The NRL have confirmed they will name another Immortal in August, and reports have already jumped to the conclusion that Cameron Smith and Johnathan Thurston are in the mix.

That comes with the NRL altering the rules, allowing players to be addmitted to the Hall of Fame just three years after their retirement.

There is little doubt that Smith and Thurston will be among the group of players added to the Hall of Fame at the ceremony, with a fair chance Billy Slater and Cooper Cronk will join them.

But the NRL simply can not admit any of those players as Immortals yet. The Immortals concept is supposed to recognise the greatest players in the history of the game, and while there is little doubt those players are going to be there one day, now would be too soon.

They were widely panned for adding Andrew Johns too early back in 2012, and can't afford to make the same mistake here, particularly given the number of other candidates who should be considered from previous generations, including one of Johns' great rivals.

Here are ten players the NRL should be considering for the next Immortal spot.

This story was originally published in July.

8. Terry Lamb

Lamb will go down as one of the Bulldogs' greatest-ever players.

A legend of the Belmore-based side, Lamb started his career at Western Suburbs in 1980, playing 88 games for the club before shifting to the Bulldogs in 1984.

There he would go on to play 262 game through to the end of 1996, playing eight Origins and seven Tests. Unlucky not to play more representative rugby league, Lamb won the competition with the Bulldogs in 1984, 1988 and 1995, while also taking out the Dally M Medal in 1983.

He was a seven-time Dally M five-eighth of the year in 1983, 1984, 1986, 1987, 1991, 1992 and 1993, and scored a staggering 164 tries throughout his 350-game top-flight career.