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The greatest player in rugby league at the moment will be in action at Headingley on Sunday. Johnathan Thurston is not only the greatest current player, he is going to go down as one of the all-time greats. The 32-year-old is odds-on to be made the ninth Immortal once he retires, and his story is fascinating. From washing cars to winning the Grand FinalHere is a player who was told throughout his formative rugby league years of 17 to 19, youre too small, youre too fragile and youre too much of a liability in defence. Thurston says he is likely to hang up his boots when his Cowboys contract expires This is after his parents had made huge sacrifices, including sending him away so he could focus on rugby league. They held raffles in the local pub and rugby league club in order to raise the $700 that was needed to send JT away on an U17 camp with Queensland.He was taking his rugby league seriously, having been a self-confessed ratbag when he was younger, and two coaches came up to see him. They were Nathan Brown, who is now at Newcastle, and Ricky Stuart, who at the time was Jersey Flegg coach at the Canterbury Bulldogs. Thurston left Canterbury after helping them win the Grand Final in 2004 Stuart was the only one who pursued him. He pleaded with JT to relocate to Sydney, but couldnt offer him any money. Thurston signed a zero-dollars contract; you dont want to be signing too many of them in your life.He had to wash cars from Monday to Friday to fund himself. He trained during the week and played at weekends. He got a run-out under Stuart and made his first-team appearance, but was in and out of the team. When anyone that he replaced came back from injury, JT was dropped.In the 2004 Grand Final, a late injury to Steven Price saw Thurston parachuted in. He came off the bench, Canterbury won, and he gave his ring to Price.Reality check Thurston reached another Grand Final in 2005 but the Cowboys were beaten by Wests Tigers By that stage the Bulldogs had offered him a contract but it was a lot less than the offer being waved by the Cowboys. He wanted to stay at Canterbury and sat in his agents car in tears after he was given the news that they wouldnt retain him, at what he thought was a fair market price.So up to North Queensland he went and they got to the Grand Final the following season, where he was named Dally M player of the year. He went stratospheric in the NRL in 2005 but came short of winning the grand prize.Thurston was also a star performer during Queenslands eight-year dominance in the State of Origin. He was the only player to play in every one of the 24 games as they won eight consecutive series. Johnathan Thurston scores a try in game one of the 2009 State of Origin But then his enjoyment of life probably overtook his commitment to the game. It culminated in an arrest in Brisbane in 2010 for alleged drunk and disorderly behaviour, which was subsequently dropped. However, being pictured coming out of a police station was not a good look for the captain of North Queensland and the Cowboys were unhappy with his approach to the game. A few different people sat him down and one of them was Phil Gould, the most successful New South Wales coach of all time. He was up in Queensland working as a consultant for the Cowboys.Gould asked Thurston how he wants to be remembered. When you finish your career you want to do it on an upward trajectory, not on a downward spiral. Thurston took that on board and turned his life around. He met his partner Samantha, who is now his wife, and everything since then has been phenomenal.Things to look out for Thurston is one of the best place-kickers in the game He does everything with a smile on his face. He gets frustrated when things dont go right, as everybody does, but he is a happy man and plays that way.Watch him with he kicks a goal. He can convert it, he can miss it; either way, the first thing he does is pick up the tee and hand it to the ball boy or girl. In one game he threw it on the ground but immediately snapped out of it, picked up the tee and handed it to them.He gives away his headgear after every game, making somebodys day, and he also does a lot for the indigenous community.International allegiances Thurston kicked 14 points in Australias World Cup final win over New Zealand in 2013 Thurston has starred for Australia but he was approached in 2004 to play for New Zealand. His father is a Kiwi and Daryl Hannigan, the great Kiwi winger, rang Thurston up and asked him if he would consider playing for New Zealand.Although he played in the Grand Final with Canterbury that year, Thurston wasnt the hot property he is now. He took the time to consider it and spoke with his parents, but he still had the dream about playing for Australia so he turned them down.He made his Australia debut in 2006 and the rest is history.2015 Grand Final Thurston reacts after his late conversion attempt came back off the post The hooter had sounded, the Cowboys had scored a try in the corner from the final play against Brisbane to tie it up at 16-16, and Thurston had a kick to win the Grand Final.Thurston is a Brisbane boy and the Broncos rejected him when he was younger.Alan Langer, Brisbanes assistant coach, walked up to him as he was readying himself for the kick and said, Ill give you $500 if you miss it. Thurston told him where to go and lined his kick up, only for it to come back off the post. Thurston kicks the match-winning drop goal The game went to golden point extra-time but following Ben Hunts knock-on, Thurston slotted over the drop goal. Cool, composed and in the midst of the most pressurised kick in the world, he was still able to have a humorous interaction with a member of the opposition.Thurston is a phenomenal athlete and Leeds will be wary of his show-and-go. If you want to see a master at work, with a smile on his face, tune in on Sunday night.He has got a great surrounding cast around him and this is not a one-man team by any means, but the man they have at the helm is the worlds greatest. And as you can see by the video below, he still doesnt take himself too seriously. Can the Super League champions beat the best in the NRL on Sunday? Not if Johnathan Thurston has anything to do with it... Watch Leeds Rhinos v North Queensland Cowboys live on Sky Sports 1 HD on Sunday from 6.30pm. Catch the match for £6.99 on NOW TV. No contract. Also See: Thurston rules out Super League move NRL: Six players to watch Burrow has faith in Rhinos Rugby League on Sky Wholesale Custom Jerseys . 9. Price, heading to the 2014 Olympics for Canada, was named the First Star after posting wins in three starts with a 1.00 goals-against average and a .971 save percentage. Custom Jerseys From China . Robredo, ranked No. 16, bounced back from an upset loss to Leonardo Mayer in the second round of the Royal Guard Open in Chile last week to down Carreno Busta in 1 hour, 25 minutes. On a day filled mostly with qualifying matches, fifth-seeded Marcel Granollers of Spain also entered the second with a 7-5, 3-6, 6-2 win over Aljaz Bedene of Slovenia, while Guido Pella of Argentina defeated Guillermo Garcia-Lopez of Spain 7-6 (6), 6-4 to advance. http://www.jerseyscustom.us/ . The team said Saturday that Lopez was hurt during its 121-120 overtime loss at Philadelphia on Friday. The Nets said they would issue another update next week after consultation with their doctors. Cheap Custom Jerseys . Radwanska, making her debut in the Seoul tournament, hit eight aces in a match that lasted 1 hour, 4 minutes at Olympic Park tennis stadium. "It was definitely a very good match -- I was playing really good tennis," Radwanska said. Custom Dallas Cowboys Jerseys . -- Charline Labonte couldnt have asked for a better homecoming. ATLANTA -- Taylor Gabriel plays as if hes got something to prove.No surprise there.Hes one of the smallest guys on the field and couldnt even keep a job with the winless Cleveland Browns.Landing firmly on his feet in Atlanta, Gabriel turned a couple of short passes into long touchdowns that sparked the Falcons to a 38-19 victory Sunday over the plummeting Arizona Cardinals.The 5-foot-8, 165-pound Gabriel was cut by the Browns just before the season. That motivated him even more after he was claimed off waivers by the Falcons.Im shorter than all you guys here, he told reporters gathered around his locker, so I have to play with a chip on my shoulder. I have to play bigger than I am. I have to go out there and show people what I can do on a week-to-week basis.Gabriel scored on plays of 35 and 25 yards that showed off his speed. His second score , with just under 9 minutes remaining, finished off the Cardinals, who began the season touted as a Super Bowl contender but have been one of the NFLs most disappointing teams.I felt like they were running in slow motion, Gabriel quipped.The Falcons (7-4) began the day leading the NFC South and moved a step closer to their first playoff berth since 2012.We recognize the opportunity we have at hand, coach Dan Quinn said.The Cardinals (4-6-1) have lost two straight and three of their past four, putting them in danger of missing the playoffs after reaching the NFC championship game last season.Coach Bruce Arians was on the sideline after falling ill and being briefly hospitalized early in the week, but it did little to inspire his team.Theres not much you can take positive from this game, Arizonas Larry Fitzgerald said.Arizona got off to a strong start, burning the Falcons for eight plays of at least 13 yards on its first two possessions for a 10-7 lead.The Falcons surged ahead late in the first half when Matt Ryan tossed a screen pass to Gabriel, who picked up a couple of key blocks and outran everyone else to the end zone for his first score.Arizona cut it to 17-13 when Chris Catanzaro hit a 54-yard field goal on the final play of the half, the Cardinals taking advantage of an interception off a bobbled pass by Atlanta star Julio Jones.The Cardinals never got any closer.Tevin Colemans 2-yard touchdown run capped a 113-play, 77-yard drive that extended Atlantas lead to 24-13 late in the third quarter.ddddddddddddThen it was Gabriel with the clinching score. He took another quick pass in the flat, sped down the left sideline and reached the pylon with a soaring dive.It was the kind of play that helped the Falcons counter Arizonas attacking defense, which came in ranked No. 1 in yards allowed.We felt his presence. We certainly felt his speed, Quinn said. When the other team wants to pressure and play aggressive, thats one of the weapons you use. Man, did he come up big for us.The Falcons finished with 360 yards, the most given up by the Cardinals since Week 1. No one has scored more points on Arizona this season.KEANUS HITAfter being fined for a vicious hit in Atlantas previous game, rookie safety Keanu Neal could be taking another blow to his wallet.Neal was penalized in the fourth quarter for unnecessary roughness against Fitzgerald.It looked as though both players lowered their helmets before making contact, but it was Neal picking up the flag.Neal was fined $24,309 for his helmet-to-helmet blow on Philadelphia receiver Jordan Matthews.INJURY REPORTArizona lost backup receiver John Brown to a hamstring injury, while Falcons defensive end Adrian Clayborn went down with a knee injury.Cardinals quarterback Carson Palmer was taken to the X-ray room at the Georgia Dome after the game, but it was apparently just a precautionary measure. He met with reporters at his locker and didnt mention any problems.Cornerback Patrick Peterson played the game with a sore left knee. He was called for two pass interference penalties trying to defend Jones, both of which contributed to scores.I dont know what the diagnosis is right now, but I cant put too much pressure on it, Peterson said.UP NEXTCardinals: Return home to face Washington next Sunday.Falcons: Host the Kansas City Chiefs, the only team remaining on Atlantas schedule with a winning record.---Follow Paul Newberry on Twitter at www.twitter.com/pnewberry1963 . His work can be found at http://bigstory.ap.org/content/paul-newberry .---For more NFL coverage: www.pro32.ap.org and www.twitter.com/AP-NFL ' ' '