June 16th is the traditional start of the river season here in the UK, so we asked seven Drennan-backed stars where they would love to be heading. 

Alan Scotthorne – Five Times World Champion

It is a bit too early in the season for roach so I would have a day after bream and barbel at Crankley Point, where the River Trent meets Newark Dyke. The bream tend to shoal up around here early season.

I would use a large Groundbait Feeder with chopped worm, casters, pellets and sweetcorn with worms, a bunch of maggots or casters on a size 14 or 12 Carbon Feeder hook. Strong gear is required as you never quite know what you’ll hook so my hooklength would be anything from 0.16mm to 0.23mm Supplex.

Martin Bowler – TV Star & Big Fish Specialist

It would have to be targeting quality barbel on any of the fast flowing stretches of the River Wye run by Angling Dreams. I’d be fishing with a large ESP Mega Method Feeder loaded with micro pellets and fishmeal groundbait.

This would help to present a hair-rigged boilie or pellet on a short braid hooklength to a Super Specialist Barbel hook.

Steve Hemingray – Former European Champion

Early season with roach and barbel being unreliable I’d probably go for a nice net of bream on the River Trent. Anywhere on the middle or tidal stretches would be worth a target.

A Groundbait Feeder with casters and chopped worm would be my plan, especially after the weekend’s rain, which will hopefully put some welcome flow and colour into the rivers.

Wayne Swinscoe – River Match Legend

It would have to be the River Trent at Radcliffe Viaducts, fishing my favourite Stick Float and bronze maggots with an Acolyte Ultra rod for roach and dace… but the river is carrying a little fresh water so it could be a groundbait feeder job for bream!

Jamie Cartwright – Former Drennan Cup Champion

A venue well off the beaten track, preferably a Fenland river where I would be targeting big rudd on the float. I would roam around with a few loaves of bread, regularly flicking out bits of crust on the surface and watching for hungry rudd to start slurping them down! Only when a few feeding fish are located will I make a cast.

I would alternate between the smallest sizes of Drennan Surface Controller if the fish were willing to come right to the surface or a Carp Waggler if they were shy or if it was really windy and fish a slowly sinking piece of flake on the hook.

I would expect to cover a lot of ground and catch a lot of fish of all sizes but the target is always a 2lber, which is quite achievable if you work hard enough.

Gary Newman – Top Specialist Angler

I will be starting the season on a local stretch of the River Colne. It’s low and clear at the moment but I will be hoping for a barbel after dark. I’ll be fishing a boilie with a PVA bag of pellets and broken boilies and also loose feeding a few.

Hopefully I will get a bend in my 1.75lb Martin Bowler Specialist Barbel rods!

Simon Willsmore – England International

I would go on my local river, the Gade. It’s a chalk stream and I can walk there from my house. I would fish a simple 6m whip to hand with a 4×14 (0.4g) pole float. Feeding and fishing with  maggots I would hope to catch a nice net of quality dace up to 8oz and maybe a lucky chub or two.

Good luck to everyone who is out fishing on the river today!