Peterhead midfielder Hamish Ritchie has penned a new one-year deal with the Blue Toon.
Ritchie, who is currently out with a long-term knee injury, will now be tied to Peterhead until the summer of 2024.
The 25-year-old has missed the majority of this season after sustaining cruciate ligament damage in the League Cup tie against Aberdeen.
After a spell out in America, Ritchie returned to the north-east in 2020 with Inverurie Locos. However with the Highland League season curtailed due to the pandemic, he initially joined Cove Rangers on loan before a similar spell with Peterhead.
He helped the Blue Toon stay up in League One and manager Jim McInally brought him to the club on a permanent deal in 2021.
The new contract gives him the security of being able to get himself fit without worrying about his future.
Ritchie told the Peterhead website: “The extension to my contract has come at a great time for me. I can concentrate fully on getting fit again without having to worry about my footballing future. I know what I need to do to get back and I can do that without thinking about rushing back in a bid to prove myself.
“My knee is getting stronger all the time and I am now working with the club physio three times a week for it to get even stronger. My target is to have a full pre-season behind me and build on that.
“I have been injured before but never for as long as this and never to this extent. It is frustrating watching the team and not being able to help them get results.”
