JT hoping for the fairytale
Despite the hype around his side, Thurston wasn’t letting himself get distracted by how good the Cowboys look on paper.
The 34- year- old was denied a fairytale finish to his representative career last season after hurting his shoulder and he stressed that it would take plenty of hard work to bow out with a grand final victory.
“That’s the plan, but I’m not naive to think that all dreams come true,” Thurston said.
“There’s a lot of hard work that lies ahead with the playing group. There’s few fresh faces, but most of the talent’s still there from the last couple of years.
“It’s about collectively buying into the values that we hold as a group and living those on and off the training paddock.
“It’s a strong squad – one of the strongest that we’ve ever had – so it’s a good sign. We’ve got four weeks before Christmas now and everyone needs to work hard.”
The four- time Dally M winner plans to soak up every mo- ment of his final season, but Thurston said it was still important not to let the emotions overshadow his on- field contributions.
“I think it’s not letting the occasion get to you. I know it’s going to be my final year so it’s about enjoying it,” he said.
“Enjoying being around the playing group, enjoying the couple of nights you’re away with the boys, the preseason camps – all that type of stuff – because it’s my last one.
“I’m not more motivated because it’s my last, it’s just about enjoying what lies ahead.”
Thurston won’t do any contact work until after Christmas, but he has full range of motion in his surgically repaired shoulder and will focus on building strength over the next few weeks.
He played just seven games for the Cowboys last season before his injury, but Thurston believed that time off could actually be a blessing for his ageing body after 16 seasons and 299 NRL games.
“Everyone’s carrying niggles during the year and when you’re at the back end of your career you’re managing those niggles a lot more,” he said.
“Having the shoulder surgery has given my knees and ankles a bit of a break, but I still had to keep training and try and keep the skinfolds to a minimum, obviously not training at peak like the rest of the boys.
“It’s nice now that the shoulder’s nearly fully healed. I’ve got full range in it so it’s just about getting the strength back in it now. I can do that now over the next four weeks, so I’m looking forward now to what lies ahead with the boys.”