A former representative playmaker for the Kangaroos and NSW Blues and current coach of the Brisbane Broncos, Kevin Walters has predicted which ex-player should become the next Immortal.
The NRL confirmed last week that a 14th Immortal will be inducted for the first time since 2018 and join a prestigious list that presently includes 13 rugby league legends.
Clive Churchill, Bob Fulton, Reg Gasnier and Johnny Raper were the first four Immortals inducted. They would be followed by Graeme Langlands, Wally Lewis, Arthur Beetson, Andrew Johns, Dave Brown, Frank Burge, Mal Meninga, Dally Messenger and Norm Provan.
As the countdown begins to the next Immortal being selected, several former players, coaches and pundits have had their say on who will be the next inductee.
After a 292-game career in the NRL for the Canberra Raiders and Brisbane Broncos, Walters believes Allan Langer should become the next Immortal.
Langer is one of the leading candidates alongside Ron Coote, Peter Sterling, Brett Kenny, and Ken Irvine.
However, a change in eligibility rules means several modern-era players, such as Darren Lockyer, Cameron Smith, and Johnathan Thurston, could be chosen instead.
“It is pretty clear in my head that Allan Langer is very much underrated as far as elite players go and Immortal players,” Walters said.
“There is nothing he didn't do on the field for the Broncos, whether it was captaining the club to four premierships or captaining Queensland to series wins or for Australia.
“But my opinion doesn't go far these days. He was the money man. That was a thing among all the players at the Broncos through that era.
“A lot of us would go to the bank and put our card in and there was no money coming out, but Alfie always has something, particularly late in games.
“When he went to the machine there was always something coming out which I can remember so clearly.
“They have got a statue of him ... all they have got to do now is make him Immortal.”
A former captain of the Brisbane Broncos, Langer starred in four premierships with the club and would win the Clive Churchill Medal and Rothmans Medal in 1992.
One of the best Queensland players to ever wear the No.7 jumper, Langer appeared in 338 matches for the Ipswich Jets, Brisbane Broncos and Warrington Wolves between 1986 to 2002.
He also made 37 appearances for Queensland in the State of Origin arena and played 25 matches for the Australian Kangaroos.
