What is it with the Canberra Raiders and suitors looking for love on reality TV?
First, former Raider Luke Bateman was one of the stars of The Bachelor last year.
Now Joe Bobbin, who played under 18s and Toyota Cup under 20s with the Canberra Raiders, is one of the country blokes looking for love on the new season of Farmer Wants a Wife.
Bobbin will be watching the premiere of the new season on Sunday night at the Imperial Hotel in Bombala, surrounded by family and mates, on what is also his 34th birthday.
"I'm actually feeling a bit relieved," he says of making his debut on the show.
"It's been a big build-up."
FARMING LIFE IS NOT EASY
Now a cattle and sheep farmer on the family property Warra-Gulla, half-way between Cooma and Bombala, Bobbin says he's "ready to fall in love" after not yet finding the one.
"I've always struggled with meeting people who want to live the same way I want to and that's the biggest reason I'm here," he says on the show.
That means finding someone to enjoy the spectacular Snow Mountains landscape but also the relative isolation of life on the land and the 24/7 nature of farming. It can often be a solitary kind of life.
"And the older I get, the more I love it," Bobbin says with a laugh.
"You don't have neighbours close by and the neighbours you do have, you know, you could call on them for anything and they'd be there in a heartbeat."
LOOKING FOR THE ONE
With his good looks, cheeky smile and old-fashioned manners, Bobbin had the ladies lining up to meet him on Farmer Wants a Wife.
"All the ladies I met were exactly what I had asked for - beautiful, smart, funny, very strong, independent women," he said.
"They were obviously looking to move to the country, but they also had their own careers and lives going on and that's what made them who they were.
"I was lucky to meet absolutely fantastic women."
A FEMINIST GRANDMOTHER
And he can't go wrong having well-known Canberra feminist and women's advocate Marie Coleman as his grandmother.
Marie, now 91, is very proud of her grandson, who was there back in 2011 when she was named the ACT Senior Australian of the Year, even getting to share Queen Elizabeth II's hand.
"He's a nice young man," she said.
"As I get to my very advanced age, what makes me happy is young men who know how to cook but also know how to clean up the kitchen.
"He is a talented cook and he does clean up the kitchen afterwards."
(Proud Marie also tells us her other grandson, Thomas Coleman-Bell, a former Dickson College student now Melbourne musician, is releasing his first EP this weekend. A big weekend for the brothers.)
MOVING TO THE COUNTRY
Bobbin's parents Dinah Coleman and Tiger Bobbin moved to the property 35 years ago.
He went to school at the now-closed Ando Public School, where he was one of just seven kids at the school.
"I think at one stage there were more computers than kids," he says with a laugh.
He went to Bombala High and was later picked up by the Canberra Raiders development squad, attending Erindale College in Canberra for Years 11 and 12, boarding with a local family in Wanniassa and with his aunt in Watson.
RUGBY LEAGUE DREAMING
"As a young fella, I did dream of becoming an NRL star," he says.
He played under 18s and Toyota Cup under 20s with the Raiders but injuries prevented him from taking his career further with the club.
He also had seasons playing in Queensland with the East Brisbane Tigers with whom he won a premiership in 2011, as well as the Albury Thunder and his home team, the Bombala Blue Heelers. He also played rugby league in the United States with Jacksonville Axemen and in England.
"I did try to make the most of it," he says.
Bobbin later worked in construction in Canberra and around the country but returned to the family farm during the COVID pandemic to be with his mother after she was diagnosed with breast cancer.
"COVID turned out to be good because I could work from home and be with mum," he said.
"It was like, one challenge presented itself but something good came out of that."
Dinah is, happily, now in remission, back at work and enjoying life again. What does she think of him going on Farmer Wants a Wife?
"I think she is excited," he says.
"She just wants me to be happy and meet someone."
While the show's host Samantha Armytage hails from the Snowy Mountains, Bobbin didn't know her and she didn't have anything to do with encouraging him to go on the show.
206 FARMER MARRIAGES
Farmer Wants a Wife has different versions around the world.
The show has resulted in 206 marriages worldwide, including 10 in Australia.
There have also been 516 "beautiful farmer babies" born worldwide, including 27 in Australia.
There are also nine long-term relationships in Australia as a result of the show.
Joe is one of five farmers in the latest season. There is also Farmer Bert, 30, from Wamuran, Queensland; Farmer Dustin, 26, from Condobolin, NSW; Farmer Dean, 25, from Kandanga, Queensland, and Farmer Tom, 22, from Tabilk, Victoria.
Marriage and kids are definitely on Bobbin's radar.
"I want a paddock full of kids. I feel I'm ready for fatherhood. I'm just looking for the right person," he said.
"In five years, I hope to be enjoying a few beers on the verandah of my newly built home on the farm, with my partner."
FARMER JOE'S LADIES
The eight women picked by Joe to live with him on the farm and see where their relationships led, range from a fashion stylist to prison guard; equine vet to hairdresser.
"We spent eight weeks filming and that was my life turned upside down," Joe says with a laugh.
"Looking back, it was such a fantastic experience. Right from the first day, it was a great experience.
"There were some ups and downs but it is something I would encourage other single farmers to do."
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Farmer Wants A Wife, premieres on Sunday at 7pm on Channel 7 and 7Plus
