Then he saw Mal Meninga. The Canberra Raiders captain that looked supremely confident he was about 90 minutes away from lifting the NSWRL premiership trophy. And lift it he did.

Now Meninga could become the first Immortal in Raiders history when two new inductees earn rugby league's highest honour at the NRL Hall of Fame ceremony in Sydney on Wednesday night.

Canberra coach Ricky Stuart will enter the Hall of Fame on the same night in a significant nod to the glory days of the Green Machine.

He will be the latest inclusion on the revered list of 106 players that features a host of Raiders greats in Meninga, Laurie Daley, Glenn Lazarus, Brad Clyde and Steve Walters.

Walters will never forget how calm Meninga was before big games - the hulking centre got used to it during a career that bore three premierships, 46 internationals and 32 State of Origin games.

"First and foremost always a good fella and a big beast. I think he really enjoyed it when he was made captain of the team, he enjoyed that role and having involvement there," Walters said.

"Like most of the really good ones I think he was a real competitor with a real calmness too. Leading into big games I found that good, he was always pretty calm but you knew he was looking forward to the game and prepared well like that.

"I’ve known him for a long time, we’ve been friends, and I’ve seen all his footy feats. Off the field I was lucky as well, working with him in the Origin camp the whole time so I’ve seen it all close at hand. I’m really excited for him."

The next two Immortals will be plucked from a shortlist including Dally Messenger, Frank Burge, Dave Brown, Brian Bevan, Duncan Hall, Ken Irvine, Norm Provan, Ron Coote, Meninga and Darren Lockyer.

Meninga faces stiff competition but Walters believes "he’ll be right in the reckoning" to join the game's most revered group.

If Lazarus was on the panel, he'd be an absolute certainty.

'The Brick With Eyes' also believes there is barely a player more deserving of Hall of Fame honours than Stuart, a three-time premiership-winning halfback and Dally M medallist.

"I don’t think we’ve ever seen another Ricky Stuart play the game," Lazarus said.

"I’ve never seen anyone able to pass the ball as good as him and direct a side around the park as good as him. He was unique.

"People argue about who is the best halfback and so forth, but no one has come along that would have anything on Ricky in regards to organising a team, running a team, kicking and passing, he was without a doubt the best at that.

"Ricky was obviously very well-known for his sledging. He never asked me to do anything on the footy field, he just told me to do it. I never, ever said no to him."

Lazarus thought back to the glory days just recently when an image former Raiders mentor and Hull Kingston Rovers coach Tim Sheens was beamed onto the screen.

Sheens was the man that steered the Green Machine to that grand final win in 1989 and he had just the right people on hand to kickstart a dynasty.

"People gave us no hope, we scraped in in '89, and they didn’t know we had people like Ricky and Mal there that were very determined," Lazarus said.

"Today people still say that’s the best grand final they’ve ever seen. It’s just a very wonderful and unique time in Canberra Raiders history - it was a very good time for the Raiders, it was good for me anyway."

Centre, Second-row. Souths (Brisbane) 1979-85, St. Helens 1984-85, Canberra Raiders 1986-94

Premierships: 1985 (Souths), 1989, 1990, 1994 (Canberra Raiders) Tests: 46

Meninga is a serial leader, captaining Queensland's State of Origin side from 1992-1994 and Australia for 23 Tests between 1990 and 1994; he is the only player to captain two Kangaroos tours. Handed the Raiders' captaincy in 1989 he led the club to its first ever premiership and backed it up the following year, before winning a third in his final first grade appearance. He would go on to coach the Raiders, but achieve much more success heading Queensland and the Kangaroos.

Halfback. Canberra Raiders 1988-99, Canterbury Bulldogs 2000

Premierships: 1989, 1990, 1994 (Canberra Raiders) Tests: 9

Stuart was one of the greatest halfbacks the game has seen, spearheading the Raiders to three premierships and orchestrating a host of Australian Test triumphs and NSW State of Origin series victories. Achieved the coveted Dally M/Rothmans Medal double in 1993 in the midst of Canberra’s golden era. He is now the head coach of the Raiders, having won a premiership with the Sydney Roosters before stints at Cronulla and Parramatta.