I thought I’d pose a question to roar readers I have been pondering for a while: Why is Jonathan Thurston taking conversion attempts from the right sideline?
The thought fist came to me while watching recent State of Origin series and was brought back to mind with the recent four nations tournament. With the left-footed Cameron Smith in both teams, he would seem to me to be a much better option.
I must confess I’ve only really taken a keen interest in rugby league over the past few seasons, but I would have thought it was obvious to have the left-footed Smith take kicks from the right and Thurston to take kicks from the left.
Surely with the traditionally close nature of State of Origin football, it makes sense to give the team the best possible chance of getting the extra two points.
This would seem even more relevant given Thurston’s technique – the way he curls the ball leaves very little margin for error.
While I agree Thurston is the best kicker in the team for most conversions, statistically and logically Smith is a better option out wide on the right.
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