RED DEER SAC members sampled rod-bending action on a mid-Channel sortie.

They recorded hefty bass, turbot and brill on Lymington-based boat Sundance II, skippered by Roger Bayzand, writes chris clark.

Dave Havers landed a 7lb 12oz brill, then pulled aboard the day's heaviest bass of 9lb 12oz. Ian Gibbs also found the bass feeding well to land a fish of exactly 9lb while the heaviest turbot - a 15lb whopper - was boated by Clive Neville.

Two more turbot, both weighing 9lb 8oz, were heaved over the gunnels by Ralph Jones and Ken Rossindale.

Hamble and Christchurch club members also had a productive trip when they joined forces aboard the Lymington-based boat Due South, skippered by Ted Entwistle.

They landed 25 black bream up to 4lb 8.5oz, wrasse up to 4lb and a smattering of pollack, bull huss, dogfish, garfish, pout, rockling and even a sea scorpion.

Tony Spridgeon, of the Hamble club, recorded the day's heaviest bream at 4lb 8.5oz while club colleague Rod Shattock recorded several bream over 3lb including one of 4lb 1oz, a personal best.

Not to be outdone, Ken Froud from the Christchurch club took bream up to 3lb 15.5oz while fellow club member Mike Foyle's bream weighed up to 3lb 8oz.

Steve Turner landed two personal bests - a 3lb 1oz bream and a garfish.

Seven-year-old Aiden Taylor of Southampton SAC won the latest Wessex Division of the National Federation of Sea Anglers junior fish-of-the-month award with a 2lb 5oz flounder from the Mayflower Park section.

Club secretaries are reminded to send details of junior members' catches to Wessex Division secretary Eric Gerrey to stop missing out on tackle vouchers sponsored by Hansford of Fareham.

The division regretfully have had to cancel this year's Champion of Champions boat competition after lack of entries made the event uneconomical. It is hoped to go ahead with the shore event - as long as sufficient entries have been received by the middle of May. It's up to club secretaries to act quickly.

The division would also like to reminded anglers that their handbook of tidal predictions for Portsmouth, Southampton, Poole and Weymouth are available in most top tackle shops.

Ray Barron from Southampton put in an excellent performance during the two-day EFSA Boat Championships out from Langston. He won his boat on both days to finish with a perfect score. Other local rods fared well, Colin Searles from Hamble joining forces with Glenn Milligan from Southampton to win the pairs.

Species caught during an event which attracted 46 of the country's top boat anglers included black bream, wrasse, smoothhound, pollack, whiting, pout, garfish, dogfish and codling.

John Brown from Southampton, who shortly heads to the England shore trials, put in a good performance during the latest catch-and-release open shore competition organised by the crew at ALS Tackle along the Hill Head section.

Brown's 46cm thorneback ray was the day's longest fish and, along with a bass and seven pouting, worth 221 points for a clear victory. Mick Goodger, also from Southampton, came second with 135 points. Steve Deathe from Netley had 67.

Action was disappointing during the latest Rovers midweek catch-and-release open at Lee-on-the-Solent, apart from a few small rays, flounders plaice, pout and whiting. The prize for the longest fish went to Mark Vinter, with a 43cm ray, followed by Andy Baulf with a 33cm plaice and Nick Hayter with a 32cm ray.

The overall points section was won by Hayter, with 89, followed by Mark Vinter 83, Travis Webling 63, Chris Clark 62 and Kim Lane 59.

Clarence Beach is the setting for the next round of the Rovers midweek pegged open series, judged to the measure-and-return system, on Thursday evening (fishing 8pm-11.30). The event, is pre-book only (tickets £5), full details from Rovers Tackle - 01329 220354).

The latest shore competition organised by the crew from Belles at Hythe produced a win for Lance Rustell with a trio of flounders and a bass together totalling 5lb 4oz. Paul Town came second with five flounders weighing 4lb 10oz, followed by H Ryder with a solitary 4lb 7oz bass.