Hogg’s timing could not have been any better

He was dropped when he was found to be having talks with Ulster, but since then he has been one of the first on the teamsheet for Gregor Townsend and his fine form has also transferred onto the international stage.

Why consider making high-profile ‘marquee’ signings when you have one of your own, homegrown talents?

The SRU have done well to keep Hogg in the Scottish game. Yet I wonder how much pressure this is putting on the governing body’s finances?

With the EGM coming up at the end of the month – and a motion to sanction the ‘selling off’ of Glasgow and Edinburgh – any new owner will have to take on the obligations of the contracts of players signed to Edinburgh and Glasgow, along with their salaries.

Hogg’s timing could not have been better.

The re-signing of one of rugby’s superstars is a real fillip for the game in Scotland. But it does still indicate a concern that the governing body wants to be in control of its key people.

Mark Dodson took a similar stance with Gregor Townsend’s appointment to coach – the fear that he might move somewhere outside of Scotland causing Dodson to act without taking a more strategic view of Townsend’s development.

The same could have been said of the situation with Hogg. Perhaps he was always destined to stay in Scotland, given his love of his native Hawick. We shall never know.