I can remember seeing Mal Meninga and various other members of the 82 Roos doing something similar in training sessions when they were based in Leeds, except with drop kicks rather than place kicks.

a lad i used to play with could back heel them over

...well, they might have had a chance, but now the clip is off that video sharing site, because of a copyright claim by the NRL partnership (it was first published on nrl.com). Classic RL, always shooting a gift horse in the mouth.

The NRL really needs to sort itself out with its BigPond content deal. Pathetic from both the NRL and BigPond, seeing as those outside Aus can't probably watch it now.

So damn short sighted

The NRL/ARL being too short sighted to see beyond its own back yard? Never...

Pity he couldn't kick them in the Cup Final.

I can knock them over with my d1ck.




In the snow, from the halfway line with the ref in the way.

Beat that.

Do you want to play with me?

This video on the Sun's website won't be in breach of anything I wouldn't think: www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/sp ... -flag.html

This video on the Sun's website won't be in breach of anything I wouldn't think: www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/sp ... -flag.html

Aussies are brought up with Aussie rules as a big part of their culture, such a similar game to rugby but with more emphasis on kicking... could explain why their kicking game appears superior...

Aussie rules is kicking out of hand in a straight line-punt

Thurston is kicking of the floor whilst bending it

Can you think of a link as I cant.

You say appears superior is that a cop out as your assessment is nonsense?

Not really, i say "appears" as we only rarely are able to compare them agiaingst each other, in internationals or wcc. Regardless of wether its off the floor or out of hand, the technique is very similar, hense i recon you could easily train a footballer to be a great rugby kicker in no time.

Are there many better kickers than Sinfield for example

Or Brough out of hand

Maybe not, just suggesting that playing aussie rules from an early age probably helps their rugby kicking. Maybe football helps ours. At my ammateur team i would say the best kickers are also the 1s that were goot at footy

If you knew the australian sporting landscape, you know this wouldnt have anything to do with it. There is very little cross over between the two

Football and union perhaps.

Usually where league is played, aussie rules isnt and vice versa. (NSW, QLD traditional rugby states) (VIC, SA, WA, Tas, AFL)

Surely the best kicker is the one who lands the best percentage of his kicks, if Thurston is the highest then you have to say he is the best.

I would qualify this to be only regular kickers who would be first choice and not a stand in kicker who takes thre a year.

...but being a HKR fan you wouldn't consider where teams score tries would you. Maybe the better faster teams score more under the sticks, but hey thats complex

Look at the record books, David Watkins hold the world record for kicks in a season, I cannot see where it attaches marks ups for degrees of difficulty. I would imagine that over the course of a season most kickers will have a varying degree of posiotions to kick from.

Phil Clarke wasnt born then

Forgot about him, he would add a factor 1.789 for all kicks within 1 to 3 mtrs of the touch and between angles of less than 20%, plus more if he's from Wiggin

Best goal kicker? Depends on the criteria. Amazing kick from Thurston, but his 'did you get that on camera' quote suggests it's a bit of a one-off, and done of course under absolutely no pressure.

I read somewhere he did it 3 or 4 times in the same session so he got someone to record one of them. Thurston is a great goal kicker but I have seen him miss one or 2 pretty easy chances too for North Queensland Cowboys so he is only human. Well I hope he is tomorrow night anyway.

Never likely to be either, cannot see anyone opting to convert from there

Wonder what the odds on him having a go would be if Australia are 20+ points in front with just a few mins to go and Inglis scores in the corner?

Kudos to him if he tried it

I'd like to see him give it a go

I'd go along with this.

When all is said and done, no matter what the style, actually being successful and getting the points is what they are kicking for first and foremost.

I do think that the overhead catching in the Aussie game is helped by the same methods used in Aussie rules and I think that the Aussies having had a go at Aussie rules at some point when growing up are far more comfortable with an overhead catch from a cross kick than their British counterparts. Take Pat Richards for example.