Sonny Bill Williams wedded in secret

Herald on Sunday

26 Apr, 2014 11:00 AM2 mins to read

Sonny Bill Williams secretly married Alana Raffie in August.

Footy superstar Sonny Bill Williams has secretly married a stunning 20-year-old Muslim girl he met and fell in love with last year, Sydney's Sunday Telegraph reports.

The Roosters heartthrob, 28, wedded part-time model Alana Raffie in August after a six-month relationship.

Immediate family and a handful of his closest friends, who were sworn to secrecy, attended the ceremony as he was preparing for last year's NRL finals.

The Sunday Telegraph reported the couple didn't have time to go on honeymoon last year but they flew out of Sydney airport yesterday for a short overseas break in Bali. Raffie shares SBW's palatial four-storey home in Sydney's south with his family.

Sonny Bill's last high-profile relationship was with New Zealand socialite Jaime Ridge, the daughter of star Matthew Ridge.

Unlike more traditional Muslim weddings, the ceremony was low-key and private.

The couple knocked back the chance to earn a six-figure sum by selling their wedding to TV and magazines.

Raffie has kept a low profile since marrying but there was a recent clue when, on March 7, Raffie posted on Facebook: "Big news from the both of us to be announced soon! Some secrets are just too hard to keep :)''.

SBW withdrew from Friday night's Kiwi Test team to play the Kangaroos to take an overseas break. He returns on Wednesday for a global sponsorship announcement with adidas.

The couple will move to New Zealand at the end of the season when the champion forward quits the NRL to return to rugby union, the Sunday Telegraph report. He wants to play at next year's Rugby World Cup and compete at the Rio Olympics in the rugby Sevens.

In 2004 SBW was plucked from suburban Auckland to become the youngest player ever contracted to the Bulldogs NRL team.

Four years later he walked out on the team and took up a lucrative deal with French club side Toulon. He returned to New Zealand in 2010 and has played for the Crusaders, the Chiefs and helped the All Blacks win the Rugby World Cup in 2011.