Glenn Lawrence recorded a tremendous double success when he and his new angling partner, John Dunnil, landed the top spot at the weekend with 499 points in the fourth qualifying round of the £21,000 Embassy Challenge on the Trader and Hobhole Drains in Lincolnshire.

Lawrence, a 39-year-old electrician from Barnsley, who competes for Van Den Eynde Goole Avengers, has already competed in this year’s Embassy Grand Final in Spain after he and Neil Mallinson from Wakefield won on the River Soar in Leicestershire.

Neither Lawrence or Dunnil had even seen the Boston Drains where the biggest match anywhere for a while, a 428-peg qualifier, was staged.

“We agreed to fish for ‘big’ fish and our tactics proved right on the day,” said Lawrence, who had a 5lb bream and two eels on feeder with worm on the hook for 3.240 kg from peg A128.

John Dunnil, (36) a landscape gardener from Wakefield, was runner-up in the match with ten bream and a tench for 14.160 kg – his best ever match weight.

The Maver Barnsley Blacks star said: “I fished a 16m and 17m pole using chopped worm and caster on a size ten Maver Eagle hook. I introduced around one kilo of worms and a pint of casters to keep the fish interested.

“I’ve fished lots of Embassy qualifiers but this will be my first Grand Final. Everyone tells me that the trip to Spain is an experience of a lifetime and I can’t wait for next year to come!” he said. Five pairs from this 428-peg qualifier secured a place on the plane for next years Embassy Grand Final.

The runners-up with 476 points were Paul Brown and Stephen Corbett from Mexborough, Yorkshire. Third placed pairs Nick Speed (32) and Kevin Vickers (34) from Crookes, Sheffield secured a place in the Grand Final by recording 472 points from a total catch of 5.010kg.

Richard Raynham (49) and Dave Ashmore (51) from Holton Le Clay near Grimsby fished peg 220 and returned a total weight of 5.640kg to claim 470 points.

Fifth and final qualifiers from this round were Ray Charnock (56) from Brighouse and Craig Ellis (30) from Batley, West Yorkshire who fish for Tricast Calder.

The top individual was Mark Woodcock, a twenty-six-year-old furniture assembler from Retford, Notts, who fishes for the Whitehouse Inn AC.

Woodcock netted 17.280kg of bream (best 6lb) and tench from peg B51 by employing either a groundbait feeder or long pole with two red maggots on a 14 hook.

Woodcock’s partner, Mick Hanks, returned just 10 grams and so the pair failed to qualify.

“I can’t wait to go back next year,” added winner Lawrence: “I have told John to keep himself fit for the 2003 Final as the River Ebro’s wild carp are something special and the Embassy hospitality is in a league of its own.”

Lawrence and Dunnil will both be on the specially-chartered Embassy ‘Eagle’ aircraft for the all-expenses paid trip to the gala final in Spain next year (2003).

Result: 1 Glenn Lawrence (Van Den Eynde Goole Avengers) and John Dunnil (Maver Barnsley Blacks), 499 pts; 2 Paul Brown and Stephen Corbett (Fox Rotherham Raiders), 476 pts; 3 Nick Speed and Kevin Vickers (Handsworth Angling Centre), 472 pts; 4 Richard Raynham and Dave Ashmore (Grimsby Nomads); 470 pts; 5 Ray Charnock (Brighouse) and Craig Ellis (Tri-cast Calder), 459 pts;

Individual: 1 Mark Woodcock (White House Inn), 17.280 kg; 2 John Dunnil (Maver Barnsley Blacks) 14.160 kg; 3 Martin McBridge (Handsworth AC), 12.450 kg; 4 Ritchie Hull (Bedworth, Warwicks) 9.450 kg; 5 Andy Mason (Smalley, Derbys) 9.400 kg; 6 Alan Lemmon (Dick Clegg Mark One

Sensas), 8.150 kg.