A source close to the situation, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said that Bell and Clarke’s relationship had emerged strongly intact after they found themselves at the centre of a media storm this week.

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“There are no problems as a result of what happened,” the source said.

The source added that Clarke was accustomed to confrontations on and off the cricket pitch and was coping with the fallout from the scandal.

“He’s strong, he’ll be OK,” they said.

Bell and Clarke go back at least 15 years when the pair were first spotted toasting Christmas drinks aboard Bell’s 80-foot luxury yacht, Stealth, which would later end up at the bottom of Sydney Harbour after it sunk near Rose Bay.

A business client-turned-best mate, Clarke purchased a three-bedroom apartment from Bell on Bondi’s famous Campbell Parade for $6 million in 2009.

Bell played MC at Clarke’s lavish engagement party to Lara Bingle and was a shoulder for Clarke to cry on when the relationship unravelled.

Clarke returned the favour when Bell’s marriage to TV presenter wife Kelly Landry ended in an ugly courtroom showdown.

Clarke also accompanied Bell, an avid sailor, on board his supermaxi Perpetual Loyal when it was forced to turn back amid wild seas in the 2015 Sydney to Hobart Yacht race.

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The friendship circle later widened to include the likes of television presenters Larry Emdur and Stefanovic, as well as AFL star Buddy Franklin.

The brotherhood bonded as they soaked up million-dollar views during summer soirees aboard Bell’s yachts on Sydney Harbour.

It remains to be seen whether Clarke and Stefanovic’s relationship will survive the heated encounter.

“One would hope in the fullness of time … there’s a long history there,” the source said.

On Friday News Corp reported a series of photographs had emerged of Yarbrough and Clarke looking tense, taken just 48 hours before their public altercation.

The Daily Telegraph reported Jade was upset and embarrassed when the footage came to light, while Clarke had been on the phone trying to salvage the relationship.

Yarbrough accused Clarke of sleeping with Edwards on December 17 last year, which the cricket star denied during the altercation, telling her he had instead been with Bell.

It is understood Bell was in Noosa on the night in question.

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