He might be captain of the local Newcastle cricket team. But when he’s in the kitchen, Matt is keen to let Luke take charge.
“I’m the captain of the cricket team, but in the kitchen, Luke’s definitely the head chef,” says Matt, 27, a youth worker who is currently single.
“Being the captain in the kitchen, I want to lead our team to victory,” says competitive Luke, 28, who, when not at the crease, works as a primary school teacher and is married with a one year-old daughter.
“We’re here to prove that your everyday, down-to-earth Aussie blokes can cook some absolutely amazing food.”
Both guys say they learnt to love cooking at a young age, at the knees of their mothers.
“I was making cakes with my Mum when I was about five,” says Luke. “When I moved out of home, I was always ringing my Mum and my Nonna for recipes and advice – I would also ask the chefs at the restaurant I worked at as a waiter.”
While Matt says he regularly tries out dishes on the kids he works with, Luke uses his own young family as guinea pigs.
“I spend lots of time cooking with my wife, and practicing different techniques,” he says.
It was Matt’s idea to apply for the show, but both believe their strong friendship will stand them in good stead during the competition.
“Luke and I have never had an argument about anything. There nothing I dislike about the bloke,” says matt.
Luke concurs: “Matt and I are really calming influences on each other,” he says. “We both trust each other to do a great job of whatever our jobs are.”
They know that what they lack in practical experience they can more than make up for in enthusiasm.
“Luke and I knew coming into this [that] we weren’t the best cooks in the competition, but we wanted to be the hardest working,” says Matt. “So far we are doing that, and are getting better every cook
“My biggest strength in the competition is my trust in Matt and our ability to stay calm under pressure.”
While Luke is happily married, Matt describes himself as “hopelessly single.”
“We call Matt ‘Hollywood’,” Luke laughs. “He’s got the hair, he’s got the eyes, he’s got the guns… I’d date him!
“But seriously, it means so much to be doing this with my mate. We love cooking together.”
“Anything that we’ve ever done in our lives we’ve been really competitive, whether it be on the cricket field or now in the kitchen,” says Matt. “We hate losing and we have a real competitive edge that will benefit us in this competition.”
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