Some excellent blonde rays continue to be taken from marks off both the Nab Tower The Needles with Clive Archer the latest to strike when he heaved a 25lb 4oz specimen over the gunnels of his own small boat Seahawke.

Anchored just a few miles to the south of The Needles, Archer, a 37-year-old fitter from the Waterside, used a whole squid mounted on a size 4/0 pennel rig to tempt the specimen which was weighed and returned alive.

Ralph Jones also got a taste of the ray action when the Totton-based Red Deer SAC held a match off the Nab Tower. The specimen tipped the scales down to exactly 18lb.

Pete Stotesbury won the event with a brace of brill along with a whiting, a small blonde ray and a solitary doggie together worth 56 points to get the better of Gary Johnson who landed a 4lb spurdog, a 3lb 14oz turbot along with a pout and a dogfish together worth 45 points.

In third position was Ralf Jones with his hefty ray along with a spurdog and three doggies worth 33 points followed by Phil Reed with 13 fish worth 29 points and then Nigel McGloglin who included the days heaviest fish, a 28lb conger in his catch worth 27 points.

l Almost 30 clubs were represented during the Wessex Division of the National Federation of Sea Anglers annual meeting at Southampton.

Chairman Geoff Knight also expressed his thanks to members of the committee, which is at full strength.

He also asked all clubs to make a special effort with their junior section and submit any noteworthy catches to the Wessex secretary for the monthly junior fish of the month contest.

The Peter Merritt trophy which is awarded annually to the person or persons who have deemed to have enhanced Division during the past twelve months was awarded to the Redding family who have worked tireless behind the scenes for many years.

l Competitors found a wide variety of species during the Pagham/Selsey open with a number of pout, rockling, flounders, smoothhound, bass, silver eels, whiting, sea scorpion and ballan wrasse all recorded and returned alive.

Day one saw England Youth team member Lee Cullen from Netley win the A section with ten fish worth 132 points to nudge out Graham Clark with 93 points. In B section Barry Fradgley came out on top with 175 points followed by Dave Ware from Fareham with 142 points.

Fishing was not so good on day two with Dave Ware winning A section with 40 points ahead of Tony O'Grady with 29 points. The second section was won by Nigel Thornes with 51 points followed by Ian Golds with 44 points.

The winner over the two days was Dave Ware with just three penalty points followed by Nigel Thornes and Barry Fradgley with four and five points respectively.

l The first round of the interclub Solent Challenge Solent series was staged along the deep water section at Magazine Lane where members landed 97 pouting, two flounders and a solitary dogfish.

The top individual was Gus Angus representing the Army. He also landed the day's heaviest fish in the shape of a 1lb 5.50oz doggie. Runner-up was Mark Williams from Calshot Activity and Geoff Wheeler representing Ashlett SAC.

l Some quality flounders were recorded during the ALS Tackle at Woolston mini midweek Open staged at Hill Head where Steve Deathe from Southampton won the pool for the longest fish with a 41cm flounder.

Bill Baynes won the event with eight fish worth 179 points followed by Steve Deathe with five at 142 points, John Baddens 90 points and John Brown and Paul Goodhew both on 64.