Dedicated fisho Jack Daly, from Nauiyu/Daly River, has pocketed himself $10,000 just in time for Christmas after hooking a Million Dollar Fish Season 9 red-tagged barramundi. Persistence has paid off again for Jack, with this the third $10,000 barra he has caught since the competition began.
Jack, 35, reeled in his latest prize-winning catch, a 58cm barra, at Daly River Crossing on Friday. Jack had been down at the crossing on Friday from 7.30pm when several hours later he reeled in the red-tagged fish on a plastic lure. He said his secret to catching barra was consistency, often fishing most nights. Over the moon with his latest catch, he said his two kids had drafted up a Christmas wish list after learning he had hooked a red-tagged barra.
“I thought I’d never catch any this year but the water came up a little bit and then started dropping again and then I caught this on the crossing,” Jack said.
“I go fishing nearly every night, or when I get the chance to if I’m not working at night, I’ll go fishing. That’s just something I love doing every day or every night anyway when it’s nice and cool.
“The key is consistency. If you keep fishing every night, anything could happen, you know? That’s all it takes just a bit of time fishing at night or day, and you’ll never know you’ll get a red tag.”
Million Dollar Fish sees prize-tagged barramundi released in waterways across the Darwin, Kakadu, Tiwi Islands, Arnhem Land and Katherine regions. This season someone is guaranteed to win a million dollars. The season runs from 1 October 2023 until 31 March 2024.
It is the seventh $10,000 barra to be caught in Season 9 of Australia’s richest fishing competition, supported by SportsBet.
Seven $10,000 barra caught in the first nine weeks of Season 9
SportsBet NT Operations and Partnerships Manager Thijs Bors said seven $10,000 barra had now been caught in the first nine weeks of Season 9.
“Congratulations to Nauiyu/Daly River resident, Jack, who has now reeled in his third $10,000 fish since Million Dollar Fish began in 2015,” he said.
“With more red-tagged Million Dollar Fish out there than ever before, the odds are definitely in favour of the fishos this season. We’re getting closer and closer to giving away the million and SportsBet can’t wait.”
Each time a fisho catches a $10,000 barra, they can donate an extra $1,000 to the Million Dollar Fish charity of their choice. Jack is giving the $1,000 to Riding for the Disabled Association Top End.
Riding for the Disabled Association Top End President Tania Lesneuck said: “We are excited to hear that Jack chose to share his Million Dollar Fish joy with RDA Top End! His donation will bring smiles to our riders and horses”.
There is still 92 red-tagged $10,000 barra out there, plus 12 barra sporting the big million-dollar tags released since the competition began. All are eligible to be caught.
To claim any cash from a red-tagged barra, a fisho must be registered for Million Dollar Fish. Registering is free and easy. Anyone who registers automatically goes in the monthly Lucky Prize Pool to win thousands of dollars’ worth of prizes.
