🎣 Luton Angling Club

Weekly News, Match Reports & Catch Roundup

Week Ending: Sunday 3rd August 2025

📍 Match Venue Change – Sunday 17th August

Please note: the match originally scheduled for Eaton Ford will now be held at Lavendon Upstream due to the number of swims required. 🔁 Eaton Ford remains open for pleasure fishing on the day.

🏆 Chairmans Shield Match – Lavendon Upstream

Sunday saw the annual Chairmans Shield Match, reserved for Club Committee Officers and volunteers. Eight anglers, including the Chairman and Membership Secretary, gathered at Lavendon Upstream for the 8:30am draw. It was great to see familiar faces back on the bank — notably Dave Murdoch Snr, our chief key tester and envelope stuffer, returning to fishing after several years.

Conditions were warm and overcast with a fitful breeze. The river held good colour but lacked flow due to recent dry weather, making for challenging fishing.

Results:

🥇 Bob Burdiak – 2lb 14oz (Roach, Chublets, Perch, Bleak on maggot & worm)
🥈 Dennis Hunt – 2lb 1oz (Roach and Bleak on whip, hemp & tare)
🥉 Neville Hunt – 1lb 11oz (Mainly Bleak)

While weights were modest, the camaraderie and humour made for a memorable day. Congratulations to Bob — though some say local bailiff knowledge gave him a slight edge! 😄

Bob Burdiak - Winner of the Chairmans Shield 2025

Weighing In - Neville Hunt

Dave Murdoch Jnr's catch

Dave Murdoch Snr & Dennis Vivian

🐟 Beckerings Reservoir

Grayson White had a stellar session with Carp at 17lb, 15lb, 12.25lb, and 12lb, plus an 8.5lb Bream and a surprise 5lb Pike that mistook a boilie for a lure.

Grayson White - Beckerings

Martin Houghton, on his first visit, carefully chose peg 3 after observing the water. In just over 24 hours, he landed 9 Carp and 5 Bream — his best session in 15 years. A great example of watercraft paying off.

Martin Houghton - Beckerings

🌊 River Ouse – Wyboston

Dawid Dziubdziela fished the River Ouse at Wyboston and landed a Perch over 3lb and a superb Tench — a cracking result from this productive stretch.

Daniel Dziubdziela - River Ouse Wyboston

🌊 River Ouse – Water Share

Dennis Vivian caught a 9lb Carp from one of our shared River Ouse venues. Armed with just maggots and a light float rod, he showed that simple tactics can still produce excellent results.

Dennis Vivian - Carp from the River Ouse

🚤 Grand Union Canal

Phil Anderson opted for an early morning session armed with maggots and a light float rod. He started catching from the off — Roach, Perch, Skimmers, and a couple of nice Bream. It was a bite-a-cast session until boat traffic and canoes began passing through. As the towpath grew busier, bites slowed and Phil decided to call it a morning. A lovely few hours of canal sport before the rush!

Phil Anderson - Grand Union Canal

🎓 Let’s Fish – Summer Holiday Introductory Sessions

Our summer Let’s Fish programme is in full swing, with events running every Tuesday in Leighton Buzzard and every Thursday in Berkhamsted through August.

This week:

Our lead coach Mark Brooks gave an interview on 3 Counties Radio
A CRT film crew captured the Berkhamsted event
Every participant caught fish during their one-hour one-to-one coaching sessions

🎣 Know someone who’d like to try fishing? Book a slot via — search for events hosted by Luton Angling Club.

We’ve already welcomed several enthusiastic new Cadet and Junior anglers into our Kingfishers ranks!

👶 Junior Spotlight – Leo at Alders Farm

On Thursday, Leo, one of our talented juniors, took part in the Tackle Guru Celebration of Young Anglers at Alders Farm Fishery, competing in the U14 age category.

Here’s Leo’s full match report:

“I was really excited to fish Alders Farm for the Tackle Guru event. I got set up and was straight into the action — I hooked a Carp right away, but sadly it came off!
I then got into a rhythm catching a steady stream of Perch and Skimmers during the first half of the match. I was fishing maggot over groundbait and kept the feed going in little and often.
In the second half, things slowed down a bit. I hooked two more Carp, but they both got away. I did manage to land a couple more lovely Skimmers though.
I knew I needed a Carp to break into the top three, but I was still really happy with how I fished. I ended up with 6lb 2oz of silvers and won the prize for Best Net of Silvers on my lake!”

A fantastic effort from Leo — composed, focused, and a great ambassador for our Kingfishers. Well done!

Leo at Alders Farm

📝 Match Report – Wednesday 30th July

Venue: River Nene, Barnwell Marina Thanks to Wellingborough A/C for hosting us. Chairman Ivor Stokes even stopped by to say hello — a lovely gesture.

Conditions:

Warm, overcast, minimal flow, clear water
Depth: 5–6ft in boat channel
Water temp: 20°C

Top Performers:

🥇 Richard Gibbs – 7lb 4oz (Waggler, maggot, hemp & tares)
🥈 Mark Sessions – 3lb 12oz (Waggler to pads, maggot)
🥉 Richard Darbon – 2lb 12oz (Stick float, mixed bait)

Traditional rod and line outperformed pole and whip this week. Despite the absence of big fish, everyone enjoyed the venue and agreed it’s worth revisiting.

Full Results:

Position	Name	Weight
1st	Richard Gibbs	7lb 4oz
2nd	Mark Sessions	3lb 12oz
3rd	Richard Darbon	2lb 12oz
4th	Dennis Hunt	2lb 6oz
5th	Dave Ridley	2lb 5oz
6th	Ray Burton	1lb 14oz 8dr
7th	Terry Vickers	1lb 14oz
8th	Tony Hickmott	1lb 0oz
9th	Malcolm Ogden	5oz 8dr

📅 Next Match – Wednesday 7th August

Venue: Danni’s at How End 🕣 Draw: 8.30am at venue 🎣 Fish: 10.00am – 3.00pm 💷 Fees: £5 optional pools + £2 pegging + £9 fishery peg fee

🚫 Please do not arrive before 8.00am to avoid complaints from local residents. 📘 First-time attendees must message us in advance and bring their membership book.

Wednesday Match - River Nene

📣 That’s All for This Week

Keep your stories and catch reports coming in! You can send them via:

📱 WhatsApp: 07940 229071
🌐 The club website
📘 Our Facebook page

Tight lines until next week!