Matt Damon and Bev Boney in Jugiong last weekend. Photo: Supplied.
A pit-stop coffee order in the humble village of Jugiong with a side of cuddles and the priceless photo opportunity with Matt Damon, was to be had in Jugiong last weekend.
This past weekend Wagga Wagga’s Bev Boney made a lot of girls jealous when she had the opportunity to meet with the renowned American actor.
“I didn’t notice him at first as my attention was focused on another good looking guy who was in my car parking spot,” Ms Boney said.
“As we walked away to get coffee, I noticed a guy walking towards us in a beanie and thought, ‘Gosh that looks a lot like Matt Damon’.
“Then I was like, ‘No, that can’t be’.”
Bev considered herself lucky to be in the “right place and at the right time” as she was road-tripping to the Central Coast with her son and his girlfriend, to visit family and decided to stop in Jugiong for a much-needed coffee.
She had no idea Mr Damon was in the area until she saw him walking over to some girls who were commenting on the hats they bought from the Long Track Pantry.
One of the girls said, “How cool are these hats”, and Matt in his beanie replied,
“Yeah they are really cool hats”. Ms Boney then soon recognised the accent and thought, “Oh my god, that is Matt Damon!”
After ordering her coffee and then waiting for it, she went back outside and saw Matt, his wife and children walking past.
Bev said, “Good morning Matt, how are you”, to which Mr Damon replied he was well.
Bev then asked Matt if they could get a photo together.
“I thought my son had followed me out but he was waiting for his coffee,” Ms Boney recalls.
“Matt and his wife kept walking with their children and we soon realise there was no one to take the photo for us.
“He then suggested we take a selfie and I wasn’t going to say no for sure.”
Mr Damon then placed his arm around Bev to attempt to take the selfie and by now she thought, “Selfies are good, but cuddles are even better”.
Matt’s wife then returned shortly and offered to help take the photo.
“I will take lots of shots for you as we know Matt doesn’t take a very good photo,” Mr Damon’s wife joked.
Following the photo, Matt and Bev started chatting which Mr Damon made a comment about how beautiful a spot Jugiong was, as well as what he was doing in the area.
Bev told The Times that she is going to respect Mr Damon’s privacy with the answer on that one.
Towards the end of the meet, Ms Boney’s son returned with the coffees and joked that they could all do a coffee scene.
Matt response was, “Hey yeah, let’s do a coffee scene”. “Only if I can be the lead,” Bev joked.
On the day itself Mr Damon also visited Jugiong Wine Cellars and ended up purchasing a number of their quality wines.
Manager Sophia Fernon said Mr Damon had “really good taste in wine”.
“Jugiong Wine Cellars stocks many premium reds from our cool climate region and I would say he was a very happy customer,” she said.
Since the interaction Bev’s story has featured in a number of publications including Triple M, 9News, Canberra Times, News.com.au, Daily Advertiser and even the Daily Mail.
“He was such a great bloke and for a moment I actually forgot it was Matt Damon as he was so genuine and down to earth,” Ms Boney said.
“When he left he said ‘See you later’ like we were best friends. See you later indeed Matt Damon, we hope to see you in the Riverina sometime soon again.
Christopher Tan
