His junior club was the Foxton Rebels and he later played for the Central Falcons in the Bartercard Cup.

Thorby mainly played for St George Illawarra's feeder club (the Shellharbour Dragons) as a Prop.

In 2012 Thorby was a stand-out in North Queensland's pre-season and trials and was rewarded with an 18th man spot in the club's round 4 clash against the Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks.

Thorby made his first appearance for North Queensland's round 5 game against the Canberra Raiders, he replaced Co-Captain Matthew Scott and ran for an impressive 94 metres off the bench.

In round 8 2012, Thorby was rewarded with player of the match award with The anzac teddy for his strong carries.