Silver Ferns star Maria Tutaia and new husband Israel Folau spotted in Auckland

Sporting stars and newlyweds Israel Folau and Maria Tutaia out and about in Auckland City. 27 November 2017 New Zealand Herald Photograph by Dean Purcell.

Silver Ferns star Maria Tutaia and her new husband Israel Folau have been spotted out together in Auckland for the first time since tying the knot in a private wedding in Australia.

Fresh from honeymooning in the Maldives, the couple were seen lunching at popular inner-city café Major Sprout today. The pair returned from the luxury island on Friday.

Tutaia and Folau, an Australian rugby international, married two weeks ago in a small, intimate ceremony in Kangaroo Valley, New South Wales. The athletically gifted pair, who announced their engagement in October last year, managed to keep their nuptials a secret.

Tutaia, 30, recently responded to a fan speculating about whether any future children of the couple would represent Australia or New Zealand by saying her children would represent New Zealand and Samoa, not Australia.

Sporting stars and newlyweds Israel Folau and Maria Tutaia out and about in Auckland City. 27 November 2017 New Zealand Herald Photograph by Dean Purcell.

Folau, who plays for the Waratahs, was this morning up for the World Rugby Player of the Year Award, missing out to All Blacks first-five Beauden Barrett.

Earlier this month it was reported Folau turned down a $500,000 12-week contract so he can spend quality time with Tutaia.

The Daily Telegraph reported that the Wallabies fullback turned down a deal to play in Japan with the Panasonic Wild Knights. According to the newspaper, Folau would have earned AU$42,000 each time he turned out for Robbie Deans' side over the summer.

Folau opted to skip the Wallabies end-of-year tour, playing his final game of the year against the Barbarians earlier this month.

He told the Daily Telegraph that he and Tutaia wouldn't be tying the knot during his sabbatical from the Wallabies.

Tutaia, the Silver Ferns vice-captain, announced earlier this year she would be taking some time away from netball after next year's Commonwealth Games to ensure she can prolong her career through to the 2019 World Cup.