THE Mid Kent Fisheries team came second when the cream of carp angling competed in Chilham for the British Carp Championships crown.

Dean Marshall, from Allenby Road, Ramsgate, and Ian Day, from Beechcroft Gardens, Ramsgate, netted a total catch weighing in at 72lb 9oz.

But the resounding winners were Charlie Breeze, from Crewe, and Lee Thorn, who reeled in 108lb of carp in the 48-hour fishing event at Chilham Lake.

The two top pairs from the weekend’s qualifying heat at Mid Kent Fisheries have won a place in the final, which is due in August at Nicholls pit in Hythe.

The biggest fish in the event was caught by Kevin Reynolds, from Swale Avenue, Sheppey, who won third place overall in the competition with team-mate Hayden Porter and therefore will not qualify for the championships final.

Chris Logsdon, manager of Mid Kent Fisheries, said: “The conditions were horrendous for the competitors on Thursday night. We had blizzards during the day and Friday was freezing. East winds made the fishing quite hard and only four to five fish were caught that day but on Saturday the weather changed and a few fish were caught.”

In all the anglers reeled in 18 carp, bringing the total weight to 365lb.

Out of the three championship heats held at different venues on the weekend Mid Kent Fisheries saw the highest net weight and the biggest carp.