MAFS groom Clint Rice confronts troll from Western Sydney who told him to 'watch his back' in explosive live stream confrontation

Daily Mail​

04-05-2025

Married At First Sight's Clint Rice has confronted a TikTok troll from Western Sydney during a tense live stream after receiving a threatening message telling him to 'watch his back'.
The reality star, 43, who appeared on the 2025 season of the Channel Nine social experiment, was shocked when TikTok user Malu Shuster sent him an unsolicited warning after watching the show.
'Watch you back,' read the ominous message, which Clint later shared a screenshot of – showing it was sent from an account with more than 24,000 followers.
Rather than retaliate, Clint confronted the situation head-on by jumping into a live conversation with Malu on Saturday night, offering to clear the air and explain himself.
The fiery exchange stemmed from an episode of MAFS where Clint was seen saying to fellow groom Ryan Donnelly: 'You're from the Western suburbs, don't talk to me' – a comment that sparked outrage online and among viewers who felt the remark was classist and offensive.
But in the live chat, Clint insisted the comment was taken out of context and claimed it came during a heated argument with Ryan, who had been attacking him for being from Tasmania.
'Ryan kept coming at me, over and over, about everything. He started having a go at me for being from Tassie,' Clint explained.
'I've copped it my whole life for being from Tassie. And I just snapped back in the moment. I said, "you're from the Western suburbs, don't talk to me". It was just us having a go at each other. I've got nothing against Western Sydney at all.'
Clint went on to say he was proud of where he came from and apologised if his words offended anyone, adding: 'I've got great friends in the Western suburbs and I've lived in Melbourne's western suburbs myself. I was just throwing back a cheap shot after copping it all night.'
Malu, who had been clearly riled up by Clint's comment on the show, admitted he was hurt by the perceived insult and shared how he felt Western Sydney often gets unfairly stereotyped.
'When I go out to places like Bondi, I feel like there's a stigma. People think the west is a s**t place to live,' he said. 'So yeah, I saw that line and I got angry.'
But after hearing Clint's side of the story and acknowledging the full context, Malu took a step back and offered an olive branch.
'As a man to man, I respect you for that,' he said. 'You seem like a really good bloke. I take back what I said, and I apologise.'
The two men ended the conversation on surprisingly good terms, even making plans to meet up in Sydney over an Acai smoothie or a beer.
Rather than retaliate, Clint confronted the situation head-on by jumping into a live conversation with Malu on Saturday night, offering to clear the air and explain himself
'I'll come out when I'm next in Sydney,' Clint said. 'Let's catch up properly.'
Malu responded: 'I actually want to apologise for my message. I feel really bad for saying it now. I hope you accept my apology.'
Clint, who was previously matched with Jacqui Burfoot on the show, acknowledged how hard it can be dealing with online hate after appearing on reality TV.
'Sometimes I open my phone and get flooded with messages. Some say they love me, others say they want to stab me. It's intense. But I'm not a bad person,' he said.
The exchange has since gone viral with viewers praising both men for squashing their beef in such a mature and respectful way.
'Respect to both of you,' one user commented on the live. 'This is how grown men sort things out.'
Jacqui and Clint's relationship was the talk of the town during the dramatic finale of MAFS season 12.
Ryan Donnelly sensationally accused the pair of beginning their romance while Jacqui was still with him during filming.
During the bombshell final episode, the controversial bride took to the couch with Ryan, 36, to discuss their three-month marriage and watch it play out on the screen.
However, despite rumours she and fellow participant Clint struck up a romance during filming, she has stayed firm on the fact they only connected after the experiment.
'After Final Vows things ended pretty badly and I was pretty sad for about two weeks and crying. Clint and I had started talking and we developed a friendship,' Jacqui told the experts.
'We started bonding over our shared experience in the experiment and how disappointed we essentially were and then Clint invited me down to Tasmania.
'So, I just took the leap, flew down with a one way ticket there and we just hit it off,' she said, adding they have a lot in common and hate being away from each other.
Jacqui then dropped another bombshell about her exciting future with the pro-golfer.
'Now I'm moving in with Clint,' she shared.