The trip to Armenia may be challenging but St Johnstone defender Frazer Wright will relish every one of the 3,000 miles it takes to get there.
Wright will join his Saints teammates this morning for the six-hour flight from Edinburgh to Yerevan, where they will face Alashkert in the Europa League first qualifying round, first leg tie on Thursday night.
It may not be everyone’s idea of an enjoyable jaunt but Wright certainly won’t be asking impatiently “Are we there yet?” or moaning about turbulence.
Instead, he will sit in his plane seat counting his blessings as he embarks on yet another European adventure with the Perth side.
For it was just a few months ago that he thought his career was coming to an end because of a troublesome hip injury.
The chronic problem was making it impossible for him to play to a standard he himself was happy with and he feared the worst.
Then the former Kilmarnock man was given an injection that not only eased the pain but made it possible for him to turn more freely and run more quickly.
Now Wright is looking forward to facing the Armenians, confident that he can now do himself justice on the park.
“The difference in me now compared to six or eight months ago is incredible,” he said.
“I played in the European games last season and didn’t do myself justice because I was really struggling.
“It all hinged on getting the injection.
“If that worked I knew I had more to give but if it didn’t it was pretty much finished.
“My standards before the injection were nowhere near what I had produced previously and I was in a lot of pain.
“I couldn’t run and I couldn’t turn so I wouldn’t have wanted to go on like that.
“But the second half of the season was really good,
“I felt a hundred times better after getting the injection and was back to the standards I wanted.
“So from thinking I might have to chuck it, I’m now looking forward to another European campaign.
“It’s brilliant and I can’t wait.”
Wright has been happy with his form, not just from the latter part of last season but also in recent friendlies against Linfield and Aberdeen.
He said: “I have played two out of the three pre-season games so I would like to think I’m in the running for a place in the team this week.
“When I re-signed I knew it would be hard to get into the team but the way I’m looking at it is that I’m just going to give it a shot when I do play and take it from there.
“We have brought a few new, younger defenders in but I’m still here and I’ll be making it as hard as I can for them to get into the side.
“Games like this one in Armenia were a factor in why I stayed on and I’ve really loved it over the last three or four years.
“The Rosenborg game, because I scored the winner, is up there as the second best moment of my career after the Scottish Cup final.
“So although I know I’m not going to play every game here now, I couldn’t walk away from experiences like that.
“I had a few options but it was in the (Scottish) Championship and abroad, so if I’d taken those I would be looking forward to the Petrofac Cup rather than the Europa League.
“The European nights have been really special and they’re the kind of thing you want to be involved in as a player.
“Hopefully, we can keep our decent record going and get through a few rounds at least.”
Wright and his colleagues will have to cope with searing heat in Yerevan.
He is ready for that particular challenge, though, saying: “It’s going to be hot across there but as long as we get enough fluids into us and listen to what the doctor says then it should be find.
“We have experienced it before in Luzern, Minsk and Turkey so it’s nothing new to us.
“It’s just another thing you have to consider when you play in European football.
“In European football any sort of result away from home is a good one, so if we can keep a clean sheet and nick a goal then we’ll be happy.
“It’s going to be difficult because they’re all hard games in Europe but we’ve had a good pre-season and the boys are looking forward to it.”