The long-awaited arrival of summer made for great conditions at Doggetts of Rochford, while the acrobatic antics of spawning carp and tench kept everyone entertained.

But it was the bream shoals that provided most of the sport for those who groundbaited heavily.

Mervin Bartlett and Dave Bryan fished the long arm throughout a sweltering afternoon and reaped their rewards after dark.

Bartlett had three tench to four pounds and bream to six, totalling 90lb. Bryan took 15 tench to 5lb from the back pool.

Member Brian Webster, from Leigh, enjoyed some good battles with bream up to 7lb after finding the carp were too busy spawning.

There was better news on the carp front for Rochford's Graham Hatts, who stalked with bread in the sunshine to take six mirrors, four doubles and two excellent twenties from three sessions. His colleague, Simon Ablethor-pe, had a 17lb mirror.

Published Thursday, June 5, 2003

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