THE annual Stokes Family Trophy match at West Bay was again blighted with bad weather but nine competitors signed on and bravely suffered the heavy showers, which started right on cue at noon.

Despite the weather, this turned out to be the most productive junior match so far this season with every competitor managing to land at least one fish.

Connor Hallett once again led the way with a succession of corkwing wrasse but Nathan McMaster set the standard with a legal-sized ballan wrasse of 296g.

Other species landed included whiting, sea scorpion, weever, shanny and quite a number of flounder turned up with most caught by Josh Grinter with a total of five. With the addition of three whiting, Grinter caught the most fish in the match but none could equal McMaster’s fish.

Further legal-sized fish were caught, including a rockling by Danny Cowburn and a nice corkwing wrasse by Ewan Chambers, which won him third place and best junior in the week-long Specimen and Species Festival, but none could touch McMaster’s lead until new member Jack Gosney weighed in.

He landed an identical looking wrasse, which was weighed and placed in the holding tank. It wasn’t until a few minutes later that it was realised that Gosney’s catch weighed exactly the same as McMaster’s.

No other fish came close to that weight so for the first time since the Stokes Trophy began, the match was a tie.

RESULTS

Stokes Family Trophy: 1 Nathan McMaster/Jack Gosney 296g legal weight, 3 Ewan Chambers 165g (183g legal weight).

Heaviest flatfish: Josh Grinter (189g flounder).

Heaviest round fish: Nathan McMaster/Jack Gosney (296g ballan wrasse).

Wooden spoon: James Lawrence

Heaviest weever: Caolan Ayers 31g

Most species: Nathan McMaster 4

‘Next fish’: Danny Cowburn

Smallest weever: Nathan McMaster 11g

The junior section would like to extend their gratitude to the Stokes family for their continued, generous support of this match with the top-three competitors winning tackle vouchers on top of their usual prizes.

Other sponsors on the day were Watchouse Cafe, Kay Guppy, Richard ‘Tiny’ Daw and Norman Stokes.