Catch reports took me by surprise this last week.

I expected whiting and school bass and there had been one or two codling caught in the south of the region, but I didn't have high hopes for the week due mainly to the east in the wind.

How wrong can you be? I saw catches of six, seven, 10 codling at Aldeburgh and Orford, several at Southwold and Thorpeness and even a few at Mundesley and Trimingham. The fish aren't huge but are a decent early season stamp with most between 1½lb and 2½lb. That size have hung around right through the winter and into the spring in the not too distant past so hopes are high for a long successful season this year.

It hasn't all been codling though; there are still school bass showing at lots of beaches right round the coast and sole in the south. The wind through this week has been a fairly stiff southeast which will put a lump on in the south of the patch and may well signal the last of the sole for this year.

Ritegear Tackle fished the shingle last Monday in the second of their Monday night series – only under sized dabs were caught until the weed started and forced the abandonment of the match. A shame because I think there would have been chances here too of a codling or more likely a bass.