MAFS Jessika Power denies sending ‘flirty’ messages to footy star Sam Burgess
Jessika Power is reportedly chasing the newly single NRL footy star following his split from wife Phoebe. But is there any truth to the claims?
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Former Married At First Sight star Jessika Power has shut down claims she’s set her sights on estranged football star Sam Burgess.
The 28-year-old has been romantically linked to the South Sydney Rabbitohs star following his recent split from his wife of three years Phoebe Burgess, with reports claiming the pair have been exchanging “flirty” messages.
However, Jessika has told news.com.au their exchange has been purely platonic.
“Honestly, when I heard about his situation I wished him well and we had a small conversation. That’s it. He never offered to fly me anywhere either,” she said.
The rumoured romance comes as it has been revealed Sam Burgess has been forced into early retirement.
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Jess was forced to respond after claims emerged the pair had struck up a friendship on Instagram. According to a report in The Daily Telegraph, their blossoming online relationship led to former reality star Jess asking Sam to join her at the Maxim men’s magazine party, something he was “believed to have politely declined”.
Another report by the Daily Mail Australia claimed Sam, who shares two kids with Phoebe, has been “bragging” to some of his mates about the possibility of “lining up a date” with the MAFS alumn — something Jessika admitted she suspected is what has happened too.
“He shouldn’t be bragging,” she said.
Sam has been pictured recently partying on a boat in Mexico as his wife camped out at her parents’ home in Bowral with their kids Poppy, 2, and Billy, 10 months.
The party, which was held to celebrate former Rabbitohs player Sean Garlick’s 50th birthday, came just a week after NSW police had taken out a temporary apprehended violence order following an incident with his estranged wife’s father-in-law Mitch Hooke.
There’s been no comment from either Phoebe or Sam on the reports, but the football player — who earns $1.5m a season — did break a six-month social media silence on the day the news came out with a photo of him with his kids.
The couple called it quits for the second time this month after a desperate last-ditch attempt to save their marriage following a high-profile sexting scandal. They previously broke up in December 2018, just weeks after their son Billy was born, and reunited a few months later.
After tying the knot in December 2015 following a whirlwind romance, their relationship was rocked last year when a woman claimed she was exposed to lewd images of Rabbitohs players sent from Sam’s social media account.
The 30-year-old league player was embroiled in the controversy in September 2018, though Sam was later officially cleared of any wrongdoing by Souths.
In emails to the club, the 23-year-old woman claimed she felt violated in her online interaction with the players, who she claimed exposed themselves to her in a video chat.
The dad-of-two later admitted the media attention had taken a devastating toll on his family, saying it pained him to see the upset the whole ordeal caused Phoebe, who was six months’ pregnant at the time.
“I’m not angry. What hurts me the most is seeing my wife upset about what’s out there,” he told reporters, adding he was hoping the situation would be “resolved quickly”.
“I just want to protect my family in this whole thing.”
Meanwhile, Jessika — who dated both Mick Gould and Dan Webb on the Channel 9 reality show as well as another former MAFS contestant Nick Furphy — is loving the single life, posting an array of “happy Vegemite” selfies on her social media.
Continue the conversation @RebekahScanlan | rebekah.scanlan@news.com.au
Originally published as MAFS Jessika Power denies sending ‘flirty’ messages to footy star Sam Burgess