A fisherman casting for cod off Hook Head in Co Wexford was in for a surprise when the fish he reeled in was actually a shark.

At first hobby fisherman Cerjegs Zamahaev thought he had caught an enormous cod, so his friend decided to film him reeling it in.

"They were in shock, they couldn't believe it," a friend of the fisherman told Independent.ie.

"One of the lads was saying to bring it on to the boat but Cerjegs said if that thing's coming on the boat, I'm getting into the water."

Scientists have recently warned that Ireland’s coastal waters could be swarming with huge deadly sharks by 2048 due to global warming.

However, Zamahaev only caught a tope or school shark, which are relatively common in that area for this time of year.

Read More: Great White sharks to invade Irish waters soon due to global warming

Thankfully the species is not known to attack humans, and Zamahaev released the shark before heading home.