New Edinburgh deal for Visser

The 24-year-old was already committed to staying on until 2013 under his previous deal, however the club wasted no time in ensuring that one of the most prolific scorers in northern hemisphere rugby stays until 2015. The news follows the recent signing of South African prop WP Nel from Super 15 side Free State Cheetahs for the same period as the club continues to invest in recruiting and retaining top performing players.

Head coach Michael Bradley said: "Tim is very much at home in Edinburgh and I'm sure that this announcement will make us the envy of many clubs in Europe. His consistency is what sets him apart. Year after year he has surpassed his own remarkable achievements and that desire, passion and ability is exactly what we look for in all of our players.

"This is a very exciting time for Edinburgh Rugby. Not only are we preparing to be the first Scottish club to host a quarter-final in the Heineken Cup, we are working exceptionally hard behind the scenes to ensure we have the right players in place so we can continue to break new ground and celebrate even greater successes in the years ahead."

Edinburgh take on four-time Heineken Cup champions, Toulouse, in the quarter-final at Murrayfield on Saturday, 7 April with tickets already selling well for one of the biggest games in the club's history.

Visser's try-scoring feats have made him a hit with supporters since he arrived from Newcastle Falcons in 2009, topping the RaboDirect PRO12 scoring charts in his first two years and breaking the record for the most scores in a single season last year with 14 touchdowns.

Twickenham bore witness to his talents for finding the try line last summer when a brace for the Barbarians completed a 17 point comeback and victory against England, 38-32.

This season it's been business as usual for the 6'4", 17 stone fans' favourite, whose 10 league tries puts him four clear at the top of the charts in the current PRO12 campaign with seven regular rounds remaining to topple his record.

His four tries from the six pool rounds of the club's impressive Heineken Cup campaign means he has the added opportunity to expand his impressive try tally of 40 scores in 66 appearances in the quarter-final against Toulouse.

This summer Visser will complete three years of residency in the country making him eligible for selection for Scotland's summer Test matches against Samoa and Fiji.