HAMBLE Club's Colin Searles put in a fair performance during his World Boat Angling Championships debut which were staged out from Sesimbra in Portugal during pretty blustery conditions.

The five-strong England team travelled out several days earlier to practise for the event although they found matching the Italians' skills at catching small fish difficult in rough conditions. Despite fishing in 65 metres for the three matches the heaviest fish of the whole championships was just 800gm - which perhaps emphasises the damage done by the inshore commercial sector.

The Italian team won all three matches, landing up to 100 small fish per angler to collect team gold, they also took all three individual medals. The silver team medal was collected by Slovenia followed by France, Spain and then England.

Searles finished in the top half of the 80-strong field and the experience gained should stand him in good stead when the World Boat Championships are staged out of Weymouth next October.

The final round of the Solent Challenge series was staged at Hythe where flounders dominated. The top individual was Calshot's Wayne Edginton with 3lb 8oz followed by Chris Wheeler from the Ashlett club with 3lb 6oz.

Ashlett Club lifted the overall title with 461 points followed by Calshot 370 points, Perry Plus 250 points and the Army with 168 points.

The Dennings Open staged along the Ferry Bridge section of Chesil proved to be fairly disappointing with Dave Lane scooping the £300 top prize after landing a number of dogfish, gurnard, pouting and garfish together weighing 9lb 12.75oz. The runner-up was Ben Stockley with 8lb 2oz.

A good variety of species were recorded during the Rovers midweek pegged measure & return fixture held along the Clarence sea wall.

Daniel Mogridge from Fareham won the total length category with 141 points followed by Dave Ware 130 and Mark Canfield with 105 points.

Rovers Tackle stage their next measure & return pegged midweek open on Nov 11 at Stokes Bay. Details on 01329 220354.

For the past two months Lymington & District SFC members have won the Wessex Division of the National Federation of Sea Anglers junior fish of the month award which are sponsored by Hansfords of Fareham.

William Peckham won the first award with a 15lb 15oz blonde ray caught from a boat while fishing in Bournemouth Bay while seven-year-old Brad Smith won the second event with a 1lb 5.5oz sole beach at Barton.

AROUND THE SEA ANGLING CLUBS

SHIRLEY SAC. A shore competition staged between Hythe and Ealing attracted 39 members with 28 returning 91 fish weighing 67lb 8oz to the scales.

The day's heaviest fish was a 2lb dogfish bagged by Wayne Bulley. Peter Jeans won the event with seven fish weighing 7lb 11oz followed by Ray Dunham 4lb 7.5oz, Dave Neil 4lb 2oz, Richard Patterson 4lb 1oz, and John Carstairs 3lb 15oz. The junior section was won by Joe Cole.

ELMORE SAC. Martyn Thorne romped to victory during the club's latest shore competition with a brace of grey mullet weighing 4lb 2.5oz. The runner-up with a whiting and a tub gurnard weighing 1lb 9oz was Dave Barnes.

FORD SPORTS SAC. Members travelled to Ringstead Bay for a shore competition where Chris Petrou landed a mixed bag weighing 5lb 8oz to nudge out Geoff Collins 5lb 3oz, Eddie Alsford 4lb 12.25oz and Mark Ramsey with 4lb 12oz. Top junior was Richard Perry with 2lb 10oz.

HAMBLE SAC. Variety was the key during a large boat competition held off the Nab Tower on Predator with Dick Prosser winning the event with a 7lb thorneback ray, a 4lb bass along with two whiting, three pouting, 12 dogfish and a smoothhound together worth 93 points. Tony Spridgeon came second with 14 fish worth 47 points followed by Keith Coleman 24, Dour Roe 21, Eddie Fleat 21 and Neil Powdrill with 13 points. The day's heaviest fish was a 9lb 8oz bull huss bagged by Doug Rowe.