A shark expert says a woman is lucky to be alive after her husband saved her from a juvenile great white shark on the NSW Mid North Coast.

Chantelle Doyle, 35, was attacked by the two- to three-metre shark at Shelly Beach in Port Macquarie on Saturday morning, sustaining “severe lacerations” to her right leg.

Her husband had come to her rescue, jumping on the shark and repeatedly punching it in the face until it let go of his wife’s leg.

Macquarie University shark expert Rob Harcourt told Ben Fordham he was “incredibly brave”.

“A three-metre shark is just about the size they start to eat dolphins and seals.”

Click PLAY below to hear the full interview

Image: Nine News