Cowboys to offer Thurston record $2.1m contract
Peter Badel
January 31, 2010 12:00am
NORTH Queensland will offer a take-it-or-leave-it $2.1 million contract to Johnathan Thurston this week in a last-ditch bid to stop rugby league's No.1 player walking out on the Cowboys and the NRL.
The development comes as Thurston's manager, Sam Ayoub, revealed the Test playmaker was considering quitting the code because of increasing concerns over the impact the NRL season was having on his body.
The Sunday Mail has learned Cowboys boss Peter Parr is set to offer Thurston the most lucrative deal in the club's 15-year history when the parties step up talks this week.
The three-year contract has a base value of $500,000 a season, plus an additional $200,000 in third-party sponsorships that Parr hopes will keep Thurston in Townsville until the end of 2013.
Thurston has received a $1.1 million offer from Japanese rugby union, meaning the Maroons maestro will sacrifice about $400,000 annually if he opts to remain in the NRL.
But Parr insists the Cowboys do not possess the fiscal muscle to engage in a bidding war with rugby.
"I've told Sam that he and Johnathan should get their head around the fact that we would struggle to do any better than what we've done," Parr said.
"The next time I have a formal meeting with Sam, which I expect to be in the next week or so, we will submit our final offer.
"Then it will be a case of Johnathan to give it due consideration with whatever else Sam has on the table for him from other codes.
"I'm trying to be fair and reasonable to Johnathan, but there's other players here to consider and we can't break the bank to sign him."
Parr remains confident Thurston will pledge his future to the Cowboys, but Ayoub revealed the multi-faceted grievances that could see the Kangaroos playmaker lost to the code.
At a meeting with NRL boss David Gallop a fortnight ago, the Cowboys captain outlined his concern over rugby league's pay structure and the number of matches being played by the game's elite.
Thurston's body has been battered recently, with the halfback having had a knee operation and shoulder reconstruction. There are fears injury will cut short his career.
The 26-year-old also questioned the earnings potential for the code's best players in comparison with elite Australian athletes in other sports such as cricket, rugby union and Australian rules football.
Ayoub said Thurston was increasingly mindful of his welfare and the fact he could earn nearly twice as much in rugby playing half as many games.
"It (the number of NRL games) is a consideration and it's something that has been conveyed to David Gallop," Ayoub said.
"JT has concerns about the wear and tear of the rugby league schedule on him. He is concerned about the toll and the amount of footy they play, it's not a whinge, it's just a fact.
"Johnathan doesn't want to end up in the 50 per cent disposables bin in a short space of time - he's trying to prolong his career," he said.
Parr believes the ace up the Cowboys' sleeve is the post-football opportunities they can offer.
"I know Johnathan enjoys representing the region and we talked a bit about the benefits of life after footy if he stayed in the game."
"If he sticks with the game and the Cowboys, there is certainly potential for him after football.
"I am more confident than ever that if Johnathan stays in the NRL, it will be at the Cowboys."
But Ayoub conceded the Cowboys' offer may not be enough to keep Thurston in rugby league.
