The Block 2022 episode 29: Ryan and Rachel finally score a win as Omar and Oz accused of cheating

The piano that Omar and Oz got for a song wasn’t quite the grand design they’d envisaged. Instead, the duo was accused of cheating, penalised three points from their overall score and disqualified from winning simply because their bartering skills were too sharp.

All week the pair had been boasting about how they’d managed to pick up a $36,000 piano for just $7000. No-one said a word about it until judgment day when Scott Cam hauled them over the coals for breaking the rules.

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Apparently, The Block guidelines stated that contestants must pay at least 50 per cent of the retail value of anything they put in their rooms.

“You can’t go spending $7000 on a piano and stick it in a room and expect me to let that slide boys,” a stern Scott said.

Omar and Oz offered to give the merchant another $10,000 to right the wrong, but Scott wasn’t having a bar of it.

With the backing of the other four teams, Scott handed down a punishment that would ultimately see them placing third instead of second this week. It was disappointing considering this had been a room that Darren Palmer enthused was “chic AF”.

The obviously miffed contestants later whispered to Jenny and Dylan that their grand piano wasn’t quite that grand after all. It was second-hand so would have been unlikely to sell for its full price of $36,000.

But it was too late for excuses, and they knew it. But they lamented that it was annoying that nobody in production had warned them they were doing the wrong thing during the many on-camera conversations about the piano’s price tag.

While the boys were smarting from their dressing down, Tom was calling for an audit of everyone’s spending.

“What they are doing hasn’t affected us personally financially, but at the end of the day everybody is putting their whole lives on hold and they’re happy to go about it and not play by the rules, which technically is cheating then it’s not fair to those of us who are playing by the rules,” he sniped shortly before being pulled over by the police for speeding.

It’s been a tough week for everyone except Ryan and Rachel who, after weeks of copping negative feedback from the judges, finally hit the high notes with their living and dining room.

The couple were awarded perfect scores from both Neale Whitaker and Shaynna Blaze for their efforts.

In fact, Shaynna was so impressed by what she saw that she literally started shouting to the heavens in delight.

“Yes! They’ve done it, they have put home and warmth and personality into this space,” Shaynna shouted as she walked into the room. While Neale added drolly: “welcome to The Block, Ryan and Rachel”

Neale said that the living and dining space had made their kitchen – which Shaynna had previously described as cold and soulless — make sense.

The three judges were similarly impressed by Sarah-Jane and Tom’s efforts. The couple had the biggest space to work with this week and, on the whole, the room was a hit because it had the perfect blend of rustic charm and contemporary living.

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“I feel like I am staring at a magazine cover. On the cover of a magazine this would sell its socks off,” Neale exclaimed.

Predictably (as flagged by Scott and Shelley) Shaynna felt there was not enough seating in the space. While Darren pointed out the messy wiring under the TV.

Shaynna also felt the room didn’t quite have the panache of their past efforts.

“I don’t feel their heart and soul in here,” Shaynna said.

They saved their harshest words for Sharon and Ankur and Jenny and Dylan’s efforts.

It had been an uphill battle for Sharon and Ankur to be able to present anything this week after locking horns yet again with their builders.

Unfortunately, even with a finished stone fireplace, Sharon and Ankur still finished bottom of the pile.

Shaynna liked the couple’s rustic beams and antler lighting but couldn’t see much worth looking at on the ground.

“I am calling this their redo room,” Shaynna said, signalling how much of a disaster she thought it was.

Neale added that it was lacking the things that make a house a home. He urged them to get some more knickknacks, lamps and bookcases.

“I feel like I am in the lobby of a hotel. It’s almost like these spaces are too big and its defeated them,” Neale said.

The judges were similarly unimpressed by what they found next door at Jenny and Dylan’s place. The trio were left momentarily lost for words upon entering the room. And not in a good way. Their reactions were a bit of a shock to the system for Jenny who had thought that this week would finally be their turn to shine. How wrong she was.

“It feels kind of ordinary,” Neale said, clearly underwhelmed and confused by the bland and old-fashioned furnishings.

“Jenny and Dylan are not going to thank me for this, but they’ve presented cookie cutter country.”

Shaynna suggested the couple should remove some of the country elements and put in some more contemporary pieces as a quick fix for the room.

“I don’t understand, we were not country enough and now we are too country,” a baffled and deflated Jenny said.

JUDGES’ SCORES

Sarah-Jane and Tom 25.5

Ryan and Rachel 29.5

Sharon and Ankur 19

Jenny and Dylan 22

Omar and Oz 25.5