24 hour Charity Match 28-29th August

In aid of Francis House Children's Hospice, the event is all about being there, raising sponsorship and having a good time together. Extra praise must go to Louis Brown, the only junior member to take part.

1st peg 20 Dean Slee 56lb 5oz (caught a lot)
2nd peg 18 Simon Thewlis 22lb 13oz (drank a lot)
3rd peg 23 Chris Bickley19lb 13oz (not known what he did, he was in the corner on his own)
4th peg 3 Paola Bickley 12lb 10oz (only female with the balls to do it)
5th peg 30 Lewis Carter11lb 13oz (lost a LOT of carp)
6th peg 4 Mike Pike Hunter Bickley 5lb 4oz (slept a lot)
7th peg 13 Louis Brown 4lb 1oz (also slept a lot but in a comfy tent)
8th peg 5 Paul Slee 3lb 5oz (cooked for everybody a lot)
9th peg 6 Daniel Russell 3lb 1oz (ate a lot and slept a lot)
10th peg 2 David Gooch 0lb 0oz (went to a football match, went for pizza, not known if he set a rod up at all ? )

The day started early on Saturday morning when Mike, Paul, Paola, Dean and Simon setup the Marquee and cooking facilities (Paul donated the use of his barbeque for the event). 
After 4 hours the Marquee was finally erected the right way up, and everything put into its correct place. 

Once the anglers arrived the draw (rover) took place with anglers selecting their pegs dependent upon their individual needs. Dean, Chris, Simon, Lewis and Daniel chose theirs with a view to catching fish. Louis chose to be close to his house so that his mum could regularly bring him creature comforts. Paul and Paola chose to be near the food and hot drinks. Mike chose the area with the comfiest bank to sleep on. David Gooch was at the Etihad and Posh Nosh. 
Kate Puc representing Francis House called the "all in" and we all set about catching fish with great determination. Which lasted about half an hour before the first "shall we pace ourselves and have a brew ?" Simon took the early lead with a fine carp that took him nearly three weeks to land. 

After a session of fine dining provided by head chef Paul we settled down to the evening session. Dean, Paola and Chris landed a few carp, while Lewis lost the first of his.
The session through the night was punctuated by a visit from the Police. Initial fears that we had been excessively noisy were dispelled when we were collectively asked to form the Reddish branch of Nancy Drew and the Hardy boys to investigate reports of a car alarm going off (it was a house alarm on Harcourt Street) and of a females screams (it was a fox). We are now waiting to hear if we will be awarded the George Medal. 

Several of us then fell asleep.

The morning dawned overcast and windy (pegs 20 and 23 remaining like a mill pond), which made pole fishing very difficult. Dean, Simon and Lewis still managed to land carp.
The final weigh-ins were completed and it was discovered that Dean Slee by virtue of his concentration and determination was the overall winner. It must be said that there were no losers in this event with everyone playing their part. 

We were visited throughout the event by supportive friends and family which was very welcome.
Many thanks to Mike, Paul, Dean and Paola who cleared everything away at the end.

Congratulations to Dean Slee this years winner. 

Many thanks to Paul Slee for organising the event and ensuring that everyone was fed.

The BIGGEST thanks to those of you who sponsored, which is, after all, what its all about. (Donations can still be made).