On Monday night Thurston joined Immortal Andrew Johns as only the second player in history to collect three Dally M player-of-the-year awards, sharing the 2014 honour with Parramatta’s Jarryd Hayne.

Thurston now has an opportunity to push for a fourth, an achievement which would make his case to join Johns as a future Immortal almost impossible to ignore.

However, the 31-year-old has indicated he only has three seasons left in the game before he hangs up the boots, and played down his chances of taking out the game’s highest individual honour again.

But despite flagging that the end is coming, Thurston has declared he’s confident he won’t leave Townsville without guiding the Cowboys to that elusive maiden premiership triumph.

‘‘Yeah 100 per cent. Without a shadow of a doubt,’’ Thurston said.

‘‘I’m sure there’s every person in the competition that would say that too and it all starts again for us in November.

‘‘We’ll be doing our best to do that and we’re no different to the other clubs, we want to win the premiership.’’

But Thurston is less bullish about a fourth Dally M.

‘‘Look to win one is such a huge honour and here I am beside an Immortal [Johns],’’ he said.

‘‘I’m so happy and I’ve got my teammates to thank for that.

‘‘I’ve only got three years left so I don’t think there’s [time for] another one.’’

Pressed on his retirement plans, Thurston tried to remain coy.

‘‘Oh never say never but we’ll just have to wait and see,’’ he said.

Thurston and Hayne both polled 32 Dally M points, becoming the first shared winners’ of the award since it was first handed out in 1980.

The Queensland and Australian five-eighth said he was honoured, but outlined the hurt the Cowboys are going through after being knocked out of the finals in agonising circumstances for the third year running.

‘‘It’s been tough. The way we got knocked out has made it tougher,’’ he said.

‘‘It needs to be a massive learning curve for our club.’’