Since he pressed his career's fast-forward button late last season, it has become easy to forget that there are a lot of things Finn Russell still hasn't done in rugby.

The Glasgow Warrior finished the 2013/14 campaign as his side's first-choice playmaker, was picked for the PRO12 final and was then chosen to start the first two Tests of Scotland's summer tour, but even that stratospheric rise left a few boxes unticked.

He dealt with a couple of those items in Montpellier on Saturday, when he experienced rugby in France for the first time and made his first European start.

It was, of course, a hugely satisfying afternoon, as Russell's five nervelessly-converted penalties provided all the points in Warriors' 15-13 win, but he now has his sights set on other things.

Almost unbelievably, the 22-year-old has never played at Murrayfield. Well, not at senior level at least. "I think I played there in a final when I was younger," Russell offered, his vagueness forgivable in the excited aftermath of the Warriors' win in the Altrad Stadium.

So how would he fancy the gig as a grown-up? "That would be good," he smiled.

It would also be Scotland coach Vern Cotter's call. Cotter named two other fly-halves, Duncan Weir and Tom Heathcote, in his autumn international squad last week and will soon have to decide which of the three should play against Argentina on November 8. Russell has the versatility to play at inside-centre as well, which might suggest that a place on the bench is beckoning, but there could be just as strong a case for sticking him straight into the starting XV, as Townsend did on Saturday before moving him into the midfield when Alex Dunbar retired.

If, as all the runes suggest, Cotter is looking to play a quick game, along Glasgow lines, then Russell could well get the nod. The national coach had nothing but good words to say about him after he made his debut against the USA last June, and is clearly untroubled by his relative lack of experience.

"You wouldn't think it was his first cap, because he played with such confidence and composure," said Cotter after Russell had anchored the Scots' 24-6 victory.

"You just have to take it as it comes," said Russell, who also played in the win over Canada. "We go into camp with Scotland this week, so I'll just take it from there. But I've had a decent bit of game time over the past couple of weeks, which is brilliant for me going into the autumn Tests.

"There is a lot of competition at stand-off with Tom and Duncie, who are both quality players, there as well. I'll train as hard as I can and let the coach make the decisions."

Glasgow's famous victory over Toulouse in 2009 was their only Heineken Cup victory on French soil. Now, having put down such a powerful marker against Montpellier in the new Champions Cup, their next assignment is a return trip to Toulouse in early December. Five years ago, there was a suspicion that the four-time European champions had underestimated Warriors; after last weekend, that is not going to happen again.

As with Scotland, Russell is not getting ahead of himself, but the buzz of European competition is getting to him. "The whole thing was a great experience," he enthused. "To come away with a win like that, from such a tight game that could have gone either way, was just brilliant. The boys dug in so well.

"We were under pressure a bit early in the second half, but we came through and that was down to the whole team. The defence was amazing. Montpellier got their penalty try right at the end, but apart from that we shut them out for the whole game.

"It's a credit to the boys for sticking in, digging deep during that period and holding them out.

"It will be very tough going over to Toulouse. They've won two from two as well, so both teams are on a high. But it's still a few weeks away, and Treviso in the PRO12 next weekend is the focus now.

"We will get round to thinking about Toulouse at the right time."

Gregor Townsend, the Glasgow coach, was just as impressed by Russell's level-headedness in France as Cotter had been in Texas.

"He put in a very mature performance," said Townsend. "It was only his second start of the season as he was coming back from a shoulder injury. We managed him so he could get as much rehab and build as much muscle on that shoulder as possible.

"He learned a lot when we lost to Ulster a couple of weeks ago. Against Montpellier, some of his kicking and decisions were excellent."

There are still a couple of old heads around Scotstoun, but the Glasgow squad has a remarkably callow look to it at the moment. Yet players who might one have gone into European competition as lambs to the slaughter now go with the confidence of being Guinness PRO12 front-runners.

There is not a hint of arrogance about Russell, but nor has his experience to date given him any reason to doubt the potential of the team he plays for. "It's great to be involved in these big occasions," Russell smiled. "Twelve months ago I was playing for Ayr. It's a bit of a difference. The whole year has been absolutely brilliant."