We have 14 fine early season catches for you this week. They come from all over the country, from excellent carp for experienced anglers to youngsters landing their first carp. If you would like to submit a catch report for either Carp-Talk or Carp-Talk Xtra simply click the following link and follow the simple step-by-step procedure. www.carptalk-online.co.uk

Dateline:__June 1966

Anglers:>   Garry Savage

Weight:>>>26½lb

Venue:@@Brooklands, Kent

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District Angling & Preservation Society which had produced 20-pounders some years before in the early 1960s.

As time went on more and more carp anglers appeared on the banks of Brooklands, the catches were excellent and the lake record broken several times with fish around the 24lb-25lb mark.

On a Saturday in June 1966 Gerry Savage yet again settled in for a session at the lake. The weather that morning was warm and muggy with a slight breeze. Around 7am he landed an 8½lb common then within 45 minutes he hooked the big’un. He reported at the time, “In its first run, the carp stripped off 100 yards of my 6lb line, but I managed to keep it near the surface, away from snags, by keeping my rod as high as possible.”

The fish made one more run before it spotted Dave Miller waiting with the landing net. After another ten hectic minutes the fish was finally on the bank and later weighed in at 26½lb, a new personal best for Gerry and a lake record.

One of the biggest names in carp fishing during the 1960s was the late Gerry Savage. He was a carp catching machine and the tremendous stocks of double-figure carp that abounded in many of the gravel pits around the Dartford area of Kent fell under his spell.

There were other places that held bigger fish, one was Brooklands Lake run by the Dartford &

Some years ago I realised that one of the early 20-pounders landed from Brooklands in 1960 by Bob Buteux was one and the same fish that Gerry had landed that day in 1966. Furthermore, when examining my carp fishing archives I matched this same carp with other famous captures including Bill Quinlain.

Indeed, the brother of netsman Dave Miller (Ian) mentioned earlier also banked the fish a couple of years before at 24lb. In all cases it provided these captors with a personal best carp - making it a rather special fish.

If you’d like to get your hands on a selection of Gardner Tackle HydroFLO, simply send an email to competitions@carptalk-online.co.uk marking the subject line “HydroFLO Giveaway”. One lucky winner will be chosen at random from entries received and the closing date for entries is Tuesday 16th March. The winner will be announced in the next issue of Carp-Talk Xtra. Please don’t forget to add your contact details, name, address, etc.