Grandfather lands 'biggest ever cod' in Scottish waters
- Published
Tony Urwin caught the enormous cod off Shetland
A giant cod believed to be the biggest ever caught on a boat in Scottish waters has been landed off Shetland.
Angler Tony Urwin's cod weighed in at 49lbs (22kg) and was about 4ft (1.2m) long.
Grandfather Mr Urwin, 60, from Amble, Northumberland, said it took half an hour to land the enormous catch on the Oberon off Muckle Flugga.
The visiting fisherman said he was "shattered" after getting the cod onto the boat.
He told BBC Scotland News: "I did not think much about it at first but then realised "I have got something big here".
He said: "I did not rush it, just took my time, it was about half an hour. I have arthritis in my shoulder and had pins and needles - my arm was dropping off.
"Everyone was saying 'that's the money' - I cannot believe the size of it. It's surreal.
"We got it ashore, hooked it up, and it was 49lbs - I believe 46lbs (21kg) was apparently the record for over 50 years. Happy days."
The cod was weighed when they got ashore
The charter boat from Cullivoe is operated by father and son Kenny and Calum Graham.
'A very special fish'
Calum Graham said: "As soon as we saw the bend in the line we knew it was something special.
"By the end he was pretty exhausted. We had to take it back to the pier to verify the record. A very special fish. It's broken a record standing for 51 years".
In 2016, a fisherman landed the biggest cod ever caught by a British angler.
Bert Williams, from Prenton, Wirral, caught the 93lb fish in the sea off Norway.
That catch was about 10lb off the world record for cod.
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