Footy star Alex McKinnon takes a huge and very public step in his love life just after his ex Teigan Power announced she’s having a baby with her new partner

Former NRL star Alex McKinnon has taken his romance with Lily Malone to new heights by publicly confessing his love for her for the first time, just days after his ex-wife announced she’s having a baby with her new partner.

McKinnon – who was left paralysed by a horrific on-field accident in 2014 – split up with his wife and the mother of his three daughters, Teigan Power, with their marriage breakdown going public in April 2022. 

Power moved on with Jake Nelson, making their romance Instagram official in December 2023, with McKinnon starting a relationship with Lily Malone in March last year.

Power then announced she’s pregnant to Nelson in a heartwarming social media post last Wednesday, and McKinnon dropped some big news of his own on Saturday.

The 33-year-old took to Instagram and treated his followers to a series of images of him and his partner, including shots of Malone spending time with his daughters Harriet, Audrey and Violet.

He captioned the post, ‘Truly am so so blessed, i [heart emoji] you @lilymalone’ in words that represent a very public first in their relationship.

Lily Malone is pictured with partner Alex McKinnon as part of an Instagram post that took their romance to new heights

McKinnon publicly declared his love for Malone for the first time with these touching words

McKinnon and Malone (pictured together with his daughter Harriet) met while they were attending the University of Newcastle

McKinnon first revealed he was with Malone by posting a photo of them together – but not revealing her name – just before the opening match of the 2024 NRL season started.

He and Malone were both attending the University of Newcastle at the time, with the photo showing them both wearing pink with their arms draped around each other at her 22nd birthday party.

Moments later, Malone debuted McKinnon on her own Instagram page, sharing the same photo with a love-heart emoji.

In August last year the former Newcastle Knights star showed the romance was going from strength to strength as he posted a photo of Malone spending time with his daughters on a boat. 

He then had her lips tattooed on his arm, with both of them sharing the image on Instagram and Malone writing ‘@alexmckinnon’s newest addition = my lips’.

McKinnon posted shots of him celebrating with Malone when he graduated from university with a Bachelor’s degree in Psychological Science, with the pair looking overjoyed along with his daughter Harriet.

When Malone graduated with first class honours after completing her Bachelor of Social Work in January, he sent her a very romantic message to go with photos of the big day.

‘A bloody resilient, independent & passionate woman,’ he wrote.

McKinnon is pictured with his ex-wife Teigan Power and their daughters Harriet, Audrey and Violet before their marriage split 

Last week Power revealed she’s having a baby with her new man Jake Nelson (pictured)

‘I am so soo proud of you.

‘Fortunately for me, I’ve been able to witness this journey, see you navigate challenges, juggle work throughout your whole degree, love my girls & hear (you yap) about many special moments along the way.

‘I’m a better person for being by your side lily & anything you choose to do baby you will excel at. So look out world, this girl is special.’

She replied, ‘I don’t know what I did to deserve you Alex. I love you, thank you. Beyond blessed to have had you cheering me on every step of the way!!!’ 

McKinnon and Power split up in January 2022 after five years of marriage, but their separation was only made public three months later.

As they parted ways, both parties confirmed the split was amicable and that they remained committed to co-parenting their children.

In April this year, McKinnon said he and Power were still bonded by a strong close friendship.

‘We are still really close,’ he said.

Malone (pictured) has previously gushed over the former Newcastle Knights star, writing, ‘I don’t know what I did to deserve you Alex’

McKinnon announced his romance to the world by sharing a photo of him with Malone at her 22nd birthday party

‘Being a parent is such an important job and having a strong relationship with their mum is just as important.

‘We are still good friends, we both realise we are role models for the kids and we need to show them that being supportive of each other is the only way to be.’

McKinnon proposed to his high school sweetheart from his hospital bed just days after his promising NRL career was cut short in March 2014, when he suffered a devastating spinal cord injury at just 22 years of age.

He suffered fractures to his C4 and C5 vertebrae after a dangerous tackle close to half-time of a Round 3 clash against the Melbourne Storm and was left a quadriplegic.

McKinnon and Power tied the knot in an intimate ceremony in the NSW Hunter Valley in October 2017. The former Knights star promised his bride that he would rise from his wheelchair when he popped the question, and he did just that at their wedding.

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