John Kennedy has vowed to repay the 'huge' support Celtic have shown him by fulfilling the promise he showed before his career was crudely interrupted.
The Celtic defender has signed a new three-year contract with the Bank of Scotland Premier League champions after recovering from a career-threatening injury.
Kennedy spent three years on the sidelines after damaging knee ligaments on his debut for Scotland against Romania in March 2004.
The 23-year-old underwent four operations at the surgery of American sports injury specialist Dr Richard Steadman.
His shattered knee was rebuilt and he returned to the Celtic first team last Sunday as the Hoops clinched the SPL title against Kilmarnock.
Now he aims to become a fixture in Gordon Strachan's side.
Kennedy said: 'The manager describe it as a bit of fairytale at the start of the week and it's certainly carried on from there.
'Things are done and dusted with the contract, I've signed a three-year deal and I'm very happy.
'I've put the last three years behind me, today is a massive step and the club have shown a great deal of faith in me throughout my injury.
'I'm delighted to have put pen to paper and now I can get on with the football side of things.
'Being at a club of this stature certainly helped. They showed faith in me, they stood behind me every step of the way and never questioned anything.
'I owe a great deal to everyone here, the physios, the doctor, the manager, everyone.
'The way I want to repay them is by getting back out on to the park.
'The support they showed me was huge. It might not have happened at another club, especially because of the length of time I spent out of the game.
'This is another goal achieved for me and now I need to repay the club.
'I got injured as a young boy but I've got time to progress and I can get better and better.
'I always had the belief I would get back, I never thought it would pan out in such a week as this. It's been a fairytale for myself, my family, everyone at the club seems to be buzzing by it.
'I just want to put the past behind me and push on and get my career back on track.
'There is no point dwelling on the past, I've got over it and just need to look forward.
'When I broke down in training was a low point. I'd already had three surgeries on my knee and I was just back for a few days when I broke down again.
'But as soon as it happened the club had me back in America within four days and once again the club was there for me again. They've spent a lot of time getting me to where I am today.
'That was the lowest point, but in America got my spirits up and concentrated on getting back.
'I did have a few 'why me?' moments, I kept that to myself as I didn't want my family to know as it was hard on them. I owe a great deal to them.'
Kennedy also thanked Dr Steadman and revealed he plans to visit the surgeon during the summer.
He said: 'The amount of shirts and memorabilia that Dr Steadman has got gives you belief.
'He was surprised at the magnitude of the injury but was more than willing to take the challenge on and give it his best shot.
'I spent a lot of time there and it was a whole team effort. When I'm there in the summer I'll take time to visit him and pay my thanks.'
Kennedy aims to start challenging Stephen McManus, Steven Pressley and Darren O'Dea for a starting slot in the centre of the Hoops defence.
He said: 'You never know what's around the corner, I certainly learned that from my time out.
'I'll just push myself and see what happens, there is a lot of competition for places in my position.
'I hope to be in the starting XI next season, that's my ultimate aim. I've given myself small goals but now I'm fit and have to aim for big goals and that means getting back in the team.'
