Sheffield angler Kevin is Club Match champion for fourth time

It has been won twice by one other angler but only Parkes had ever won it three times (2005, 2006 and 2016).

He now has FOUR wins to his name.

It’s an incredible achievement to pull off when you consider the quality of anglers he was up against, each of which had to win at their own club level and then win through the all-winners semi final before even thinking about beating 20 of the best anglers at club match competition level in the final.

Right from the off it was obvious the fishing could prove difficult in flat calm conditions and bright sunshine.

The match would be a marathon, not a sprint, a test of who could keep the fish feeding as the day progressed.

Those who fed with too much enthusiasm early on paid the price.

Several anglers did well but only one angler managed to keep the fish coming throughout the whole match, our worthy champion Kevin Parkes.

Kevin described the techniques he used to secure his fourth crown.

He said: “I set off taking things steadily, feeding accurately through a ‘kinder pot’ on my pole tip close to the far margin 14.5 metres away. Feeding groundbait through the pot I presented a 4mm hard pellet on the hook, later stepping this up to a 6mm pellet.

“Although I was already doing very well, fate stepped in late on and pushed me towards victory when I ran out of groundbait. Digging around in my carryall I came across a long-discarded half-bag, one I can’t even remember buying, but it brought my peg alive. Not having caught one all match I then netted 14 ghost carp in a row!

Parkes, a 46-year-old joiner from Westfield, Sheffield, was not completely overwhelmed by his record breaking quartet of wins, ‘Hopefully there will be a fifth!’ He said afterwards.

Special thanks go to: Aston Springs Fisheries for kindly hosting the competition and providing the venue, Daiwa Sports for their fantastic and continuing support of this amazing competition, now in its 43rd year and finally, last but not least, Pauline and Geoff Hurt for all the hard work and effort they put into organising the semi and final matches.

Anglers are notoriously superstitious and put great faith in coincidence frequently insisting on wearing the same lucky hat, shirt or even underpants. But sometimes that’s not without reason. When reading down the list of final qualifiers in alphabetical order, four of the top 5 finishers are listed below each other. Of those four, 3 drew adjacent pegs. What are the odds on that happening?

Result:

1. Kev Parkes 101-8 (£750)

2. Greg Proffitt 59-5 (£500)

3. Craig Parsissons 47-15 (£350)

4. Richard Wardle 46-9 (£250)

5. Billy Richardson 44-4 (£150)

Section Winners (£100 each)

1. Simon Grayson

2. Richard Wardle

3. Kev Parkes

4. Craig Parssisons