught on a 7.5cm craw pattern, which he’d cast close to a moored barge. Knowing that lots of anglers fish livebaits on the stretch, Marek knew that tempting a big fish on an artificial bait would be tricky. But just as he was about to lift his lure out of the water, Marek felt a hard take followed by the heavy head shakes of a big perch.
Once in the net, he knew it was a four-pounder, with the fish weighing just 1oz less than his 4lb 8oz PB.
Well done Marek!