Martin Hague can normally be found targeting pike but recently he fancied a change and wanted to target the zander that swim in the River Trent and it certainly proved the right decision when he landed this stunning 16lb 2oz specimen.

He told us “I fancied trying for the resident zander that the Tidal Trent holds so I headed off with my scaled down pike tackle to a stretch where I had seen a lot of silver fish previously. The morning past without a knock but at 13:30 that all changed with my first bite which resulted in a small zed. The next bite came around 14:00 and was a more aggressive take.

I knew as soon as I struck that it had to be a good one but thought it was my old friend the pike that was until the classic head shakes began. I started to think that maybe I was into a good zander and after 3 good runs, I finally saw the fish for the first time and knew I’d stuck gold. It was only when I put the fish onto the mat I realised how big it was, a beautiful looking fish. That feeling when the scales went round to 16lb 2oz is indescribable.”