Leigh Halfpenny is one of three Cardiff players to have signed new deals with the region © Getty Images

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Players/Officials: Chris Czekaj | Bradley Davies | Leigh Halfpenny

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Teams: Cardiff Blues | Wales

The Cardiff Blues have been buoyed by the news that Leigh Halfpenny, Bradley Davies and Chris Czekaj have all agreed new deals with the region.

The prodigiously gifted Halfpenny, who was included in the British & Irish Lions squad for the 2009 Tour of South Africa, is considered one of the most exciting young backs in world rugby and could easily have engineered a lucrative move away from the Welsh capital. However, the 22-year-old winger insists that the thought of leaving Cardiff never crossed his mind.

"I'm really pleased to have extended my stay at the Blues," he said. "It's a great club and I had no doubt that this is who I wanted to sign with and happy that we have come to an agreement."

"I've not been tempted to play anywhere else as it's a very ambitious club and the quality players we have here, with some good youngsters coming through, the future looks very bright.

"You couldn't ask for better training facilities, which are fantastic and for me there's no better place for a rugby player to be. We are seeing the Welsh talent coming through and it's great that they have decided to stay with the region.

"We won two titles in the last two years but we still have ambitions of winning more in the future which is why most of the players have extended their contracts."

Giant lock Davies is also of the opinion that the Blues are only going to improve in the coming years. "It's great news to have signed, not only for me personally, but for the rest of the boys who have signed also," he said. "It's nice that we have got a core of young players who have extended their contracts and can drive the region forward.

"I think our academy system is showing it's worth now, a lot of the boys have stepped up and played at a high level, either Heineken Cup, regional rugby or international level. There's great work being done at the Academy in Trefforest and the region is bearing the fruits of that."

Czekaj, meanwhile, revealed that he is enjoying his rugby more than ever and also had no inclination to seek out pastures new.

"I've been six seasons with the Blues now and I'd be stupid to want to move with the progress that the team has made over the last few years," he said.

"I've really enjoyed the move from wing to fullback this season and I prefer playing full back now to be honest, so that's where I see myself from now on. I find you get more ball at fullback and I get to use my kicking game a lot more. You also get to see a lot more of the attacking opportunities from there."

In addition, Dafydd Hewitt, Josh Navidi, Andries Pretorius and James Down have also signed contract extensions with the Blues.