Dave Shires is this year’s FishOMania champion and £50,000 better off following his dramatic win at Westwood Lakes in Boston.

The Pontefract-based angler took the lead at the first weigh-in and caught consistently throughout the day. It was a chaotic finish, however, as the top three anglers were forced to re-weigh with only 100 grams separating Shires and Keiran Marsden at the final weigh-in.

A Strong Start for Shires

Dave Shires would have fancied his chances after drawing an end peg during yesterday’s draw. Fishing from peg 25, he raced into an early lead after the first weigh-in of the day with 9.025 kg. That proved to be the largest 30-minute weigh-in of the day. However, there were signs of things to come later in the day during the first weigh-in. Early indications around the lake suggested that Keiron Marsden’s opening weigh-in was an eye-catching 18.025 kg. A secondary weigh-in bumped the weight down to 8.4 kg.

Shires maintained his lead through the first three weigh-ins but was overtaken after two hours by two-time FishOMania winner Andy Bennett on peg 4. By the halfway mark, Shires sat in third place with 20.625 kg, trailing Bennett with 22.50kg and 2022’s FishOMania winner Kristian Jones on peg 12 with 20.925 kg.

One hour later, the picture had changed completely. Shires returned to the top spot with a weight of 27.650 kg. Kristian Jones moved into second place on 27.250 kg. Jimmy Brooks on peg 21 sat in third position with 26.700 kg. Andy Bennett’s hopes of a third title faded as he slipped down the leaderboard into sixth.

A Close Finish

As the match moved into its final hour Jimmy Brooks was in the lead with a weight of 33.950 kg. Kieron Marsden who was two pegs to his right on peg 19 moved into second with 31.600 kg. Shires dropped to third with 31.025 kg.

As the match approached its conclusion at the ninth weigh-in, it was still too close to call. The top three remained in the same order, but only one fish separated Brooks, Marsden and Shires. In the final 30 minutes, the momentum shifted back and forth between the trio to the delight of the crowds gathered behind them. Brooks and Marsden sat two pegs apart both had spells where they looked to have taken the lead, whilst Shires across the lake carried on catching consistenly.

As the final hooter sounded and the results of the 10th weigh-in were tallied, Dave Shires moved back into the lead. It was by the narrowest of margins, however. His final weight of 45.650 kg put him ahead of Kieran Marsden in second place on 45.500 kg and Jimmy Brooks in third with 44.150 kg.

A Chaotic Final Weigh-in

As the Sky TV cameras interviewed Shires and his children, it was revealed that a re-weigh had been requested for the top three. With the tension mounting amongst the spectators who were wondering what was happening, the organisers began the process of re-weighing the top three.

When the new weights were counted, the order for the final three was the same. However, some inexplicable weight differences were recorded that need to be addressed for future finals. Shires’ final weight was confirmed as 45.150 kg, whilst Marsden’s total was reduced by over two kilos to 43.275kg. Brooks’ weight dropped by over five kilos to 39.750.

Congratulations to Dave Shires on becoming the FishOMania champion. According to the Angling Trust Facebook page, he won the match catching carp and F1s on worm head over micros in the edge, caster short and worm head or casters at 11m just off the far bank.

FishOMania 2024 Grand Final – Final Standings

FishOMania 2024 Grand Final Prize Money

The prize money for this year’s FishOMania was split as follows:

• Winner: Dave Shires – £50,000
• Runner-up: Kieran Marsden – £10,000
• Section Winners: Andy Bennett, Kristian Jones and Gary Ainscough – £2,000