A fisherman had a near-death experience when a terrifying great white shark came very close to his kayak and tried to take a chunk out of his paddle.
Matthew Gorne was out fishing at Spencer Gulf, an inlet outside of Port Augusta in South Australia, when he spotted the predator lurking by his boat.
Armed with a GoPro camera he managed to capture the whole ordeal and posted it on Facebook.
The angler pulled up the paddle and sat as still as he could in his kayak while hoping the shark would move on and swim past.
But the great white had other ideas and launched itself out of the water and sunk its teeth into Mr Gorne's paddle.
Matthew believed the shark measured about three metres long (9.8 feet).
"F***!" he screamed and he quickly paddled his way to the port.
"I know I'm stupid for going out there without a shark shield," he told the Australian Advertiser. "I will definitely be investing in one now though."
A spokesman for the local council said: "It's a spot where a lot of fishermen berley the water... fortunately for most sharks that come up here are usually well fed by the kingfish. Where there's big fish there’s often bigger fish."
While shark attacks are uncommon in South Australia, it comes just weeks after Port Hedland man Robbie Peck was attacked.
He was spearfishing underwater with friends and family at the start of October when the shark pounced.
By a stroke of luck, he survived the ordeal and sent a heartfelt thank you to the community as he returned home following a long recovery at Royal Perth Hospital.
Mr Peck said he wanted to show his appreciation following his “run-in with an over-friendly bull shark a month or so ago”.
Writing on social media he said: “Stoked to be back home. Stoked to still have an arm. Stoked to have my life.
“I can’t thank our amazing Port Hedland community enough - my family and I are so grateful for the support, prayers and thoughts we’ve received.
“It’s been incredibly humbling. This is why we’re so proud to call Hedland our home.”
He posted a photo alongside his post and it was a photo of him smiling, wearing a t-shirt with a great white shark swallowing a diver on the front with the tagline “Stay Positive”.
