The estranged wife of NRL star Brett Finch has made her new relationship with a former boxer Instagram official after her famous ex narrowly avoided jail time for sharing child abuse material online.
Ellie Johnston, who married Finch in 2018 and shares a daughter with him, stood by the former Roosters and Storm star during his trial for sending ‘depraved’ voice messages about sex with young boys on a gay chat service in an attempt to score drugs.
Their split became public in May last year – and now Johnston has debuted her new partner, former boxer Liam Hillen, on the social media platform.
Her first post featuring her new lover showed them enjoying a holiday at the snow, accompanied by the telling caption, ‘Water what waters you’, in what appears to be a clear reference to her finding a partner who makes her happy.
Another photo shows the couple showing off their physiques as they cuddle at Duranbah Beach in far northern NSW, clad only in their swimwear.
Hillen has also posted a video showing him riding behind a bikini-clad Johnston on the back of a jet ski.
He is a former amateur fighter who is listed on the respected boxing site Boxrec as having two Australian Golden Gloves victories to his name, with both bouts coming in 2022.
Their romance comes almost two years after Finch, 43, was convicted of sharing ‘depraved’ child sex abuse material amid his crippling cocaine addiction.
Brett Finch’s estranged wife Ellie Johnston has debuted her new partner Liam Hillen (pictured together) in a series of revealing posts on Instagram
Johnston and Finch (pictured together) split in December 2022 after she had stood by him during his trial on shocking child sex charges
Johnston – who married Finch in 2018 and shares a daughter with him – captioned a photo of her and Hillen (pictured together) with the telling words ‘Water what waters you’
The ex-NSW Blues star had been under the influence of drugs when he left a series of ‘twisted’ messages on a gay chat line describing a desire to perform sex acts on boys as young as 12.
He pleaded guilty in August 2022 to one charge of using a carriage service to transmit, publish or promote child abuse, and was sentenced to a $1000, two-year good behaviour bond on November 23 that year.
Johnston – who is the daughter of AFL great Wayne Johnston – stuck by him during his addiction battles in the lead-up to his conviction and remained loyal during his court case.
The couple married in the Victorian capital in January 2018 and were living at Sans Souci in Sydney’s south with their three-year-old daughter Mackenzie while Finch faced the charge.
The ceremony was attended by coaches Craig Bellamy, Brad Fittler and Ricky Stuart, as well as league legends Cameron Smith, Cooper Cronk, Billy Slater and Andrew Johns. Finch’s former Roosters teammate Anthony Minichiello was Finch’s best man.
Finch had been in a Thai rehab clinic 18 months earlier being treated for drug and alcohol abuse and credited Johnston with having settled him down.
‘To have Elli in my life is a blessing,’ he said at the time.
Hillen (pictured with Johnston) is a former amateur boxer
Johnston posted tributes to her daughter’s resilience on social media after Finch was charged, but didn’t share a single picture or video of his ex once he had been charged.
She broke her silence about Finch’s scandal in December 2022, saying, ‘It’s been an extremely traumatic time for myself, Mackenzie and Brett. And now we need time to heal individually and as a family.’
In May last year it was rumoured that Johnston was linked to AFL star Dustin Martin, after the pair had dated for about nine months around a decade ago.
The pair went on holiday along with a small group of friends to Bali in 2013 before Martin ended the relationship to concentrate on football.
However, a well-placed source denied the pair had rekindled their relationship.
Finch (pictured with Johnston) has gone from being a highly paid footy and Channel Nine star to working as a trainee forklift driver
In January this year it was revealed that Finch was working as a trainee forklift driver after he was reduced to living on Centrelink payments after being knocked back when he applied for 300 jobs.
Finch was also charged with breaching the conditions of his release.
His solicitor Paul McGirr said Finch has ‘complied with every obligation that he’s had’ as he hit back at the charge.
‘On the anniversary of his sentence, for the next eight years, he’s got to check in with the police of his local area,’ McGirr said.
‘It’s alleged that on the anniversary of his sentence last year he hasn’t done that.’
The new lifestyle is a huge change for the ex-State of Origin hero, who earned hundreds of thousands of dollars a year when he spent 14 seasons in first grade, then moved into commentary positions for Channel Nine and Fox Sports when he retired.
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