Nathan Cleary’s relationship with Mary Fowler has reached a turning point if a photo of the NRL superstar supporting his girlfriend in Europe is anything to go by.
The Penrith premiership winner has overtaken the Manchester City star in England and on the continent after winning this year’s grand final with the Panthers, with the couple sharing photos of their moments together.
Now Fowler’s Matildas teammate Katrina Gorry has revealed a photo of Cleary holding her daughter Harper during the Aussies’ recent win over Germany.
It’s the first evidence of the 26-year-old spending time with his national team partner’s great friends, which is a big step forward in their relationship.
A fan commenting on Gorry’s Instagram post summed up the development, writing, “Nice to see Nathan getting involved with the Tillies family. He needs to get the family tick before he gets serious with Fowler. Looks like he’s well on his way there!’
Another wrote: ‘I never expected to see a photo of Nathan Cleary holding Harper. And yet here we are!’
Cleary and Fowler have been spotted together in Manchester during his post-premiership holiday, with the pair sharing photos from their travels and the NRL star also joining her for the Matildas match against Switzerland last week.
The pair made their first appearance in Europe a week after topping the Melbourne Storm to claim a fourth straight NRL title.
Cleary is seen with the daughter of Mary Fowler’s Matildas teammate Katrina Gorry, in the first evidence that he has been spending time with some of the other important people in his partner’s life
A Matildas fan summed up the situation nicely with this comment on Gorry’s Instagram post
The Penrith star has spent time with Fowler (pictured together) in Europe after winning his fourth consecutive NRL grand final
They were pictured at Old Trafford watching the Super League Grand Final as Wigan claimed victory over Hull Kingston Rovers.
At half-time, Cleary was invited onto the field for an interview with Sky Sports Rugby League, where he refused to completely rule out rumors linking him with a move to play in Europe so he could be closer to Fowler.
“To be honest, not that fast,” Cleary said when asked about speculation linking him with Super League teams and a possible code-switch to play Union in the Northern Hemisphere.
‘I’ve seen all the rumours. But come over here and visit her [Mary] play, which is fun, and take a break. But [I] I won’t be moving here anytime soon.”
He posted a few photos of himself and Fowler taking a walk along the coastline and visiting a quaint town.
Fowler also took to Instagram to mock Cleary after she posted a photo of him peering through a camera with the lens still on the shutter.
Fowler responded to his Instagram post on Monday, writing in the comments, “There’s my favorite model,” with a camera emoji, a “heart face” emoji and a fire emoji.
The couple were spotted at the Super League grand final shortly after Nathan arrived in Manchester to be with his girlfriend
Fowler is pictured in action against Germany on Monday, with Cleary cheering her on from the stands along with some of her teammates
Brian To’o, one of Cleary’s Penrith teammates, also commented on his post, writing “Ahhh love Always Wins” with a heart emoji.
Fowler has made no secret of her desire to start a family one day, and Cleary gave a telling one-word answer when asked about settling down and having children recently on Mark Bouris’ podcast with his father and coach Ivan .
The halfback discussed his investment in a Sydney brewery with two Australian UFC stars when quizzed on how he would prepare for life after football.
“I’ve been thinking about it more, especially this year with injuries. I’ve had a lot of time to myself to think,” Cleary replied.
“You just think it’s going to take forever, and then you have a few injuries and you’re out of the game.
“You do realize this won’t last forever.”
“Now that you have a girl you’re also interested in, you’re probably starting to have thoughts like, for one day, I have to keep the Cleary name alive,” Bouris said.
“Absolutely,” Cleary replied emphatically.
“Maybe only have one kid, just enjoy it,” Bouris said as they both laughed.
“It could be a football player,” Cleary laughed.