Amid scenes of high drama, the club's oldest record, set in 1996, has finally been broken. The fish, a 72lb conger eel, beats the previous record, held by Phil Boxall, by 6lb and leaves Phil a lonely and peripheral figure in the club. The new record holder, Ben Eveling, is delighted and is said to be resting up at a secret location to escape the attentions of the media and to recuperate from the physically draining battle.

As tributes poured in, friends and colleagues have been expressing their admiration for a top angler. Said Adam Frost, "He's the jammiest git I know. He obviously caught it by accident as he meant to catch a much smaller eel. This one was supposed to be mine." Steve Newham was even more fullsome. "He's a twat," said the aging tax exile.

According to eye witnesses the eel put up a tremendous battle, docilely giving up without seeming to pull back at all. At one stage it apparently even started swimming upwards to give Ben's arms a rest just as he was beginning to tire. On the surface the fish refused to crash dive back down to the bottom, leading some to speculate that it may have been poisoned by the foul pink cuttlefish provided as bait by Clive Hodges, also known as "Clive Hodges, leading bass angler" in all angling publications.

On a day when takes were at a premium, Ben showed his tremendous ability by deliberately selecting this eel from among the smaller ones. His power and stamina were also on display as he rested up for over an hour after landing the mammoth eel which, it is worth repeating, displayed all the fighting qualities of a bowl of custard resting on a lace doily. "I am happy but exhausted," said the new record holder, from his luxury hideaway. "It was a tremendously powerful fish and I was overjoyed when it was finally beaten. I am the greatest."