MARSHFIELD, MASS. (WHDH) - A 14-year-old fisherman from Marshfield made the catch of a lifetime Thursday, reeling in a 600-pound tuna.
Anthony Tavares and his father, Marshfield Police Chief Phillip Tavares, were out on a commercial fishing boat when he snagged the 151-inch Atlantic Bluefin Tuna weighing in at 686 pounds.
Tavares said he has been fishing for as long as he can remember but has never caught anything this big before.
“The rod was in the water for about 10 minutes and then it just went off and it started screaming,” the teen said.
Tavares said it took a lot of fight to wrangle the monster into the boat.
“Then we had to reel in all the other rods, we didn’t want it to get tangled with that line,” Tavares said. “Then we just focused on that fish for an hour and 15 minutes then we got it.”
After the catch, the boat’s crew preserved the fish on ice and took it to the town pier.
“Anthony’s whole family was here. His mother was here, his grandmother was here his uncle was here. We took photographs and we were just so excited for him,” Tavares’ father said.
Tavares said fishing has taught him important life lessons about perseverance and believing in oneself.
“If you keep believing, it will happen,” he said. “Dreams can come true.”
His dad said he is proud of his son for the dedication he showed in making this crazy catch.
“He has done this all on his own from a young age and his hard work has paid off.”
Tavares said his next goal is to catch a 1,000-pound fish and when he grows up he wants to be a charter fishing captain.
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