Johnathan Thurston on the rock

Winning Rugby League World Cup captain and man of the match Johnathan Thurston of Australia is on the rock.

The superstar league player arrived on the rock yesterday and was more than happy to pose with local league fan Henry Hoff who provided this photo of him with the star at the Rarotonga International Airport.

Of Indigenous Australian descent, Thurston began playing rugby league at a very young age and although a standout player at school and at club levels at 18 – none of the NRL clubs were willing to sign the Queenslander with many citing his small size as a problem.

During his NRL career he has frequently been cited as rugby league’s best player.

Thurston started his career at the Bulldogs where he won the 2004 NRL premiership before moving to the North Queensland Cowboys in 2005. In 2008 he was named as halfback of the Australian Aboriginal rugby league team of the century.

In 2011, he won the Golden Boot Award for the world’s best player. Thurston is the only player to have played in all 27 games of Queensland’s eight-year State of Origin winning streak from 2006–2013. Today Thurston, who has again been nominated for the Golden Boot award, is probably touring the island on a scooter or soaking up the sun and surf.