GOLD Coast surfer Billy O'Leary realised every surfer's worst nightmare yesterday evening when he fell from his board and landed on top of a shark.

The startled predator did what any shark would do - it bit back, latching on to Mr O'Leary's left leg and shaking him violently before swimming off.



Mr O'Leary's left leg was bitten twice, slicing the flesh down to the bone and severely damaging the achilles tendon.

The shocked surfer says he managed to get himself to shore at Nobby Beach and pulled himself up on the beach where he tried to raise the alarm, but walkers wearing earphones strolled by, oblivious to his plight.

Meanwhile Mr O'Leary's friends, who had seen the incident, ran and fetched lifeguards, who bound the wound to stop the bleeding.

Mr O'Leary was taken to Gold Coast Hospital where he was reported to be in a stable condition and even appeared to be in good spirits as he was taken into the emergency room.

"Yeah, I'm all right. A 20ft shark bit me -- ha, ha, ha, just kidding," he joked from his stretcher.

Surfer Shane Cable, who saw the attack, said Mr O'Leary was lucky not to lose his leg.

"It's towards down near his heel and it was down to his bone, so either it was one bite or two smaller bites," Mr Cable said.

"It was pretty bad.

"I'd say lucky he didn't lose his leg to be honest." Mr Cable said Mr O'Leary was trying a "floater" when he landed on the shark.

"He just did a floater and there was something below him and then he went down and stood on it.

"He said it was like something grabbed him.

"I ran down and he had two massive gashes."

Surfer Tim Windisch said his friend would be "all right".

"He was just trying to yell for help on the beach and everyone was walking past - so he had to drag himself up the beach.

"There were two bites.

"One is sort of half in his calf that's taken a big chunk out of that.

"The other one is down to his heel.

"It's just right down to the bone. You could see the bone."