UNTIL Saturday the only thing Fred Parker had ever won was the odd argument.But all that changed when he opened the door to a brand new Toyota Yaris and walked away its owner thanks to a competition run by the EADT - his daily paper of 20 years.

UNTIL Saturday the only thing Fred Parker had ever won was the odd argument.

But all that changed when he opened the door to a brand new Toyota Yaris and walked away its owner thanks to a competition run by the EADT - his daily paper of 20 years.

Mr Parker, 68, from Soham, and his wife Mary, 70, were among the nine finalists for the competition to gather at the Bury St Edmunds Toyota garage for the grand showdown.

All the finalists were handed envelopes with different keys inside and only one of them would open the door to the £7,000 car.

Mr Parker said his win left him astonished and when he saw the bags of 7,500 entries to the popular EADT competition he couldn't believe his had been selected for the final.

"I have just seen the four sacks of mail my letter came out of and I can't believe they ever found it," said the pensioner, who enjoys the EADT's comprehensive sports coverage.

Debbie Noye, promotions manager for the paper, said readers from all over Suffolk, north Essex and parts of Cambridgeshire took part in the four-week competition, which was launched on February 1 in conjunction with the Toyota dealers in Bury and Cambridge.

She said: "We're delighted that it has gone so well and that Mr Parker has won the car. He has been a reader for more than 20 years."

But the generous winner, who has only just bought a new car himself, is planning to hand the Toyota to his daughter Karen Prewett, who also lives in Soham.

Mr Parker said: "I'm very happy with my new car and my daughter said she would take this off my hands if I won so it looks like that's what will happen."