North Cairns Tigers hope opposition sides will have two Thornes to contend with rather than one with the club keen for Northern Territory star, Shane, to join captain, Travis, at Watsons Oval next season.
The Thornes played their first game in yellow-and-black together at the weekend with younger sibling Travis a standout, kicking five goals in a narrow loss to Cairns City Lions.
Tigers coach Tait Giffard said Shane’s presence brought the best out in the skipper.
“I think ‘Trav’ definitely saved his best for this week,” Giffard said. “He walks a little bit taller when he’s captain of his big brother. Shane makes a massive difference. He brings that x-factor into the forward line that we don’t have at the moment.
“We’d like him to come back because I think we need to bring in a few older, wiser heads to help our young blokes.”
LITTLE BRO: North Cairns Tigers’ Travis Thorne gets a kick away against South Cairns. PICTURE: BRENDAN RADKE
The NTFL premiership star, who was a surprise inclusion for Tigers, returns to the Territory with an open invitation to pull on the boots whenever he’s available.
“‘Trav’ asked me about Shane playing a couple of weeks ago,” Giffard said. “He’s been the captain in an underperforming side and done a lot for our footy club. I thought it was nice that he could play alongside his brother.”
BIG BRO: Shane Thorne leaps over the pack in an NTFL game for Wanderers.
The Tigers will likely play talented junior Hunter Simpson in the elder Thorne’s absence against Manunda Hawks next weekend.
“Hunter’s played four senior games and is going to be a very good player,” Giffard said. “He dominates at junior level.
“We’ll play him on the wing as he grows into senior footy. He’s very quick and we’re not blessed with a lot of speed in our side.”
Meanwhile, Cairns Saints tyro Kanja Kamara will undergo scans on his knee today after injuring himself during Saturday night’s win over Hawks at Cazalys.
