They’re the surprise success story of this year’s Married At First Sight.
And now, Jeff Gobbels and Rhi Disljenkovic are revealing how they defied the odds to become the last couple standing.
Speaking to Daily Mail Australia, the pair confirmed they are still going strong nearly a year after filming their TV wedding.
‘We got married on the 25th of July last year, so July coming up,’ Rhi said.
‘It’s crazy to think it would be our one-year anniversary since walking down the aisle and marrying each other.’
Jeff chimed in, ‘Yeah, we are feeling great. Can’t believe it’s all done and dusted. It’s a little bit sad to be honest.’
‘It was just crazy to watch it all unfold’
Discussing the explosive reunion dinner party, Jeff said the couple weren’t nervous to return.
‘No, it was good. We enjoyed going back for the reunion. We hadn’t seen everyone for a few weeks. I was a little bit excited to see what people had on their chest… and wanted to get off it.’
‘It was quite entertaining,’ he added. ‘It was just crazy to watch it all unfold.’
‘We obviously heard about the Jacqui and Clint situation, so we weren’t shocked about that at all,’ Rhi said.
‘It was funny hearing them talk about it and say they thought no one knew—but everyone knew.
‘I was going around spreading it,’ she admitted, laughing.
The big ‘I love you’
The pair were the final couple to sit on the couch at the reunion—and they ended the season on a high when Jeff told Rhi he loved her for the first time in front of the group.
‘Honestly, everything that was said on the couch was genuine,’ Rhi said.
‘It’s exactly how we felt in the moment—and that was the first time that we had said, “I love you.”
‘We were pretty happy to not talk about our feelings for a while after the experiment, because that’s all we did for the past three months.’
‘I think Jeff probably felt the pressure to say how he felt… and yeah, that came out on the couch in front of everyone.’
Speaking up and staying true
Jeff was praised by fans for standing up for Carina during her confrontation with Paul Antoine.
‘That’s who I was throughout the experiment. Obviously, sometimes it doesn’t get shown, but every time I saw something I didn’t agree with, I did speak up and called it out,’ he said.
‘That time got shown, but there were multiple times throughout the experiment that didn’t.’
Rhi added that while she also spoke up when needed, many of her own moments didn’t make the cut.
‘At the start, you’re still sussing everyone out and don’t feel as comfortable. But I still feel like I spoke up when needed to.’
So… what’s next?
The couple revealed there’s been speculation they could be appearing on The Block—but they haven’t heard anything official.
‘There’s been all this chat about us going on The Block,’ said Rhi.
‘Everyone this morning has asked us, “Is that really happening?” We’re like… we have no idea. But we hope so.’
‘Next phase for us would be maybe to move in with each other, but in the short term we just want to unwind and have a little bit of the MAFS detox.’
Asked about the most random thing they’ve learned about each other since filming ended, Jeff was quick to answer.
‘Rhi’s a bit of a nerd,’ he said.
And yes, their sex life is just fine, thank you very much.
‘Our sex life was actually great when we met a year and a half ago,’ Rhi said.
‘That was never the issue. I think timing was the issue… but no, this time around, it’s better.’
Jeff said he wished viewers got to see more of his personality on screen.
‘Probably more my funny side,’ he said.
‘There were so many moments that Rhi and I had that were really funny—especially on our honeymoon when we were just friends, mucking around and joking with each other.’
‘You don’t get to see your full personality… there’s just so many couples and it’s all squeezed into a short timeframe.’
Rhi agreed, saying their reception, honeymoon and family catch-ups didn’t air due to the lack of drama.
‘Obviously because Jeff and I didn’t have a lot of drama in our relationship, there was a lot that was missed out. But look, that’s fine. It is what it is. Drama takes centre stage.’
As one of the few success stories, the pair had some advice for future MAFS participants.
‘Be yourself from the get-go. Don’t be afraid to be your most authentic, genuine self,’ Rhi said.
‘Back yourself. If you feel a type of way—say it.’
Jeff added, ‘You can’t pretend to be someone you’re not. That’s the reason you would’ve gotten on the show in the first place. You can’t help who you get matched with, but as long as you go in there, hold your head high, be your authentic self, you should be fine.’
And if Jeff had to propose?
‘I probably wouldn’t do it at a public event with heaps of randoms. I’d just do it with some close friends and family around… it’d be really authentic and a special moment.’
As for what love taught them?
‘Maybe if you dated someone in the past and the timing wasn’t right, it might be time to give it another shot,’ Jeff said.
Rhi added, ‘People are quick to go, “Nope, that’s definitely not it.” But you don’t really get to know someone until you spend time with them and see them in a vulnerable state.’
‘If you’d asked me in the first, second, or third week of our relationship on the show if I thought I’d be with Jeff long-term—my answer would’ve been no.’
‘I’m really grateful that I gave it time.’