The importance of adapting your groundbait mix to suit different conditions was underlined by Drennan ace Steve Hemingrey after two Angling Trust Riverfest qualifier contests.

Steve is still seeking qualification for the two-day Riverfest 2017 final after finishing second in his 20 peg zones on the River Trent at Hamms Bridge then the River Soar at Barrow Deeps.

“I had two enjoyable days fishing, catching 18lb on the River Trent from a midsection peg, then 6lb 12oz on the River Soar from another middle draw in a section won with 9 lb,” said Steve.

“On both matches, I balled in groundbait heavily at the start. But my mixes were very different due to the conditions and flow,” he continued.

“The Trent was flowing hard, so I used a heavy sticky mix with lots of soil. By contrast, the Soar was barely flowing at all so I went for a lighter mix with Sensas Lake and Canal Fine Noire despite the peg being 12ft deep. You have to tailor your groundbait to suit the conditions,” he added.

On both matches, Steve rigged up Drennan Trio pole floats in 2/3gr sizes – using 0.12mm Double Strength main line with 0.09 Supplex Fluorocarbon hook lengths and size 18/20 Carbon Match hooks on the Trent, scaling back to 0.10 and 0.07 lines with size 22 hooks for the Soar.