KEY POINTS:
It is rugby league's most exclusive club. The Immortals number just seven but New Zealand Rugby League director of football Graham Lowe wants that number increased by one.
And he's not beating Andrew Johns' drum, but the Warriors' very own Steve Price.
"Steve Price should be made a
member of the Immortals," Lowe said. "He stands apart from all other front rowers in the game. I know it's a different era and his role is slightly different from 20 years ago, but what he's doing at the moment is nothing short of remarkable.
"It's not like he's just a little bit better than the rest."
There are only seven Immortals, Australia's greatest players. Clive Churchill, Bob Fulton, Reg Gasnier, and Johnny Raper were selected in the original group in 1985. Graeme Langlands, Wally Lewis and Arthur Beetson have since been added.
Price had another monster game for the Warriors in their Friday night demolition of the Panthers.
He made 220m, 26 hitups, 25 tackles, six offloads and played for 72-straight minutes, a rarity for a prop.
"Steve Price ticks every box," Lowe said. "It's just everything about him. He represents what this game is all about.
"He has set the benchmark for all young front rowers in the game. If you name the most consistent players off the top of your head, Steve Price is first, second and third."
The ultra-modest front rower was gobsmacked to hear Lowe's comments. "I should be become an immortal? I don't know about that," he said. "They are quite outstanding, those guys in that group. I think there are players who are way before me, like Darren Lockyer and Andrew Johns.
"No. It's very nice for him to say that, very nice, but I don't think I'm anywhere near that. I'm really happy with how things are going and I would like to finish on the highest note when I do finish."
Former Origin teammate Ben Ikin said joining the Immortals might be a stretch, but he was happy for Price to take the plaudits that came his way.
"Immortals are guys who have changed the game and defined a generation. It's the cricket equivalent of Shane Warne," he said.
"I'm happy for Graham Lowe to say things like that because it shows how highly valued he is over there even though he's an Australian."
Price is in the form of his life, steamrolling the New South Wales' forwards in Origin I and II and almost single-handedly dragging his struggling Warriors to respectability.
However, he is not even leading the charge for the Dally M medal, the NRL's most prestigious individual honour voted for annually.
After round 14, Wests Tigers hooker Robbie Farah was leading the polls, which become hidden after round 16, with 25 points. Price has 14, a total that puts him behind Johnathan Thurston, Cameron Smith, Greg Bird, Scott Prince, Danny Buderus and Kurt Gidley.
"He's got to be a major contender for the Dally M Player of the Year, particularly if the Warriors can get on a roll," Lowe said. "I can't remember the last front rower who won the award because most are prone to injury or get in trouble with referees.
"Steve Price has reinvented himself. I think he's a better player now than when he was younger, and he was a fantastic player then."
Ikin said it was extremely difficult for props to make much headway with the judges.
"Traditionally, players in his position don't tend to win awards like this. Normally they go to the ball players and guys who grab the headlines. But he's grabbed a few [headlines] himself this season and has had some wonderful performances.
"I was blown away with his performance against the Sharks three days after State of Origin. He's in career-best form at an age when most players in his position start to wind down a bit. If he keeps going the way he is, there's no reason why he can't win it."
Price is philosophical. "I've never got anything there except captain of the year and I think I got that because I had to deal with a couple of issues at the Bulldogs. I have two of those.
"It's something that's in the back of your mind only because it's the elite of the competition," he said. "It's a bit hard because it's someone's opinion every week so there are times when you play well and you don't get any points and others when you do when you probably don't think you play well."
If Price has his critics, it is those who say he is a one-dimensional metre-eater, an argument with which Lowe couldn't disagree more.
"One of the most important things about Steve is that he is someone that can break the line as well. He's not just a yardage player."
* Should Steve Price be made an immortal or is Graham Lowe off his rocker? Email: michael.brown@heraldonsunday.co.nz.