SOFTLY-spoken and mild mannered off the field, yet a human wrecking ball on it, Warriors number eight Semisi Taulava has let his rugby do the talking since bursting onto the Aviva Premiership scene.

Having arrived at Sixways via stints at Worthing, Birmingham & Solihull and Rotherham Titans, Taulava belied his imposing 6ft 5ins frame to slip under the radar on joining Warriors.

With the likes of former England men Dean Schofield and Paul Hodgson, as well as fellow international stars David Lemi and Nikki Walker all joining Worcester last summer, the Tongan back-rower understandably didn’t initally steal the headlines when he arrived.

However, that is all beginning to change as the 29-year-old man-mountain, who has appeared in each of Worcester’s Premiership matches so far this season, continues to catch the eye with his power-packed performances.

Taulava said: “I’ve got Blair Cowan and Richard de Carpentier breathing down my neck, so I’m doing my utmost to make sure I play every week.

“There’s healthy competition between us all and that is only a good thing for the club. I feel I’ve improved so much since the start of the season and that’s down to the input of the coaches.

“I’ve learnt more about what I should be eating and how I should be training. So I’m happy with the way I’ve started my Warriors career.

“I’ve loved every minute here. The lads have been wonderful and they’ve really helped with my transition from the Championship to the Premiership.

“The coaches are outstanding and I’m learning every day. They’ve put a lot of faith in me and I can’t thank them enough for the opportunity they’ve given me.”

Having had to work hard to finally make it to the top level of English rugby, Taulava certainly doesn’t take his success for granted. He was a supply physical education teacher at Angmering School in West Sussex during his time with Worthing on the south coast, before working in a factory in Redditch when he made the move to the West Midlands.

He added: “I was injured for over two years when I was playing rugby in New Zealand and I realised that everyone was going to work.

“So when I moved to Worthing I knew that if I wanted to earn a living, I would have to work for it.

“That was the best time for me because I was able to go out and meet people and I began to realise what I could actually do. That gave me a huge amount of confidence.

“When I was at Rotherham I spent an hour every day reading to disabled children at a school.

“I loved doing that and it was inspirational to see these amazing people who were making the most of life in difficult circumstances.”