GALE-FORCE winds marred last Sunday's Shakespeare Championship qualifier on Evesham Town and Hampton Ferry Waters.

However, one man who wasn't moaning about the conditions was Evesham resident and Match Fishing magazine editor Dave Harrell.

Harrell drew peg 29 on the Town and, from experience gained on a practice session in the same area last season, he elected to fish an 8No4 lignum based stick float down the middle of the river feeding with around two pints of casters and hemp and using two bronze maggots on a size 18 hook to a 0.12mm hook length.

The tactic worked well as he won the match with a catch of small chub and two small barbel for 8-4-0.

Alan Cooper (Sensas Portway) finished runner-up with 7-8-0 of small roach taken on a light 4x14 pole rig and hemp from peg two at the top end of the stretch.

Stuart Blunsome took third place from peg 8 with a catch of 6-4-0.

Other finishers: 4 Pete Riley 5-14-0 (peg 61); 5 Rob Middleton 5-10-0 (63). Qualifiers: Alan Cooper, John Drage, P Riley.