Before the pike season ended, Essex angler Daniel Dale latched into this 31lb 4oz beast – a fish that obliterated his PB.
Targeting a local stillwater, Daniel had been fishing two deadbait rods all day without any joy, but with the fishery about to close, he decided to inject a bit of life into his 6ins roach baits.
“I had 20 minutes left, so gave my baits a jerk to see if I could stir something into taking,” he told us.
“Nothing happened with the first rod, but after lifting the second I saw this massive pike follow it in and take the bait!
"It put up a strange fight, causing more commotion on the bank than in the water, but I’m absolutely chuffed with the fish.”
Daniel Dale had just 20 minutes of the session left when this 31lb 4oz pike picked up his bait