 Andy Bennett Winner of Back To Back Fish'O' Mania 2019 & 2020 | Andy Bennett became the first angler to successfully defend his FishOMania title when he won Saturday’s £50,000 match at Hayfield Lakes, Doncaster with 40.1kg at the end of a gripping afternoon of fishing. In what was one of the most exciting afternoons FishOMania has enjoyed, the lead changed hands four times before Bennett took |
command in the second half of the match. Luke Sears, one of the early leaders, maintained the pressure at the top with a 5.3kg ninth weigh, while Bennett had nothing, meaning the defending champion had a lead of less than 3kg with 30 minutes to fish.
However, with 15 minutes remaining Bennett brought in a sizeable carp which looked likely to be enough for the match and proved to be just that at the final weigh as Bennett took the title with more than 6kg more than runner-up Sears, who completed the afternoon with 33.850kg in his bag.
“It feels amazing,” said Bennett. “I am absolutely over the moon. To win FishOMania is amazing, but to defend it is unbelievable.
“It was quite a simple match really; I had one short and the rest on a bomb. I didn’t think it was going to happen. I had a good run in that fourth hour, got myself back into it and said to bank runner Paul, anything can happen. With an hour to go I thought it would be quite simple and then it stopped going around; that’s bomb fishing for you. It made that last 40 minutes a bit nerve-racking because I couldn’t get a bite on anything.
“You can’t catch them if they aren’t there and there has been some fish in the deeper water and they have settled here and it has been my day and I’m absolutely made up.
“I’ll be back next year and hopefully I draw another good peg because three in a row would be some going!”
Sears took the £10,000 prize for coming second, while Lee Farmer came third and collected £2,500 as one of three section winners. Three-time FishOMania champion Jamie Hughes, who lead early in the match, won section three while Chris Lane was the section one winner.
FISHOMANIA 2020 TOP FIVE
SECTION WINNERS:
Section 1 (1-6): Chris Lane (27.400kg)
Section 2 (7-12): Andy Bennett n/a
Section 3 (13-18): Jamie Hughes (28.870kg)
Section 4 (19-24): Lee Farmer (32.250kg)
However, with 15 minutes remaining Bennett brought in a sizeable carp which looked likely to be enough for the match and proved to be just that at the final weigh as Bennett took the title with more than 6kg more than runner-up Sears, who completed the afternoon with 33.850kg in his bag.
“It feels amazing,” said Bennett. “I am absolutely over the moon. To win FishOMania is amazing, but to defend it is unbelievable.
“It was quite a simple match really; I had one short and the rest on a bomb. I didn’t think it was going to happen. I had a good run in that fourth hour, got myself back into it and said to bank runner Paul, anything can happen. With an hour to go I thought it would be quite simple and then it stopped going around; that’s bomb fishing for you. It made that last 40 minutes a bit nerve-racking because I couldn’t get a bite on anything.
“You can’t catch them if they aren’t there and there has been some fish in the deeper water and they have settled here and it has been my day and I’m absolutely made up.
“I’ll be back next year and hopefully I draw another good peg because three in a row would be some going!”
Sears took the £10,000 prize for coming second, while Lee Farmer came third and collected £2,500 as one of three section winners. Three-time FishOMania champion Jamie Hughes, who lead early in the match, won section three while Chris Lane was the section one winner.
FISHOMANIA 2020 TOP FIVE
- Andy Bennett (Peg 10) 40.100kg
- Luke Sears (Peg 9) 33.850kg
- Lee Farmer (Peg 19) 32.250kg
- Jamie Hughes (Peg 15) 28.870kg
- Chris Lane (Peg 4) 27.400kg
SECTION WINNERS:
Section 1 (1-6): Chris Lane (27.400kg)
Section 2 (7-12): Andy Bennett n/a
Section 3 (13-18): Jamie Hughes (28.870kg)
Section 4 (19-24): Lee Farmer (32.250kg)
SARAH TAYLOR IS FISHOMANIA NXTGEN CHAMPION
Sarah Taylor won the FishOMania NXTGEN title with 17.93kg thanks to a big second half of the match at Hayfield Lakes, Doncaster.
John Light Junior on peg two had a huge opening hour, weighing in at just over 12kg after 60 minutes. He remained top of the leaderboard until the very end, but Taylor began her offensive with over 7kg in the third our and a further 6.35kg in the final quarter of the match.
Taylor, who was FishOMania Ladies champion last year, changed her tactics during this year’s competition to claim the £2,500 NXTGEN title.
“It’s an incredible feeling,” she said. “After winning the Ladies last year, it’s surreal to win NXTGEN this year.
“I was behind until the last hour. John Light Jnr did really well in the first hour so it was a catch-up game really but I have been really lucky and there has been a big stamp down my edge.
“Last year I caught skimmers long, but this year I started short with a bit of bomb and pellet fishing out long and with this kind of peg fished the edges.
“I owe Andy my bank runner a treat with the money, and my parents as well. The goal is always to qualify for FishOMania. It has been my dream for years and having two titles is surreal; even last year hasn’t really sunk in. I can’t put it into words.”
FISHOMANIA NXTGEN TOP FIVE:
Sarah Taylor won the FishOMania NXTGEN title with 17.93kg thanks to a big second half of the match at Hayfield Lakes, Doncaster.
John Light Junior on peg two had a huge opening hour, weighing in at just over 12kg after 60 minutes. He remained top of the leaderboard until the very end, but Taylor began her offensive with over 7kg in the third our and a further 6.35kg in the final quarter of the match.
Taylor, who was FishOMania Ladies champion last year, changed her tactics during this year’s competition to claim the £2,500 NXTGEN title.
“It’s an incredible feeling,” she said. “After winning the Ladies last year, it’s surreal to win NXTGEN this year.
“I was behind until the last hour. John Light Jnr did really well in the first hour so it was a catch-up game really but I have been really lucky and there has been a big stamp down my edge.
“Last year I caught skimmers long, but this year I started short with a bit of bomb and pellet fishing out long and with this kind of peg fished the edges.
“I owe Andy my bank runner a treat with the money, and my parents as well. The goal is always to qualify for FishOMania. It has been my dream for years and having two titles is surreal; even last year hasn’t really sunk in. I can’t put it into words.”
FISHOMANIA NXTGEN TOP FIVE:
- Sarah Taylor (Peg 6) 17.925kg
- John Light Jnr (Peg 2) 14.750kg
- Zak Worby-Smith (Peg 1) 10.450kg
- Josh Newman (Peg 4) 8.725kg
- Will McCranor (Peg 8) 8.625kg
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