Mark Graham

Named as the New Zealand Player of the Century in 2007, Graham will be the first Kiwi inducted into the NRL Hall of Fame after a playing career which began at Norths Devils in the Brisbane competition in 1979 and finished in England where he captained Wakefield Trinity in the 1988-89 season.

In between Graham played eight seasons for the North Sydney Bears and earned a reputation as one of the game's greatest second rowers at both club and Test level, where he captained the Kiwis on 18 occasions.

Graham was Captain Marvel and the Six Million Dollar Man wrapped into one.

Author John Coffey Modern Kiwi Greats

"It's a wonderful honour and I think this is more a recognition of the people who put time and effort into me - the coaches and managers - from the time I was five or six years old," Graham said.

Graham's mentor was Graham Lowe, who he followed from Auckland to Brisbane and continued to play under for most of his illustrious Test career with the Kiwis.

"He is a fellow who believed in me," Graham said. "I actually played with him in the third grade comp in New Zealand. He was our player-coach and out of that side there would have three or four Kiwis [internationals] and he taught us a great deal.

"He was a very good coach and a good mate of mine. He was coaching in Brisbane and he said would you like to come over and have a game. We ended up winning the comp and from there I went to North Sydney the next year.

"I captained the Kiwis in 1980 on the tour to England and France, and I was lucky enough to do that several times but I just played footy with my mates. I was lucky enough to get some recognition."

Among his team-mates at Norths was Lyons, who began his career with the Bears before joining Manly.

"He was a marvellous footy player, he had great vision," Graham said. "Cliffy was a player who saw something and played what he saw. He could play tough and hard, he could play skilful, was a good defender, a good passer of the ball and read the game."