Being at the right place at the right time can mean so much.
Jonnie Hughes knows all about that.
Earlier in the year the 25-year-old Dunedin man was in Queenstown playing for the South Pacific Raiders when he was spotted by South Island selector Tai Arona.
Arona was there to watch four of his team-mates when Hughes caught his attention.
After the game, Arona walked up to Raiders coach David Reedy and asked him who the guy was in the No 7 jersey.
"He played a really good game and was the best player on the park", Reedy said.
In August, Hughes played in the trial in Christchurch and was sitting in a car with his team-mates when he was given the news he had been picked in the South Island 25-man squad.
Hughes played centre in the trial but is very much a utility and prefers stand off most of all.
He said he was proud when he knew he had made the South Island side but was also disappointed for his team-mates who missed out.
The first thing Hughes did was text his partner, Amanda Gray, and give her the good news.
"There was a lot of exclamation marks, it was full of happiness, he was really proud," she said.
Hughes said there was no way he would have been picked if it was not for Reedy and his Raiders team-mates, who had helped him out immensely in his first full year of rugby league.
Reedy said Hughes was the type of player anyone would want in their side.
"He has a good skill set and is a competitive person. He is driven to succeed."
Hughes was born in Dunedin but moved to Auckland when he was 9 after his parents separated.
He went to live with his mother and attended Northcote Intermediate and Northcote High School.
While in Auckland he developed a taste for basketball and was forever playing at school or on the street in his spare time.
To this day he still enjoys shooting hoops, whether it be with his Raiders mates or on computer games.
Hughes moved back to Dunedin in 2003 and lived with his father.
He went to Logan Park High School and played rugby for the first XV before going on to play for the Otago Maori colts in 2003-2005 and Otago Maori seniors in 2008-2009.
He began playing for the Harbour rugby club in 2006 and was a member of its premier side until 2010 before playing for the Zingari Richmond premiers this year.
He played first five-eighth, second five, centre and fullback.
Hughes credits former Harbour coach and long-time friend Doug Manu with developing his skills.
"He kept me under his wing and knew I was passionate about sport. He taught me to think on my feet."
Manu is coaching the Raiders in the Dunedin spring competition, while Reedy is coaching the Otago Whalers.
He said Hughes was a gifted athlete with a fierce competitive streak and the type of player who could win a game.
Dunedin personal trainer Adam Keen has been writing up programmes for Hughes for the past two years.
He said Hughes was very committed, loved to compete and would not take a backward step.
He was a "genetic freak" with tons of power and agility.
Hughes said he would stick with rugby league and if he could get higher honours then that would be pleasing, but his priorities were to finish his studies at Otago University.
He is taking anthropology and Pacific Islands studies, which he hopes will lead to a job in the social services sector.
Hughes and Gray welcomed a boy into their lives three months ago and he is determined to give baby Ezra the best of opportunities to succeed in life.
"Family and education are the focus."
