Alan is said to be recovering well after an operation to his leg last night, in which a piece of broken shark tooth was removed from his bone.

The attack occurred yesterday afternoon when two Grey Nurse sharks were caught in fisherman's nets as they were hauling their catch into shore.

Alan's brother, Ray Saunders witnessed the attack.

"Two sharks were caught in our nets and according to regulations we must cease operations immediately and release them in two feet of water. As one was being released on the right side it chased one fisherman, Chris Watson, back to shore. Alan started to handle the other one. It was about 11 foot (3.3metres) I think. He got it free of the net but we think it may have turned around and bit him. We're not exactly sure. It's possible there was a third shark out there," Ray said.

Ray said local fishermen have seen a massive increase in the number of sharks in local waters since 2000.

"There's definitely been an increase in Grey Nurse sharks interfering with our nets since 2000. There's an abundance of sharks along the coast now, we're seeing Bronze Whalers come in too. During summer we catch an average of three Bull Sharks a day up in Mondrook Creek, opposite Bays Hill (Taree)," Ray said.