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The best mates from South Australia were the only non-couple team on The Block this year, meaning they’ll split their winnings fairly down the middle and pocket half each. That means their $109,000 profit amounts to $54,500 per person, after soft interest at auction meant their property just limped over its reserve. It’s a decent pay cheque for 12 weeks’ work, but the pair said the cash reward “sucked” in an interview filmed by Nine shortly after their auction that didn’t make it into Sunday’s episode. MORE: ‘Ban it’: The Block breached critical rule “Look, it’s not a great outcome but … it is what it is,” Mat said. The hairdresser claimed that his half of the winnings wouldn’t even cover work he’d turned down to compete on the show. “It’s not about the money but it’s about the money. Just to cover my costs for not being in the business or the work that I said no to, it wouldn’t even cover that,” he revealed. Robby said the pair had “the best time we’ve ever had in our life” and had emerged with an even stronger friendship than before. But Robby, who left a newborn son and his partner Alyssa to compete, said that “it does suck not bringing it back for the family. We sacrificed so much, and especially Alysa as a new mum, she’s a real hero. Walking away with my tail between my legs isn’t a good feeling,” he said. “It’s hard because we put so much into it,” Mat agreed. In Sunday’s episode, he said it wasn’t just the small winnings that he was disappointed by: He was also sad not to see buyers clamouring for the home he’d put so much work into. MORE: Block seller: Real reason 2 houses ‘fell flat’ But the boys’ visibly defeated response to their auction outcome didn’t get sympathy from all quarters: Some fans of the show accused them of being ungrateful, given they were competing on a show where receiving any prize money at all is not a guarantee. “Liked the boys but acted a bit ungrateful $50k each for 12weeks work is pretty good,” one person commented under The Block’s Instagram post announcing their auction. “be grateful. They went in with cockiness and got humbled. Some people can’t put food on the table. You got $50k each,” another wrote. “They each got $50k for 12 weeks’ work!!!! I am disappointed that they were so disappointed,” wrote one viewer. “55k tax free is 75k wage in aus. In 3 months. Be grateful,” another chided. The boys’ $109,000 winnings pale in comparison to last year’s mammoth Block outcome, where even the last-placed team earned $650,000 thanks to the seemingly limitless pockets of serial Block buyer Adrian Portelli. In fact, this year marked the worst Block auction results since 2014, where two teams walked away with over $300,000 each, but the team in third place made only $40k and the remaining two earned just $10,000 profit each. For the two teams whose houses didn’t sell at auction this year, the focus now will be generate some interest among buyers and not end up like the team in recent Block history who copped the roughest deal. 2022 contestants Dylan and Jenny failed to sell their home at auction and, after many months on the market, was eventually quietly sold for $180,000 under its initial reserve. That brutal result meant the couple earned exactly zero dollars in prize money from their time on The Block.
