When Stan 'caught' Jaws off Sunderland in 1979 - the mystery catch which confounded the experts

Wearside fisherman Stan Short went fishing for cod from a coble off the coast of Sunderland.

But he never dreamed he would catch a submarine. Question is, was that what he caught in an amazing incident in 1979.

They were going to need a bigger boat

At first 59-year-old Stan thought the coble’s anchor rope had snagged a Wearside version of the giant shark, Jaws.

But then he became convinced that his “catch” was a submarine.

Stan and his friend Billy Young were fishing seven miles off Ryhope Dene, at anchor with other fishing cobles.

'They realised the boat was going backwards'

Then they realised the boat was going backwards.

“The anchor rope was taut from the stern and we were going in reverse with waves coming over the back of the boat”, said Stan.

“We were towed back at about five knots I would say, and in a straight line.

'If it dived it would tow us under'

“Being a fisherman, I was undecided about whether or not to cut the anchor rope, but I reckoned if it dived it would tow us under.”

He cut the rope and ended the uncanny experience before it became even more alarming.

A spokesman said it seemed highly unlikely they had caught a submarine, but Stan thinks differently.

Tell us about your 1979 Wearside memories by emailing [email protected]