Bank Holiday Monday, 6th April, saw the fourth qualifier of the Maver Match This 2026 campaign take place at Dynamite Hayfield Lakes, where Sam Brown produced a composed display to book his place in the £50,000 final.
With nearly a full house of 97 anglers in attendance, the Cheshire venue offered a fair but testing contest. Although conditions were warm, the water remained cold, which meant bites were not always easy to come by. As a result, the outcome stayed wide open throughout the day, with no clear leader until the closing stages.
Drawn on fancied peg 27 on Dannie’s Island, Sam made the most of his end peg advantage. He began the match on the long pole at around 14 metres, fishing on the deck with fishery pellets. This approach brought a steady early return, before the swim slowed after the opening hour.
Looking to keep the scoreboard ticking, he picked off a handful of fish on the waggler and method feeder during the middle period. However, it was the final phase that proved decisive. With around 90 minutes remaining, he turned his attention to the margins and quickly found quality fish, including some of Hayfield’s larger residents.
Alternating between feeding and picking off bites down the edge, he steadily built his weight. Despite losing a late fish at the net, which he feared might prove costly, his final tally of 113lb 8oz was enough to secure victory by a margin of around 4lb. The result sees Sam progress to the Maver Match This Grand Final later this year.
Maver Match This 2026 Finalists
Attention now turns to qualifier five, scheduled for Saturday, 11 April at Partridge Lakes, where another place in the final will be up for grabs.
You can buy tickets for all remaining Maver Match This qualifier matches from mavermatch.co.uk/buy-maver-match-this-tickets. Tickets are available for £54.99.