“To be regarded in that circle, it is a bloody big privilege,” Northern Territory’s outback wrangler Matt Wright said.

Wright, 37, is building a reputation in the Top End of Australia much as Irwin did, a passionate advocate of one of the most feared animals in the world.

National Geographic will next month release the third television series of “Outback Wrangler” in which Wright takes the path first blazed by Irwin.

Wright said he is often compared with Irwin and even Paul Hogan’s Crocodile Dundee. 

“Steve and I have done different stuff. We have the same purpose for conservation and looking after the environment and wildlife but we have different personalities,” Wright said, 

Irwin, the original crocodile hunter, was tragically killed by a sting ray in 2006.

Where Irwin conquered the small screens in a khaki shirt, Wright is monstering social media with more than 100,000 followers.

Like his predecessor, Wright the crocodile crusader is on a mission to protect saltwater crocodiles, fighting against a vocal campaign to have them culled.

“No way there needs to be a crocodile cull, we just spent the past 40 years trying to get the croc numbers up again. Why would we want to start culling them?

“When they shot them out there were about 4000 left. Through careful management and sustainable commercial industry with crocodile eggs we have brought the population back.”

The wildlife “relocator” moves large animals like crocodiles, wild buffalo and even polar bears that find themselves in the wrong place at the wrong time. 

“People say there are too many crocodiles but you know there are too many humans too,” Wright said. 

Raised in the Australian bush, the dangerous animal expert and conservationist became comfortable with wildlife at a young age.

“Growing up I started catching brown snakes and moving wildlife around family and friends’ properties and picking up injured animals, and it all sort of grew from there,” Mr Wright said. 

“I was about 20 when I caught my first crocodile but five or six when I got my first brown snake.”

Since then, Wright has spent time as a horse musterer, oil rig worker, soldier in the Australian Army, and professional chopper pilot and instructor. 

“When I moved north I started collecting crocodile eggs and catching crocs, mustering and running portable yards for feral cattle,” he said. 

“That is where it all started from, then I started filming a bit to show the folks back home and ended up on TV.”

Each episode of his latest show, Matt and his mates Jono and Willow catch at least one monster croc.

“The new season definitely covers a lot of country, we have caught some of the biggest crocs we have ever caught,” Wright said. 

“It showcases some of the characters in outback Australia, it was a great show to make.”

Wright said the biggest crocodile caught this season was a whopping 5.6m. 

Croc hunting is not for the faint of heart, Wright agrees.

Wright said he had diced with death a few times. 

“I have been double barreled in the chest by a horse, I have been rolled by a bull, dusted a few times around a tree by wild cattle and I was chased by elephants in Malaysia,” Mr Wright said. 

“Crocodiles well, they are a different story, you only get one chance with them.

“You always have your close calls but you just gotta be aware and don’t take anything for granted.”

The outback larrikin rescued his five metre pet crocodile Tripod from a crocodile farm.

”I got him out of the croc farm, they were expanding the farm and there was a lot of breeders there and the young males coming through would have belted old Tripod, he is a bit of an old bull,” Wright said.

“I took him under my wing and brought him home and built a fence around him and he is happy. He loves a bit of pork roast here and there and sits in his water hole.”

Tripod lives out his days on Mr Wright’s property south-west of Darwin. 

Wright literally calls Australia home after he carved a moat around his property in the shape of our island continent. 

“I got a map of Australia off the internet, put it into the computer, surveyed the land and dug out the Australia shaped map using GPS points,” Wright said. 

The helicopter pilot turned animal rescuer grew up in Cape Jervis, South Australia, near Kangaroo Island. 

“I moved around a lot as a kid, I think I went to about 15 schools. My parents had itchy feet and just wanted to check stuff out,” Wright said, 

“I did intense training with the army in Wagga Wagga, it was something different that is for sure. I thought I would try my hand in the armed forces.”

Outback Wrangler Season three will be streaming on the National Geographic App from December 6 www.nationalgeographic.com.au/app/