Revered superstar Jonathon Thurston has today revealed the reasons why he turned his back on the advances of a Sydney NRL club, which would have earned him $1million a year.
Despite having to face the board after a drunken incident, a charge that has since been dropped, Thurston just couldn’t turn his back on the team that made him the player he is today.
It was revealed however that Thurston was considering leaving the club after all of the dramas that emerged, with a plan in place to fly into Sydney to talk abut a possible move to Sydney clubs.
”Yeah, that’s right,” Thurston admitted.
‘There was all this media speculation of me getting sacked from the Cowboys and all this kind of crap. It was obviously very difficult for me at the time.
”There was a fair bit of interest and it was all going through my head. But for my long-time future, I thought the best option was to stay in North Queensland. I love living here, and I love the club, and I want to help turn the club around and hopefully stay here until I retire.”
Thurston who was critical of the Cowboys organisation and board at the conclusion of their poor 2010 season, was forced to front an angry board after being a public nuisance, a charge which many believed was farcical.
”That captaincy speculation hurt,” Thurston said. ”I copped a fair bit of flak for it but in the end there were no charges and now I just want to get on with training and playing footy. I had to face the board and everything and that’s all sorted and is in the past.
”I definitely feel I made the right decision to stay.”
Thurston has fully recovered from his ankle injury sustained late on in the season for the Cowboys, and he is set to return to Cowboys training this week with their new-look side hungry for success.
”It’s a breath of fresh air up here,” a relieved Thurston said.
”I’ve been looking forward to coming to training and hanging out with the boys. I’m just really looking forward to what lies ahead at this club. I want to be part of the future here and I want to help turn the club into the force that it should be.
”We’ve changed a lot of things within the organisation and I think it’s all been for the better.
”Training methods have completely changed. We’ve got new coaching staff and new training staff, and there are a lot of new faces in the playing roster. It’s a healthy playing roster to be a part of.
”I’ve achieved a lot in the game and I would love to win a premiership here and that’s what’s driving me to stay and be the first captain to lift that premiership for North Queensland.”