"I Wouldn't Be Able To Pick Up My Kids Again"

Speaking on the Triple M Weekenders with Dobbo and Margaux Parker, Johnathan Thurston has opened up about the devastating news he received in being ruled out for 2017, as well as the gravity of the injury that's sidelining him.

JT re-injured his shoulder during QLD's win over NSW in Origin II on Wednesday night, which will go down as the final rep performance of his career.

"It's been a rollercoaster of emotions the moment," Thurston said.

"One minute I'm good and then the next I'm thinking about the game and about missing Origin and the rest of the season.

"I start feeling sick and want to cry, and then I see my girls and I'm happy again.

"I'm devastated, but that's footy.

"I did ask (whether I could play game three), and the advice they gave me was that I could, but if the tear get any bigger than the quality of your life post-football isn't going to be great.

"I probably wouldn't be able to pick my kids up and things like that.

"While I would love to be there for game three, I would prefer to be able to pick my kids up a thousand times over, so the decision was pretty easy.

"In the end, as much as I'm shattered, life after football is not far away. And that was the decision."

Thurston revealed that he's looking to have surgery next week sometime, and still has to speak with the doctors who will be operating.

"I thought my shoulder was pretty solid. I obviously played the game against Parra and all the testing that I had to do strength-wise I'd passed with flying colours," JT said.

"So in my mind, my shoulder was right to go and it was just one of those things."