England v Fiji: Flying Fijian Vereniki Goneva on the rise for Leicester Tigers For it is not just about the talent. That has always been a given since Waisale Serevi, Fiji's unsurpassable sevens genie who had become national coach, spotted Goneva and quickly drafted him in to the squad. The man from Lautoka, in the heart of Fiji's sugar cane-growing region, has always had the ability, on his day, to turn games with the sweetest touch. As with those four tries he waltzed past Namibia in a World Cup match last year. Just a few months before that, there was the extraordinary solo score from his own half in Dunedin against the All Blacks which, featuring two outrageous chips and chase, made Goneva look part-Lomu and part-Messi. But forget the talent; Cockerill was more interested in the attitude. When he went to talk to Goneva at Tarbes, while the bigger, top-tier French clubs were by now sniffing around him too, he tried to give his target every reason why he shouldn't join Leicester. "I told him it would be hard, wet, cold, and lots of contact training but each time, he'd say "no, no, Leicester's the place I want to play,"" recalls Cockerill. He'd spoken to Seru Rabeni (Leicester's previous Fijian favourite) who urged him to go. There is no doubt Goneva arrived like a man who really felt this was the chance of a lifetime, quickly being voted Leicester's player of the month for September after his first five games had seen him rack up five tries. Yet what persuades Cockerill that Goneva is really made of the right stuff was his reaction to his first real setback at Leicester, when dropped to the replacements" bench for last weekend's Premiership clash against Northampton Saints. An impetuous offload in midfield which resulted in a soft match-sealing try for Toulouse in the Heineken Cup had been a frustrating reminder amid the brilliance that this scorer of 13 tries in 26 Tests was still a novice in this level of club rugby. "I'd asked him to be a little bit more accurate at the breakdown and in contact and he hadn't really got any better so it was time to drop him," explained Cockerill. He understood, took it with good grace and when he came on after half-time, he wasn't sulking but only wanting to go out there and prove his point. Which Goneva did. Almost immediately. Fair play to him, he made his tackles, lost nothing in contact and made a dramatic impact, making the break to set up the winning try. Yes, more of that gold dust. Niki's another popular Pacific Islander here. A really good bloke. Quiet, industrious, appreciated by his team-mates, God-fearing, but not too God-fearing out there when they hit you! He's been great for us so far and though areas of his game need improvement, he's working hard at getting better all the time. We can all see the ability but I think it's his determination to succeed which could make him outstanding.