A PENPERGWM man who only took up fishing three years ago, recently lined-up, hooked, and reeled in the sort of fish that even the most experienced anglers can only dream about.

Last Monday, 72-year-old Derek Carey definitely bagged the catch of the day when he became acquainted with a 20Ib salmon from the depths of the River Usk.

The watery wonder took him an endurance-testing 25 minutes to land in a epic encounter between man and fish, which ended with the salmon coming out on the losing side, but not before breaking Derek's £150 rod in the process.

Derek, a member of the Merthyr Tydfil Angling Society told the Chronicle, "I have a friend who has been fishing for 18 years, and he jested that he'd give his right arm to catch such a salmon. It's a lifetime ambition for a lot of anglers, and that particular salmon has been the talk of the river ever since I reeled it in."

Derek caught the scaly sensation at Kernys Commander with worm bait, after catching a 10 pound and seven pound salmon the previous Friday.

In fact, the very next day after catching the 20 pound whopper, Derek went on to catch another nine pounder.

I asked Derek the secret to his success, and he explained, "It was my nephew Michael Wright who really got me into fishing. He's a fantastic fisherman and has been at it for the last 46 years.

"I think the only secret is that when you dip your rod into the water you've got to be 100 percent focused on the line. You cannot be half-hearted about it. You've got to clear your head of all thoughts and just rely on pure instinct.

"That's why fishing is such a brilliant antidote to such things as stress, it's the best way I know to unwind - even more so than golf.

"When I first started out, if I had a salmon on the end of my line I'd often start shaking with excitement, and as a result they'd fight their way free.

"With a salmon, especially the bigger ones, they will struggle fiercely for their survival, sometimes jumping out of the water and rising three foot into the air to try and shake off the line.

"You've got to show a lot of upper-body strength and stay relaxed if you want to better them, and the one I caught on Monday was the toughest bruiser I've met to date."

Derek's angling achievements prove quite poignantly that it's never too late to learn something new and make a success of it, as Derek himself explained, "Compared to most anglers, I came to fishing quite late in life. I've always been a keen sports enthusiast, and in the past I've been a horse trainer and played football, but it wasn't until three years ago at the age of 69 I had my first experience of fishing on an expedition to Scotland.

"That day I was fortunate enough to catch two salmon and have acquired a taste for them ever since."