Kostjasyn + Granville = low key hooker rotationz

Jonathan Thurston has been a North Queensland Cowboy since before I really started tuning into the NRL. Throughout that time, one of my favourite players ever aka the slickest fullback ever Matt Bowen combined with Thurston for many magical moments but they could never combine for an NRL Premiership. In fact, the Cowboys endured some lean years in which they were one of the weaker teams in the NRL and a trip to Townsville wasn't the death wish that it now is.

Their leanest years came before Thurston's arrival in the naughty-north, but even with Thurston as the best player in the world, the Cowboys never looked like they were certified contenders. Whether it was the footy gods robbing them in recent years or the club just lacking the polish to really be a dominant force in the NRL, there was always something missing from the Cowboys. The NRL is so competitive these days that the margin for error is slim and up until this season it was too slim for the Cowboys.

In all honesty, with Thurston in your team you will be competitive to some degree. For a couple years now, the Cowboys have had a strong forward pack led by Matt Scott and James Tamou but this is reflective of many of the Cowboys' issues in the past five years or so. While there have always been positives, whether Thurston's presence or an 'all-Australian' front row there was always something holding the Cowboys back. Thurston had seen halves partners come and go, the club struggled to replace Bowen, there were players like Jason Taumalolo who hadn't quite come close to scratching their potential and of course there was the matter of winning in Sydney.

It's pretty crazy how all the things the Cowboys' lacked or negatives that have held them back have been ironed over. There's many NRL clubs who are still working through their issues, whether in the boardroom, with their roster or even the general attitude of players. Look at the Warriors who have yet to conquer the travel demands of the NRL or look at the large group of NRL clubs who have struggled to stay relevant in the NRL - Knights, Tigers, Eels, Titans and by relevant I mean being competitive each and every week, not staying in the headlines.

There's two NRL clubs who have figured things out the best right now (I'd love to throw the Warriors in here next year) and that's the Cowboys and Penrith Panthers. The Cowboys made the brave decision to seek a fresh start and Neil Henry - who laid the foundation down for the Cowboys' change in fortunes - was given the flick, thus giving Paul Green the job. I didn't know who Green was and there's a plethora of examples of new coaches failing in the NRL, so there was always going to be some sort of risk involved.

Green has obviously passed all tests with flying colours. Green has channeled Thurston's wizardry, but Green's been somewhat of a wizard himself as he has empowered the other players in this team to rise closer to Thurston's level. Taumalolo has exploded after being moved from the edge to the middle, giving the Cowboys constant go-forward while we need not look no further than the form of Ben Hannant as an example of this. Hannant is playing at the same level as Scott, Tamou and Taumalolo but has only starting doing so after plateauing as an NRL prop.

Green has turned promising Cowboys' juniors like Taumalolo, Kyle Feldt, Michael Morgan into noted NRL players since he arrived in Townsville, but the Cowboys have also recruited extremely well. When the Cowboys signed one of the following players in the past five years, you wouldn't have even thought twice as none of the following players fit in the 'high profile signing' category, yet here they are forming a Premiership winning team: Lachlan Coote (Panthers), Rory Kostjasyn (Storm), Kane Linnett (Roosters), Hannant (Broncos), Jake Granville (Broncos), Justin O'Neill (Storm), John Asiata (Roosters).

We can't forget the likes of Mathew Wright (Sharks) and Tautau Moga (Roosters) who both featured this season as well. It's hard to question Green's influence on the Cowboy's recruitment when you consider that he coached Asiata in the Roosters' Under-20s and Granville with the Wynum Sea Eagles.

It's one thing to sign cheapish players and get them doing a simple job, which has worked in the past. It's another thing for the Cowboys to sign players who each offer something to this team ... and won't break the bank; Kostjasyn gave Granville a spell each game to keep Granville's explosive running game active and the same can be said about Asiata who would replace Taumalolo so Tauamlolo could be used in blockbusting spurts. Coote is as much responsible for this Premiership as Morgan is while Linnett and O'Neill are both solid centres who fit in like a glove. Each player has a purpose and plays their part in enhancing those around them.

Coote could be seen as the biggest signing of that group, but I'd suggest that even Coote has exceeded expectations. The Cowboys have shrewdly built a squad that not only compliments their marquee player, but also provides Thurston the options around him to have the best chance of winning. Some clubs might have chilled out a bit and thought they could just put battlers around Thurston - maybe the Cowboys thought this way in the past, but 2015 has shown how the Cowboys have mastered the art of building a NRL roster.