"It was a classic blindside." Survivor's Steve on the moment his tribe turned against him.

On Tuesday night’s episode of Australian Survivor: Champions vs. Contenders, takeaway delivery driver Steve was the fourth person sent home at Tribal Council, in what he called a “classic blindside”.

Speaking with Mamamia, Steve said he felt shock and disappointment following his elimination, but he doesn’t hold any grudges.

“It was a classic blindside from an ally basically,” he said. “I knew the girls were gunning for me and I thought we had the numbers.”

“It’s OK. Look, all’s fair in love and war. I took it on the chin.”

Since the season’s first Tribal Council, Steve worked hard to become a part of the male alliance in his tribe, as he considered the boys to be the key players.

Steve aligned himself with the ‘Bromance Alliance’ of Benji, Robbie and Zach, in turn making himself a target for the female tribe members.

The bromance has been getting backlash on social media, with many calling out their behaviour as sexist:

Wow the men, apart from Steve at this point, must be really fun to live with back home. Wonder what they’re gfs are like to put up with this sexist bs #SurvivorAu

— Nessa Vee (@NessaFayBayBay) August 7, 2018

Wow the men, apart from Steve at this point, must be really fun to live with back home. Wonder what they’re gfs are like to put up with this sexist bs #SurvivorAu

— Nessa Vee (@NessaFayBayBay) August 7, 2018

The worst thing about #SurvivorAU is the outright sexism from the men.

The best thing is how the women continue to outplay them and don’t put up with it.

— Alex Banks (@AlexBanks91) August 7, 2018

Steve said his choice was purely strategic, rather than emotional, as he knew they were getting stronger.

“I suspect the backlash is because of the chauvinistic nature of some of the male members,” he said of the social media outrage.

“I don’t condone [their behaviour] at all. I think that was appalling actually, and if you look at my conduct in the game, I respect everybody.”

For Steve, his plan for the game was to make himself indispensable in the camp, by hunting for food and providing for the tribe.

The self-described “outdoorsy guy” was in his element on the island and said he loved every minute of it. However, the main challenge was that he underestimated the intensity of social politics in the tribe.

Steve said he had never intended to sign up for Australian Survivor, and the idea only came about thanks to a chat with friends.

“I had some cycling mates, we were having drinks and they were saying I’m pretty fit for my age, they said ‘Why don’t you just have a go at one of those reality shows’,” he said.

“I loved The Amazing Race but there was no auditions for that, but I saw the Survivor audition was on, so I just applied. And my daughter was being very pesky, and pestering me to keep going, one thing led to another, I got in.”

“I just said ‘Oh, OK, what’s next?’. It was too late to watch all the old Survivor episodes, so I just got in there.”

His inspiration on the island was his 15-year-old adoptive daughter, who recently came back into his life after a few tough years apart.

“When [my] marriage broke up she got removed back to another foreign country, we had to get Interpol to chase after her to find her, and find me back in Australia,” he said.

“We were separated for six or seven years, then last year she came into my care, so she’s with me now. I’m a single dad and I had to showcase what it’s all about, learning about life.”

“She’s in many ways an inspiration for me. We get on quite well, we’re both quite musical in some ways and enjoy jamming together… After such a big separation, it’s just amazing that I have a daughter like this. She pushed me to the limit in regards to me on Survivor, she really wanted me to go beyond and it was a big disappointment last night when I got voted out.”

So, who does Steve think will be there at the end? Well, it’s likely not a Contender.

“After last night the trust is broken in our tribe… I suspect and I’m very concerned that we may implode. We’ll just start looking at each other and become paranoid of each other, and took our eyes off trying to beat the champs.”

“If it’s the Champs, there’s a lot of really good players there. I mean, they’re a lot more relaxed. They’re not as tense as in our tribe. So they’re playing strategically, where we’re more tactical.”

“I’m very impressed with Mo. She is amazing, very strategic thinking and she’s also very quick on a tactical front… she created alliances with the right people, people who can be trusted from day one. She’s awesome.”