Over the past three to four weeks, ever since Jonathan Thurston won the game (along with the whole Cowboys team, it would be stupid to overlook that but it's better to be dramatic) against the Melbourne Storm, we have been celebrating his greatness. We, as rugby league people with a voice, were very quick to come to his praise which was fair enough as he's shown that ability in nearly every game since then but things were very different in the weeks leading up to that win over the Storm.

This week I decided to take a bit of a looksie at Thurston's numbers, his statistics and what not to see if I can come to any conclusions. I want to compare the numbers between the two very different periods of the season so far, especially as that change of fortune came about at the same time as a few positional changes. I also just want to look at random numbers, it's fun. 

Kicking, it wasn't really where I thought I'd start but these numbers really stood out to me. Playing alongside Robert Lui in the first two games and then Michael Morgan, Thurston's kicking numbers changed quite dramatically. With Lui beside him, Thurston did far less kicking and seemed to give Lui the job of directing the team around the field with his boot. Lui had 7 kicks in his first game and 15 in his second game, while Thurston had 10 and 6. Even in the first game where Thurston had more kicks than Lui, Thurston had less kicking metres than Lui which would suggest that Lui did more long kicking in open play.

Sure, their opposition might have targeted Thurston which meant Lui had to take on more responsibility but as the season has gone on we've seen Thurston's kicks increase. He's logged 9 (Michael Morgan had 2, Lachlan Coote had 4), 13 (5 and 3), 14 (3 and 5), 11 (5 and 4) and 10 (3 and 6) in the games since Lui was dropped. Who knows why, but Thurston has taken it upon himself to dictate the game with his boot and he's done a mighty fine job of it. 

While Thurston has taken more responsibility with kicking, the most touches he had in a game was in game one with 78. The only other game he came close to that many touches was against the Storm when he had 72 touches, but that's slightly skewed as they played five extra minutes and with the game on the line, Thurston was everywhere. It seems as though his sweet spot is around 50 touches a game. I say sweet spot because it really is a sweet spot as it means that other players are getting more touches, thus taking some attention away from Thurston. 

What's interesting here is who gets these extra touches. In the first two games, Lui had 47 and 43 touches but since then Morgan hasn't had more than 37 touches playing in Lui's spot. The key is Coote who has come into the side and added plenty to this Cowboys side not only with his boot but also in a bit of a playmaking role. Coote has averaged 44 touches of the ball per game over the past five weeks, coinciding with a great run of form. 

Defence has never really been a strong point for Thurston; it never really is for any halfback but in the first three games he missed 18 tackles (5, 4, 9). That's plenty, especially when you consider that over the past four weeks he has only missed 6 tackles. While it's difficult to find a reason or explanation for this, it's clear that when the Thurston is missing tackles, his team suffers immensely. The only game of the season so far where Thurston hasn't missed any tackles was against the Warriors where he made 18; his best effort when compared to his game against the Broncos where he made 21 tackles but missed 9. 

It should come as no surprise that as the Cowboys have gone on a winning run, Thurston has been heavily involved in all the right areas. There's no real explanation or insight needed, just look at how he's flicked the switch over the past four weeks and put in dominant displays, worthy of comparisons to Andrew Johns. 

While it's been fun to look at Thurston's numbers, this would have been far less fun had the Cowboys not got off to a shocking start. That's where the interest lies as for whatever reason, Thurston was just not at his best, hence neither were the Cowboys. One of the more intriguing takeaways and one that will hold great relevance come Origin time was how impressive Lachlan Coote and Michael Morgan have been supporting Thurston. But until they have to take the reins, keep enjoying the Jonathan Thurston show folks.