Josh Hammersley, his daughter Chloe, 11, Luke Bezener and Adrian Hinds, all of Launceston, were participating in a Devonport-based shark fishing competition when a great white swam up to their boat.

Mr Hammersley, a member of the Game Fishing Club of Northern Tasmania, said the shark, which he said estimated at more than four metres and around 500-600 kilograms, circled their seven-metre boat for about two hours but did not scare them.

``It was fantastic to see it in the water,'' Mr Hammersley said.

``It almost gave you the feeling you could be in there with it.''

They were 50 kilometres north of Port Sorell at the time.

However, since the sighting Mr Hammersley said some groups had shown concern at the group's fishing practices, despite the fact his group had only observed the great white.

He said the fishing club had an emphasis on tag and release.

``We don't go out there to catch and kill,'' Mr Hammersley said.

He said between the club's 80 members, they tagged at least 100 sharks a year that could be tracked for scientific purposes.

Mr Hammersley said the shark sighting was the highlight of his _ and no doubt his daughter Chloe's _ fishing experiences.