CHRIS DEAN admits that he did have concerns about not being offered a contract renewal with hometown club Edinburgh after a combination of Covid, injury and team selection limited his pre-Christmas appearances this season to just nine minutes in total, spread over two matches against Benetton and Zebre in mid-October.
However, the 28-year-old needn’t have worried. During the six and a half years since making his debut for the capital club, his work-rate and leadership – both on and off the field – has established the centre as a key member of the squad, and the value of experienced campaigners who are not going to be called away on international duty for long swathes of the season meant that re-signing Dean was a no-brainer as far as head coach Mike Blair was concerned.
