Married At First Sight’s Jake Edwards is barely recognisable in unearthed footage from his time as an AFL player – 13 years before finding fame on TV
He’s the handsome hunk who soared to fame on the latest season of Married At First Sight.
But while many will know Jake Edwards as Beck Zemek’s former ‘husband’, others may recognise him from his brief stint as an AFL star who played for Carlton Football Club in 2008.
Unearthed footage of Carlton playing Fremantle Football Club 13 years ago show Jake looking completely different to his days on MAFS, as he sported a bowl hair cut and minimal facial hair in his uniform.
What a difference a decade makes: Unearthed footage shows Married At First Sight star Jake Edwards playing for Carlton Football Club back in 2008 – 12 years before he filmed the show
Jake, now 33, looked muscular and sun-kissed as he took a mark and kicked a goal, before jumping eagerly at his teammates in celebration.
Jake was a star on the rise in 2008, before he abruptly abandoned his promising football career with Carlton after one poor game.
While he didn’t gain senior AFL selection, he did play five games for the club in the same year.
At the age of 19, he drove home to his parent’s farm, calling the club on the way to tell them he was quitting footy.
He’s changed! In the old footage, Jake sported a bowl hair cut and minimal facial hair
Score! Jake looked muscular and sun-kissed as he took a mark and kicked a goal, before jumping eagerly at his teammates in celebration
He has also publicly spoken about his battle with depression and anxiety, revealing his mental health was once so bad he contemplated suicide.
What he had kept from his coaches and fellow teammates was that he was enduring a daily battle that included insomnia, self-isolation, and bouts of crying.
‘I did what every typical young male does and just closed off. I didn’t want to talk about it, I didn’t want people to know about it. I eventually had a meltdown and went to see mum and dad. I just couldn’t get out of bed,’ he told QWeekend in July.
Buddy career: Jake was a star on the rise when he abruptly abandoned his promising football career with Carlton after one poor game. While he didn’t gain senior AFL selection, Jake played five games for the club in 2008. Pictured during a training session in November 2007
Jake was a fan favourite on the show, but didn’t manage to find love with his on-screen wife Beck Zemek.
However, he’s now happier than ever with mother-of-four Sophie Guidolin, and recently revealed that marriage and kids are on the cards for the pair.
‘One of the conversations we had early, within 10 minutes I said to her I wouldn’t waste any time … we both want kids together,’ he told The Daily Telegraph.
New love: Jake is now happier than ever with mother-of-four Sophie Guidolin, and recently revealed that marriage and kids are on the cards for the pair