BISHOPTHORPE and Acaster Club manage to keep a healthy number of anglers fishing the rivers.

Indeed, their average club attendance often exceeds some local open contests.

Their open match of the season saw 26 tackle the Ouse at Beningbrough Park where Mal Pearson was victorious with a brace of bream for 9lb 6oz. Encouragingly, the next two weights taken by Al Watkinson and Mick Wood were both nets of small roach and perch scaling 6lb 12oz and 5lb 14oz respectively.

Others: Adrian Jackson 5-10-0, Alan Liddell 3-14-0, Dave Potter 3-10-0, Nigel Baker 3-8-0 and Al Whithead 2-4-0.

Their next match at Beningbrough Village also produced some interesting results, not least the wining net of Steve Snaith.

Fishing waggler and maggot, his fine 11lb 12oz net included a 2lb barbel and a brace of chub around the same size.

Mark Wade took second with a couple of bream for 9lb 9oz ahead of old warhorse and club stalwart Roger Baker, who had a surprise 3lb tench in his net of 6lb 8oz.

Others: Dean Oliver 5-15-0, Mick Wood 5-2-0, Al Watkinson 4-4-0, Nigel Baker 4-2-0, Colin Plant 3-15-0, Shane Lewis 3-7-0, Adrian Jackson 3-2-0, Rod Chalk and Ernie Wright both 2-14-0.

The club's junior wing continues to prosper at the Bridge Field where last Friday evening's contest went to Mike Johnson with a 2lb 9oz catch of perch taken on pole and maggot.

Oliver Cropper was second with his fedder caught net of roach and perch scaling 2lb 3oz ahead of Christine Lewis, who had 1lb 14oz of roach and perch taken close-in on a whip.

Others: Kalum Cooper 1-8-0, Rhys Carlyle 1-8-0, Ben Jemsion 1-0-0, Stuart Seaton 0-7-0 and Ryan Carlyle 0-4-0.

Dean Smith (MAP Elton) scored yet another win in Saturday's Partridge dominated 71-peg sell-out at Woodlands, making it eight wins in the last 30 opens - some record.

Drawn on peg 24, the York-based Kamasan front-runner started close in with meat fished at depth before he switched to shallow fished meat at 15 metres once the fish started boiling.

His net of 89lb 5oz was too good for the rest and included carp to 5lb plus odd chub.

Pegged opposite the winner on Partridge 11 was Andy Bridge (MAP Elton), who used similar tactics for an all carp net of 80lb 9oz.

Phil Sellars (Elton Tackle) took third with 69lb 3oz of paste tempted carp at 11 metres.

Others: Steve Brunyee (Castleford) 66-9-0; Paul Brunyee (Castleford) 65-10-0 and Chris Cooper (Kerrs AC) 63-2-0.

Updated: 08:46 Wednesday, July 28, 2004