Feb 7th, 2019

Feb 7th, 2019

Cowboys legend Johnathan Thurston has identified the off-contract star the club should target to rebound from the Ben Barba sacking that has rocked the NRL.

A former Dally M medallist and premiership star, Barba was a key piece added to a North Queensland side that will embark on its first full season without Immortal-in-waiting Thurston.

His axing leaves a huge hole in a new-look spine that is full of talent but now significantly lighter in premiership class.

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Speaking to Wide World of Sports, Thurston said he expected utility Ben Hampton to get first crack at the No.1 jersey that has already been a problem for 12 months after Lachlan Coote hit form and injury issues, then had a falling out with coach Paul Green before departing the club in what amounted to a straight swap with Barba's St Helens.

However, the 26-year-old Hampton has never managed to command a full-time spot in an NRL starting side and still has a big task ahead of him to prove that he is capable of playing such an important role for a club with title ambitions.

It's why the Cowboys could yet decide to go to market in search of a fullback with greater pedigree and Thurston suggested Rabbitohs gun Alex Johnston should be top of the list.

Johnston comes off contract with South Sydney next season, however new coach Wayne Bennett has already indicated Greg Inglis is his preferred fullback if the superstar can get himself in shape, which would potentially put Johnston in the mood for a move.

Thurston said the 24-year-old had all the qualities to be a career fullback and a quality clubman to build around.

"He’s a good kid, always willing to learn and ask a lot of questions, and very respectful and you know a really good bloke, so that’s an option there," Thurston said.

"He’s got speed to burn and he’s pretty silky with the ball in hand where he can sum plays up and execute the winning tries and the tries that you need.

"The fullback role has changed quite a lot over the last 10 years and they’re pretty much another half. They’re the ones that are throwing a lot of try assists these days so they need to be able to have a good football brain."

While fullback is the position that requires immediate attention in Townsville, with Thurston also throwing up Te Maire Martin, Kyle Feldt and Javid Bowen as potential options already on the roster, the halves combination to take the club forward is also an intriguing puzzle.

Thurston has big raps on 21-year-old Jake Clifford, who has already played six NRL games but is considered an outsider to grab the spot next to representative star Michael Morgan unless Martin is switched to fullback.

"He’s an exciting talent," Thurston said of Clifford.

"Still raw, still learning the game, still developing his game. But yeah, talent wise he’s got all the attributes of a good half that you need.

"He’s got a good kicking game, he’s got good vision, he tackles well, I think he’ll learn a lot over the next couple of years with Morgo helping him along. He’s got all the attributes that you want."

Morgan will for the first time start a season as the Cowboys' senior playmaker, a role that he played to perfection in 2017 when he led the club to the grand final after Thurston's season was cut short by injury.

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It's a responsibility that will tie in a training ground mentoring role for Clifford and Martin, with Thurston vowing to stay away to "give the boys a break from my voice".

"If those boys are struggling at all, they know that I’m only a phone call away and my phone’s always open for a call if they want to catch up for a coffee they know that all those guys," Thurston said.

"But they’re very confident those boys, Te Maire and Morgo and Jake so I don’t think I’ll have any role there."

Even with the legendary halfback gone and the Barba bombshell unsettling the club at a key time in its pre-season Thurston is confident they can rise up the ladder from a disappointing 13th-place finish last season, seeing his old club as a contender for a top eight, if not top four finish.

"I think certainly as a half, looking at the forward pack that we’ve got, it was very disrupted last year with the injuries we had and the like, Josh McGuire is a great addition to the club, so as a half when you’ve got a forward pack like that you’re sort of rubbing your hands together," Thurston said.

"With a forward pack like that I’m sure that if the boys lay a platform they’ve got good enough halves and outside backs to score enough points.

"Definitely, the boys will be looking to bounce back from what they did last year."