A Johnathan Thurston masterclass for the Indigenous All-Stars orchestrated a 34-8 rout of the world All-Stars in Newcastle. Man of the match Thurston turned the game early in the second half, scoring a key try before laying on an inch-perfect kick for Dane Gagai to seal the result on Friday night in front of 20,241 fans at McDonald Jones Stadium.

After Mal Meninga’s world team scored two tries in the shadows of half-ime to make a game of it at 16-8, the Indigenous side found another gear. First, Parramatta speedster Bevan French put in a curling chip off the side of his boot which bounced up for Thurston. Then Thurston outshone his younger team-mate with an even better kick, putting the ball in between two defenders for Gagai.

The Indigenous side had plenty of standouts including Gold Coast half Ash Taylor and Cronulla pair Andrew Fifita – who ran for 175m – and Wade Graham. The game was played in 33-degree heat with the likes of Blake Ferguson and Mitchell Moses coming off in the second half after the stifling conditions took their toll.

Canberra are facing a nervous wait after skipper Jarrod Croker was taken from the field in the 50th minute with what appeared to be a left knee injury after having his leg pinned under him in a three-man tackle. He cried out in pain and slapped the turf in frustration before being taken up the tunnel with what is believed to be a medial ligament injury.

The Indigenous All-Stars shot out of the blocks to a 16-0 lead at the quarter-time break before the world side reeled them back in with a dubious four-pointer to David Mead and a Nene MacDonald try in the shadows of the break. However, the Indigenous side proved too strong in the second half. Greg Inglis provided the highlight of the game when he received a hand-off from Fifita and went on a bulldozing run downfield, flattening three defenders including Tepai Moeroa.