On a trip to Grafham Water, Rikki Cooper enjoyed a spectacular day’s perch fishing, in which he landed two fish over 5lb and four over 4lb!

Fishing with his friend Kevin, Rikki fished small lures – no bigger than 5cm – on dropshot rigs, using 20g weights that were dragged along the bottom on a 0.5mph drift. Having started in 50ft of water, Rikki began to spot fish on his fish finder as they entered slightly shallower water, and as they entered a bay, he had a hit on the lure.

Rikki initially wondered if he’d hooked a pike, but he soon saw a huge perch in the clear water. That fish weighed 5lb 4oz, and on his vert next drift, he hooked and landed yet another massive perch, this time an ounce bigger at 5lb 5oz! An hour later, Rikki hooked another one, this time weighing 4lb 14oz. Over the rest of the day, he added three other four-pounders, with his friend Kevin getting in on the action too with a fish of 3lb 15oz.

Well done Rikki!