Warren Gatland may have Fiji to thank for his job as Wales head coach but he cannot afford to show mercy in Cardiff on Friday in the grip of the country's worst run of results for more than three years.

Welsh rugby fans still shudder at the mention of Fiji and the memory of the humiliating 38-34 shock defeat at the hands of the south sea islanders at the 2007 World Cup in France which led to the axing of coach Gareth Jenkins.

"I watched the game as a neutral and thought this was a great game of rugby," Gatland, who took over from Jenkins after the tournament, said.

"Fiji went out in front, Wales came back but from what I understand, the players didn't implement the game-plan, (they) tried to take Fiji on at their own game and came up short.

"I was back in New Zealand and not too worried about the result at the time but I have no doubt that if Wales had won that day and gone through to the quarter-finals, then there's a good chance I wouldn't be here as coach."

The defeat saw Wales sink to its lowest ever position in the world rankings - tenth - following a decline that began with five successive defeats between November 2006 and Match 2007.

But having resurrected Welsh fortunes, Gatland last week suffered his fifth loss in a row - 29-25 to South Africa - and is desperate not to suffer the same fate as his predecessor against opponents he will face at next year's World Cup and with the shadow of facing New Zealand looming on the horizon next week.

"This is a massively dangerous game," said Gatland.

"We have been competing well against the best teams in the world but in the past, the criticism has been that Wales haven't turned up mentally for games they are expected to win.

Fiji also had the chance to reminisce in Nantes last weekend, though they lost 34-12 to France.

Visa issues have prevented two players travelling with the squad to Wales, including experienced former Leicester Tigers centre Seru Rabeni, but Fiji coach Sam Demoni is able to call upon nine European-based players.

"Fiji will be stronger than they were against France because they will have had an extra week together," said Gatland.

"The poor weather conditions played a part for Fiji but the scoreline flattered France.

"It's hard to analyse them as a team, it's more about individuals. We have to concentrate on our own game. We said we want to improve every week and the players coming in are hungry to continue enthusiasm and intensity."

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