It's been a split week this one – since the last report we've seen the weather change from a settled westerly airflow to a cooler north quarter wind.

This will certainly have switched the sport around. In the run-up to the weekend it was all about soles in the south and mackerel in the north; now it will be about the bass and perhaps some unseasonable codling.

Lovely surf and colour in the sea through this week should encourage the bass onto the feed, but is bound to break up the mackerel and move them offshore.

Sole don't generally like surf so I should think bass will be the target species this week.

Holt SAC held the third round of their evening series at Great Yarmouth. Paul Tovell took top spot with 2lb 11oz, almost a clear pound ahead of Tony Thomas in second with 1lb 12oz with Richard Ellis a close third with 1lb 11oz.

They also held a club match at Kelling on Sunday where Pete Morse won with a level 4lb. Richard Ellis and Paul Tovell framed again with 3lb 1oz and 2lb 14oz respectively.

I managed to get out myself last Friday with Karl Gibson for a very enjoyable session on the shingle.

Using light spinning gear and half ounce Dexter wedges we managed several good-sized mackerel, the largest well over a pound.

Light gear gets the best from these little scrappers and I'm sure if they went to double figures we wouldn't fish for anything else.

It was good to see the amount of whitebait in the water too. At times the water was slick black there were so many, and squid too had been on the mackerel menu – all good signs of a healthy eco system.

Unfortunately, we didn't manage any bass, although they would have been big fish had they been feeding on the mackerel as we never saw a mackerel under 8-10oz all evening; most were a good pound.