The boys from Sussex Inlet scored 26.5 to trail Elyse and Josh on 30, Jason and Sarah on 28.5 and Georgia and Ronnie on 28 in a massive week where just four points separated all the teams.

Hannah and Clint came last on 26, a great score on any week.

Sticks had returned from the birth of his baby son to help Wombat complete their kitchen, which incorporated their signature use of timber, plus a door to a secret whisky bar.

The pair seemed stoked when judge Neale Whitaker gave them the perfect marketing slogan for their signature style: “raw luxury”.

“We were thinking ‘organic’ but now we think ‘raw luxury’ sounds better,” Sticks said.

“Delicious”, “blood beautiful”, a new style “raw luxury”, “love it” were some of the descriptions by the judges.

Whittaker described their secret whisky bar as the “ultimate hipster accessory”.

“That’s a real James Bond whisky bar,” he said.

“What a week!” said Sticks “we created a beautiful kitchen and I’ve had a baby. Win, win.”

In an extremely impressive week, young guns Josh and Elyse took the win with a perfect score.

It led to judge Shaynna Blaze declaring they are now the frontrunners in the competition, sounding a warning to Ronnie and Georgia.

But it wasn’t just bench tops and splashbacks getting rapt attention on Sunday night’s episode.

Viewers were waiting to see if Jason and Sarah would stay on The Block after being given an ultimatum by Scotty Cam to “go hard or go home” and finish their master suite and kitchen in one week – or they would be booted off the show.

While foreman Keith was uncertain whether they would finish it time because of the magnitude of the job, in the end it was neighbourly spirit which helped them keep their place on this series.

Not only did they complete their rooms in time — with a final helping hand from Sticks and Wombat and Clint — they also managed to wow the judges.

Darren Palmer, Blaze and Whitaker all inspected the master suite completed by Jason and Sarah before proceeding to the formal judging of the kitchens.

“You are kidding me; I want to shake them,” exclaimed Blaze when she saw their completed en suite.

“If they can do this in a week and do the kitchen at the same time … they gave up last week, there’s no denying it.”

“They have come back fighting … the best Block comeback ever,” said Whitaker.

Scott Cam welcomed the oldest couple on the show back to the competition, telling them “I am so glad that is the feedback because I never wanted to send you home”.

Jason stuck his tongue out to “all the people who didn’t believe we could do it”, conveniently forgetting it was actually him and his wife who had decided they couldn’t do it the week before.

In their impressive kitchen, which came runner-up to the room created by Josh and Elyse, Sarah and Jason included a study nook and butler’s pantry.

“I feel this will look as fresh 10 years down the track as it does today,” said Whitaker.

Hannah and Clint’s room design impressed the judges too, until they discovered there was only a single fridge (plus two smaller wine fridges thrown in, for good measure).

“Do you think that’s a big enough fridge for a five-bedroom house?” asked Blaze.

“Right, so big drinkers, not such big eaters,” said Palmer, on discovery of the second wine fridge.

“The small fridge, the cocktail area and this bar fridge is really overshadowing how I feel about this kitchen,” said Whitaker.

Ronnie and Georgia upped the ante on expensive appliances in their kitchen but forgot the golden rule of spending – don’t forget the little items which made a big difference.

This week it was power points.

When it comes to The Block, you can never have too many, particularly in a kitchen or butler’s pantry, as pointed out by Whitaker.

While Blaze loved their “sexy” kitchen, she counted the appliances and noted “one double power point in the whole room”.

It was a distraction from their “knock-out” kitchen, said Palmer, although Blaze said there needs to be some more colour injected into their spaces to add some warmth.

“If anyone needs proof grey is the new white, just look at kitchen week,” said Whitaker.

The final kitchen reveal for Josh and Elyse left the judges gasping out loud, with Palmer declaring “oh my god, it’s so beautiful”.

The pair had changed the orientation of their kitchen bench and added a large butler’s pantry to create the “harmonious” winning room.

“This is very, very special … it feels very sociable,” said Whittaker.

After describing the room and the styling as “perfection”, Blaze upped the ante in the tight competition between Ronnie and Georgia and Josh and Elyse.

“Up until this point in the competition, I had Ronnie and Georgia pegged as the frontrunners for winning The Block but after today, it’s these guys,” she said.

After hearing the comments, Elyse chimed in about Ronnie and Georgia: “Oh man, they’re going to have it in for us for the rest of our lives now”.

When asked about Blaze’s comments, Georgia simply replied: “Hmmmm, to be confirmed”.

At least one contestant was feeling glass half-full at the end of the show.

“If there is a week where we will actually win, maybe it will be hallway week,” said a cheerful Wombat, of next week’s hallway and laundry challenge.

The final scores for kitchens were Elyse and Josh on 30, Jason and Sarah on 28.5, Georgia and Ronnie on 28, Sticks and Wombat on 26.5 and Hannah and Clint on 26.