Viewers celebrate as Chelsie McLeod wins The Bachelor Australia

She’s was the odds-on favourite to be the last woman standing according to fellow Bachie stars, fans and bookies alike, and now Chelsie McLeod, 28, has officially won this season of The Bachelor Australia.

Tonight, Bachelor Matt Agnew, 32, declared his love to the chemical engineer during the show’s romantic finale in South Africa.

Hand-in-hand with the blonde beauty, the handsome astrophysicist revealed, “I didn’t believe in the perfect woman until I met you”.

“Chelsie I love you,” he gushed.

“What?” a clearly taken aback Chelsie replied, before admitting, “Thank God!”

“You make me want to believe in fairytales because when I’m with you I feel like I’m living one,” a beaming Matt went on to say.

He then presented his lady love with a ring “to mark the occasion,” which he slipped on Chelsie’s middle finder.

As the sun set on the stunning South African landscape behind them, Matt and Chelsie shared their first kiss as an official couple.

It seems that fans are just as smitten with Matt’s choice as he is. Here’s just a selection of the best Twitter reactions from viewers at home:

Insta official

After the episode came to a close, the loved-up pair also took to their respective social media accounts to share touching tributes to one another.

Chelsie posted a sweet selfie of the two, with a caption that simply read, “I love you”.

Matt also shared the same pic to his Stories, including the cheeky saying, “The cat’s out of the bag”.

He later shared a screenshot of the moment he was able to ‘follow’ his girlfriend on Instagram after months of secrecy.

Matt and Chelsie’s love story

Australia watched as Chelsie and Matt’s relationship blossomed over a series of single dates, including the all-important hometown visits.

During her one-on-one date with Matt in episode six, Chelsie shared a very intimate pool kiss with our bachie after getting very floury during a cheeky baking session.

“I'm sold... Matt & Chelsea forever,” one person wrote on Twitter, while another predicted, “It’s all over. Chelsie has just won the game” and a third wrote, “I believe Chelsie will win.”

Adding further fuel to the fire, Chelsie herself hinted previously that the date was, “Just the beginning of Matt and I nerding out”.

On their subsequent dates in episodes 10 and 12, the pair’s chemistry only grew stronger, with Matt and Chelsie getting cozy after an adrenaline-pumping abseiling session.

And of course, Chelsie was on cloud nine when she introduced Matt to her family on hometown dates, admitting how easily he would ‘fit in’ to her life.

The pair spent the final two episodes in loved-up bliss, with Chelsie finally dropping the L-bomb during their final date in South Africa.

Chelsie the frontrunner from the start

There were numerous tell-tale signs that Matt would pick Chelsie as his ‘number one’ in the end.

Multiple ex-Bachelor stars including Emma Roche and Helena Souzier told Yahoo Lifestyle that they tipped the chemical engineer as the winner.

On top of that, Chelsie also lives in Matt’s hometown Melbourne and works just a short walk away from his current office, making her a great logistical choice.

There was also the argument that Chelsie and Matt connected on more of an intellectual level and are at similar life stages, while 23-year-old rival Abbie has been dogged by accusations she’s in the competition for the wrong reasons.

The bookies also had Chelsie as a clear favourite before the season even began.

In the week before the finale, she was the lucky lady tipped to receive Matt’s final rose, with Sportsbet putting her at $1.22 to win.

Abbie - who had crazy sexual chemistry with Matt - was far behind at $5.

In the end, it was Chelsie who stole Matt’s heart.

Finale spoilers: How fans knew Chelsie won

Days before the big finale, keen-eyed Bachie viewers noted that the winner of several of the earlier seasons of both The Bachelor and The Bachelorette has been positioned smack-bang in the middle of each and every photo of the final three contestants.

And - yep, you guessed it - it was Chelsie, 28, who was front-and-centre in this season’s final three snap.

There were a few flaws in the theory, however, one being that it only applies to some seasons and not others. Snezana Markoski, who won Sam Wood’s season, for example, wasn’t given prime position in the final three pic.

Channel 10 released an updated photo of the final trio the following day, which many saw as a clap-back at the fan theory.

In the newer pic, the women had been repositioned, with Helena, 25, in the centre, with Abbie on her right and Chelsie on the left.

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