ANGLING: VICTORY eluded the Chester Tackle Locker team in Sunday's North Wales Winter League match on the Shropshire Union Canal at Waverton.

They finished in second place, just two points behind leaders Connah's Quay A, thanks to Dave Griffiths, who was second in the match, with 80 small gudgeon weighing 0-10-6 and third-placed Danny McLaughlan with 0-6-7. Airbus, Broughton were fourth through Ian Beales with 0-0-14 and Alastair Davies with 0-1-14.

John Mort was top of only two weighers in Sunday's Grosvenor Estate AC pike match at Eaton Hall's Serpentine with three fish taken with dead bait weighing 19-213-0. Terry Randles was runner-up with an 11-12-0 fish.

Ellesmere Port British Legion and Wirral Borough Council teams were beaten in the Angling Times KO match on the Leeds and Liverpool Canal, at Maghull.

Wirral were second with 20 points, four points behind Maghull, with Ellesmere Port collecting 16 points. Top for Wirral was Kenny Stuart, who was fourth with 1750grams on roach, supported by Keith Williamson's 1040g and Mark Greasley with 900g. Top for Ellesmere Port were Andy Fletcher with 525g of roach, Jimmy Grimes with 400g, to win his section, and Mick Ray with 425g.

Keith Bean was second in Saturday's Hampton Springs Fishery open match with carp weighing 16-2-0, 9lbs and 7lbs, the bulk of his 37-4-0 total. Andy Spencer was third with 26-8-0 of carp.

Chester Tackle Locker were in the bottom half of the Crewe and District Winter League teams in the match on the SU Canal at Market Drayton. Phil Weaver was their leader to finish second with 3-9-0 of roach with support from Mike Beaumont's 2-1-0 of roach and Chris Morris's 1-6-0.

Alan Bell collected the Trout Cup at the end of the Mickle Trafford AC match at the Meadow Fishery after landing a 5-10-0 brace of rainbows using a montanna. Andy Jones was next with a 5-4-0 brace from Stuart Moulton with 5lb. The top fish of the day, a 3-10-0 rainbow, fell to Jack Thomson.

Because of bad weather the Peg One AC match was abandoned at the Four Oaks Fishery after Glyn Maddocks had been the only weigher with 0-6-0 of perch.

Geoff Barker was top in the Lingmere Fishery open match on Thursday last week with a 28-7-0 mixture ahead of Stan Foster's 27-8-0 and Richard Heron 18-9-0. The Saturday match winner was Alan Dewhurst with a carp-based 26-10-0 from Dave Randles Junior with 22-6-0 and Dave Randles Senior with 15lbs.

Les Picken led at the end of the Tarvin Sands AC match on their own fishery with 21lbs of carp ahead of Shaun Sandham's 21-4-0 of carp and silver fish and Phil Crimes's 8-6-0 of roach.

Airbus, Broughton AC went to Patshull Lake, Cosford, for their match which was won by Gary Cotton with 14-6-0 of roach, perch and skimmers. Richard Parry was next with 13-14-8 of roach and skimmers with Kevin Thornton third with 12-9-0.

FISHERIES NEWS Meadow: Paul Knight, of Chester, lured a 5lbs rainbow to a nomad; Steve Last, of Ellesmere Port, tempted a 4-8-0 rainbow to a black buzzer; and Ellesmere Port's Bill Jones fished bloodworm to take a 3-8-0 rainbow.

Lake Hill: The best fish of the week was an 8-8-0 rainbow taken with bubble float-fished worm by Tony McGibbon, of Chester. Burton Mere: Fourteen-year-old Graham Taylor, of Pensby, netted six double-figure carp up to 14lbs to a sauce boilie and Tom Carrs, of Parkgate, also 14, lured a 10lbs common carp and mirrors of 8lbs and 6lbs to a sauce boilie.

Dearnford Hall: Duncan Kerns, of Chester, recorded the top fish of the week, an 8-1-0 rainbow, with a gold-headed damsel fly nymph and Trevor Worthington, of Ellesmere Port, netted 16 fish including a 5-8-0 rainbow, using a white fritz lure.