Northumbria Invitational 2026
Northumbria Invitational 2026 Match 2
The latest match in the series took place on Monday 11th May 2026 0n Bowes Lake at the Angel of the North Lakes, Birtley. Another great turnout meant that we had been allocated the entire lake so at least those fishing would have plenty of room. Bowes Lake had been a little bit moody in the run up to the match. In the midweek open at the complex those anglers who drew sheltered pegs out of the cold wind had tended to catch much more than those who drew in the open. The weather forecast for the day was poor with a cold north westerly breeze and very overcast. It looked like a lower than normal weight would win the match.
The draw was made at 10am and the anglers made off to their respective pegs. The usually prolific peg 40 was drawn by Lewis McManus (Northumbria). Paul Hutchinson drew peg 3 a normally reliable area but with a strong left to right breeze blowing across the peg it would test his angling ability.
The “All in” was called at 11.30am and as expected it was a slow start for everyone.
Lewis on peg 40 had a frustrating start losing fish in the reeds. Paul Hutchinson had a nightmare start and remained biteless for the first hour.
Halfway through the match Durhams top angler Julian Brown was seen walking the bank in an effort to warm himself up. He was so cold he was contemplating packing up and going home. In the end he went back to his peg and continued fishing which proved to be a good idea in the end.
Time was called at 5.30pm and after tackling down the anglers were weighed in. The results were as follows;
1st Lewis McManus Peg 40 73lb 2oz
2nd Paul Hutchinson Peg 3 60lb 1oz
3rd Julian Brown Peg 24 53lb 1oz
A very well done to Lewis who fished a good match in testing conditions. This was his first win fishing this series. Let’s hope it’s the first of many.
A special mention must be made to section stalwart Boyd Weddell who missed the match due to injury. Get well soon Boyd and hope to see you back out on the bank again soon
After two matches the overall standings were as follows;
1st Paul Hutchinson Pts 3 Weight 103lb 9oz
2nd Lewis McManus pts 6 weight 85lb 3oz
3rd Dave Brown pts 6 weight 67lb 9oz
4th Julian Brown pts 9 weight 62lb 15oz
The next match in the series is Monday 1st June at Bowes Lake at the Angel of the North Complex, Birtley. Meet at 9.45am.