IPSWICH angler Mick Godfrey will complete his sporting ambition if he wins the Totesport Text Betting Fish'O'Mania XIII competition on Saturday.The event, which will be held at the Hayfield Lakes, Doncaster, South Yorkshire, is the biggest fishing tournament in Britain with the winner scooping £25,000.

IPSWICH angler Mick Godfrey will complete his sporting ambition tomorrow if he wins the Totesport Text Betting Fish'O'Mania XIII competition.

The event, which will be held at the Hayfield Lakes, Doncaster, South Yorkshire, is the biggest fishing tournament in Britain with the winner scooping £25,000.

Godfrey, 47, of Stamford Close, Ipswich, hopes he will secure a high finishing position.

He said: “To win something like this is most anglers' dream.

“Hopefully it will go well and I've had a bit of practise there, which has gone alright.

“This is the biggest match in the fishing calendar and it would mean quite a bit to win it.

“The money is the top amount and it's a competition that everyone talks about and wants to win.

“It will be nice if I can beat the best as it's a prestigious event on television.

“I'm reasonably well known around this neck of the woods but apart from that no-one has heard of me so this might put me on the fishing map and lead to some sponsorship.”

More than 2,000 anglers entered the qualification event and 16 people have reached the final of Fish'O'Mania XIII, including three former winners - Matt Hall (2003), Nathan Watson (2002) and Steve Ringer (1998), while 2004 runner-up Neil Machin is also one of the finalists.

The event, which also has children's and women's competitions, attracts an annual attendance of 10,000 people and will be broadcast live on Sky Sports 1 from 11.30am.

There will also be a celebrity match featuring legendary darts commentator Sid Waddell, former WBC World Super Middleweight boxing champion Richie Woodhall and top models Leilani and Jakki Degg.

Godfrey, who is married with two sons, began fishing when he was only ten and reached the Fish'O'Mania XIII final after he won the regional event that was held at Barford Lakes in Norwich in April.

“I was overjoyed when I qualified and I couldn't stop smiling,” said Godfrey.

“Everyone will be nervous on Saturday and I'm a bit nervous already but once it starts I will settle down.

“But it would be nice to be nervous again towards the end if I'm in a good position.

“I've met a few of the guys I'm up against along with last year's winner, Marc Jones, and he told me what it's like.

“He said 'it's a brilliant day', and I'm looking forward to it.”

Opinion - page 4