Heineken Cup quarter-finalists Leicester Tigers could soon be celebrating a New England star at Welford Road.

New Zealand-born and raised back-row forward Thomas Waldrom has just found out he qualifies for England courtesy of an English grandmother.

The former Crusaders No8 has had a major impact since arriving in the East Midlands this season and his international availability could be a huge boost to Martin Johnson ahead of the 2011 World Cup.

But while the news may be positive for Waldrom and for England, it does bring its difficulties for Leicester boss Richard Cockerill.

"Thomas came up to me looking excited and told me he had some good news to tell me. I was wondering if he had won the Lottery or whether his wife was pregnant,” Cockerill, who takes great pride in his players earning international recognition, told Martin Crowson of the Leicester Mercury.

"But then he told me that he qualifies to play for England because of his grandmother. I said to him: 'That is good news is it'?

"I already lose enough players to England as it is, and I thought I had three years' grace on residency rules before he disappeared. It's halved his value overnight!”

Waldrom has become a fans favourite at Welford Road thanks to his powerful ball-carrying exploits and his consistently committed performances for his new club.

The man nicknamed ‘Thomas the Tank Engine’ has made more starts than any other Tigers player this season, with Cockerill selecting Waldrom on 23 occasions so far this term.

The 27-year-old has featured in all six of Leicester’s Heineken Cup pool games, scoring tries in the home wins over the Scarlets and Benetton Treviso.

His dynamism from the base of the scrum and in the loose has been particularly impressive and his battle with Leinster No8 Jamie Heaslip is expected to have a considerable bearing on the outcome of April’s mouth-watering quarter-final in Dublin.

Cockerill has certainly been impressed with his new acquisition’s efforts but, despite winning four man of the match awards in the Aviva Premiership and picking up a Player of the Month accolade, Leicester’s director of rugby insists there is more to come from the Kiwi.

"When Tom's name came across my desk, I was interested because I'd seen him in the Super 14s,” added Cockerill.

"He carries the ball well and has good footwork, and I thought he would complement Jordan Crane in our back row. Tom's ball-carrying is as good as anyone's.

"But he needs to work on his tackle and his physicality around the breakdown. It is not as good as it needs to be when he is competing against the best players.

"Every player has areas they need to work on, though, and the balance of our pack means we can afford to have Jordan or Tom carrying the ball because we have other players who can do that bit more grunt."