Penrith Panthers CEO Brian Fletcher has copped backlash from the soccer community after suggesting Mary Fowler should move back to Australia to be closer to Nathan Cleary. Rumours have been circulating for months that Cleary is considering switching from the NRL to the English Super League so he can spend more time with girlfriend Fowler, who plays for Manchester City in the top league of women’s soccer.
Fowler spends the majority of her time in the UK and Europe, which is part and parcel of being one of the top female players in world soccer. But it means she gets to spend very little time with Cleary during the NRL season when he’s plying his trade for the Panthers.
he NRL star has now won four premierships with Penrith, and there’s very little left for him to achieve in Australia. He’s previously admitted he’s open to playing in the Super League one day, and will jet off to England this week to spend some time with Fowler.
At the Panthers’ fan day in Penrith on Wednesday, Fletcher was inevitably asked about the rumours Cleary might decide his future lies in England and ask for a release. But on multiple occasions he stated that Fowler might move back to Australia.
