Man Attacks Shark

Very Courageous, Sir

Normally, we report it when it's the other way around, but there's some merit to this story:

A fisherman from South Australia's rugged west coast, who attacked and landed a shark with his bare hands, does not recommend others do the same.

Phillip Kerkhof, 42, from Louth Bay, admits his judgement was clouded by a few beers and vodkas when he saw a 1.3-metre bronze whaler shark chasing his squid lures off the local jetty on Monday night. Mr Kerkhof, a former tuna fisherman in Port Lincoln who now works in the building industry, climbed down a ladder and stalked the shark in the shallows before sneaking up behind, grabbing it around the tail and wrestling it on to the jetty.

"I had both hands wrapped around his tail and he was thrashing around," Mr Kerkhof said yesterday. "I brought him back towards the steps and hurled him up on to the jetty."

As news of the man who attacked a shark spread through the South Australian fishing community this week, Mr Kerkhof says it was Dutch courage more than good judgement that inspired him to wrestle a shark capable of causing serious injury. Bronze whalers are aggressive and agile and their cartilage structure gives their head almost complete rotation. They have been known to attack and badly injure divers in Australia and a bronze whaler was present when a white pointer took a surfer in Western Australia, Brad Smith, 29, in 2004. "Even a small shark like this one could give you a nasty bite," Mr Kerkhof said.

Good on ya' Mr. Kerkhof!