British angler Eric Binding has become the talk of the fishing world with his capture of a 37lb 8oz giant cod – taken south of the Nab area on the Isle of Wight.
The fish is one of five 30lb plus fish to be caught in what gofishing.co.uk is calling a “golden seven-day period” for anglers of the species.
Mr Binding smashed the cod record for his local Fountain Lake Angling Club with the impressive catch, which is thought to be one of the biggest taken on the Island in years.
Cylex-uk.co.uk claims Fountain Lake is only based across the Solent in Portsmouth, although news of Mr Binding’s achievements could easily filter out to other clubs in Britain – possibly encouraging more to incorporate fishing trips on their Isle of Wight breaks.
The cod was first ruffled after hooking onto a large double squid hookbait in 90ft of water near the Island’s Nab area. A 15 minute tug of war in strong currents ensued but it was Binding who came out on top, catching the fish with a little help from his teammates.
The Angler said there have been several caught between 30lb and 33lb recently, but his hefty catch really is “prime time”.
“I honestly thought it was over 40lb, it looked a massive cod,” said Rob Hickin, who helped Mr Binding net the fish.
“Eric was chuffed to bits. This is the biggest one from this end of the Isle of Wight for quite some time.”