IT’S the popular riverside pub that boasts a loyal band of regulars – and an equally enthusiastic group of staff.

Eric Light, 54, has been running the Salmon Leap in Testwood Lane, Totton, since 1994 and is thought to be one of Hampshire’s longest-serving landlords.

Two members of his staff – Lorraine Tapplen and Kath Griffin – have also been at the pub for more than 20 years.

Mr Light, who also runs The Musketeer pub in North Street, Pennington, said: “I treat people as I want to be treated myself - one of the values that sadly seems to have died in many places.“Those who work here are not just numbers. They have supported me over the years – and I wouldn’t be here without their help.”

Mr Light can also count on the support of his two daughters, Ashleigh and Jannine, who between them help with bar duties and administrative tasks.

The pub is next to the famous River Test, renowned for its trout and salmon fishing, and takes it name from the salmon leap near Fisherman’s Cottage.

Most of the customers are locals but their ranks are often swelled by fishermen and people walking the Test Way, which finishes in nearby Eling.

Just down the road is one of the biggest areas of reed bed on the south coast. Large numbers of reed and sedge warblers breed there in the summer, while in the spring and autumn it becomes a roosting area for swallows and sand martins.

Mr Light entered the pub trade after taking voluntary redundancy from Tesco and spent £75,000 on improving the Salmon Leap in 1994.

He said: “I always wanted to run a little country pub and that’s what we’ve created. There may be a lot of houses round about but there’s some marvellous countryside nearby. Walk 200 yards and you could be in the middle of nowhere.”

The pub opened in 1964 and has seen several celebrities over the years, including Olympic swimmer Duncan Goodhew and Saints legend Francis Benali.

Other watering holes have undergone a raft of changes made in the name of progress, not all of which have proved universally popular, but the Salmon Leap, opened in 1964, has retained its Sixties charm.

Customers describe it as “traditional”, often adding: “It’s like pubs used to be.”