The son of former NRL star James Maloney and his wife Jess was found in the early hours of Monday morning after going missing late on Saturday night.
Kade Maloney, 14, was last seen at 10pm on Saturday in Green Point outside Gosford, and later disappeared after catching a train.
Jess Moloney posted to Instagram just after 1am on Monday, saying the teenager had been found.
“He is now safe with our friends. Thank you to everyone who has helped to find him, offered support and shared this post to get it out to as many people as possible,” she wrote, referring to an earlier appeal for help.
Hours earlier, the family had said they were desperately looking for Kade, who had bought a train ticket at Gosford train station in the early house of Sunday morning, prior to disappearing.
Kade Maloney, the son of former NRL star James Maloney, was believed to be travelling to the Penrith area by public transport.Credit: NSW Police; Getty Images
The parents had said they believed he was heading for the Penrith area.
“If you have seen him or heard from him, please get in touch with us. We are desperate to know he’s OK and if he doesn’t want us to know exactly where he is, that’s OK, we just desperately want to know he is safe,” they had said.
NSW Police also issued an appeal to the public for assistance.
Maloney, a two-time NRL premiership winner, played more than 300 matches for Melbourne Storm, the Warriors, Roosters, Sharks and Panthers, as well as 14 Origins for NSW and four Tests for Australia.
He joined the North Queensland Cowboys as an assistant coach last year.