Peter Murchie had no hesitation in extending his stay at Glasgow Warriors when the chance was offered, not least because the full-back's own emergence from obscurity epitomised all the elements that turned the club into a consistent force in the RaboDirect Pro12.
Joining them in 2009/10, the season in which they reached the inaugural league play-offs, the 26-year-old delivered such consistent performances as they repeated that feat last term that he forced himself into the Scotland reckoning.
"My game has come a long way since I came north to Glasgow and I'm delighted to have signed on for another three years," said the latest of a string of established Warriors to commit his future to the club. "I want to keep developing my game and this is the perfect place for me to do that. There is a huge amount of competition in the back-line at Scotstoun but that can only improve us as a group."
In spite of the vast array of back-three talent brought into the club this year, Murchie's increasing importance has been reflected in the fact he has played in all bar one of his club's Pro12 matches this season, as well as three of their four Heineken Cup games.
It was, then, little surprise that Stuart Hogg, the Scotland full-back, had to take a seat on the bench, while Sean Maitland, the club's big-money signing from Canterbury Crusaders, was shifted to the wing to accommodate Murchie's return for last weekend's meeting with Edinburgh. He played a full part in helping his side record a win, but believes better is to come in Murrayfield's wide open spaces.
"Conditions weren't ideal but we scored three good tries and that's testament to the way we want to play," he said. "We'd like to get running at Edinburgh in the second leg, so we hope the conditions are a little better and let us get the ball through the hands a bit more.
"We know we need a similar, if not better, performance but we're looking forward to getting out and showing what we can do."
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