There is a special kind of pressure that builds when a barra mission is one day from over and the score sheet is still blank. The Fishing With Steve crew know it well - their 2026 'Metery' barramundi trip turned into a 12-day grind across remote Top End creek country, with the cameras filming every empty cast.
The video, released on 13 May 2026 and titled simply Can we get the Metery? Our 2026 Barra Mission, captures the moment the trip finally turned. The crew had pushed deep into a section of water marked, in their own words, by "a recent croc sighting" and a tea-coloured wash that was "a little bit ominous". The decision to back the boat into a snaggy seam paid off on the first proper cast at the new spot.
"Cool cast," one of the crew called out, before a heavy silver shape eased into view behind a fish they had already seen. "He's behind that massive brown one, I think."
The fight was brief. The size was not the metery they had been chasing, but it was the trip's first silver barra and it triggered an outpouring of relief from a boat that had been working hard for nearly two weeks.
"Nice little bar. First barra of the trip," one angler called out as the fish came to the boat. The crew quickly produced a tape measure and a camera, lifted the silver fish for a quick photo, then sent it back unharmed.
The story did not stop there. Within minutes of the first barra hitting the deck, a second fish moved in - bigger, and apparently chasing the chaos. The host bent over the side as the dark shape pushed up under the hull. He thought it was a queenfish at first.
"Whatever that is. I've just come to the surface. Could it be? I think it's a queenie. Oh no, it's bar."
"Why didn't we move here three hours ago?" the host laughed as a third fish bore down on the boat. "Keep him away from the anchor."
The payoff, when it landed, was a personal milestone as much as a tournament-style trophy. The host - cameras rolling - did not mince his frustration about the wait.
"There we go, guys. First barra of the trip. It's the last fishing day. We're here. Of course it is. Here we go, guys. My first barra of the trip. Taking me 12 days, 13 days to catch one."
The whole episode is a classic case study for any barra angler who has parked on a single creek system and refused to move. The team's instinct - to keep relocating until they found water that looked right, even with daylight running out and a croc in the mix - turned a blank trip into a session.
They did not land the metery this time. But they walked off the last day with silver in the photos, the camera memory cards full of follow-ups, and the kind of story that pushes the next mission back into the planning stage.