The thrilled pals, who are travelling across Oz, reeled in the beast and had to use a tie-down strap slipped around the fish’s gargantuan girth to drag the animal in.

Goliath grouper is a protected species in Queensland so the fish was quickly released after a photo to record the catch.

“It was so big I honestly thought it was a saltwater crocodile,” Ed told The Sun.

“But then this big tail splashed out of the water and we realised it was a goliath grouper. We were thrilled, what a spectacular catch.