For Russell, the journey which ended in suitably climactic fashion with a stunning PRO12 Final victory over Munster began two-and-a-bit years ago on a Sunday afternoon in northern Italy. The Warriors beat Zebre 36-20 in Parma where their novice No.10 replaced Scott Wright for the last 24 minutes.
He missed his first conversion in the PRO12 before landing the next two, not that anyone outside the Warrior faithful paid much notice. There were some hefty counter-attractions on Sunday February 10, 2013, not least the small matter of Ireland-England in the RBS 6 Nations at the Aviva Stadium.
Russell went back to Ayr, learning one craft on the field and another off it as a trainee stonemason. The Warriors kept Finn in their sights and by the end of 2013 had offered him an alternative means of employment via a full-time professional contract.
Head coach Gregor Townsend did so on the basis that the new signing had 'a wealth of ability'. The not-so-old Scottish Lion, who knows a thing or two about the complex art of the fly half trade, was not exaggerating.
Exactly 12 months after his debut, Russell resurfaced at BT Sport Cardiff Arms Park, replacing Ruaridh Jackson early in the second half to kick four goals in a 27-20 win over the Blues. This time he really was up and running, a fully paid-up member of the Warrior Nation.
In not much more than the 14 months since his first Guinness PRO12 start, Russell has appeared in two Finals and played a central role in securing Scottish rugby's first major trophy since Gary Armstrong led Scotland to the last Five Nations title at the end of the 20th century.
Never can a team have been more deserving of champion status than Townsend's from Clydeside. That the Guinness PRO12 title belongs to Glasgow is worthy reward not merely for the Warriors' consistency over the last four seasons but for the way they play the game.
They won the PRO12 Final in the grand manner, running through the full range of their repertoire from start to finish. Few teams have the nous, the courage, the skill and the speed to overwhelm, of all teams, Munster which was exactly what the Warriors did in Belfast on Saturday night.
Their precision in keeping the ball on the move away from the tackle area produced four exhilarating tries and there might easily have been a few more. On a night when Paul O'Connell wore the Munster jersey for the last time, upstaging the ultimate warrior was always going to require something extraordinary.
Munster were not to know that Leone Nakarawa, an ex-soldier who arrived in Glasgow two years ago from his native Fiji, would choose the Guinness PRO12 Final to leave the crowd wondering whether he hadn't come straight from the Harlem Globetrotters.
His bewitching brand of power running and subtle basketball skills made the first and second tries, as finished by Rob Harley and DTH van der Merwe respectively. Then, once Munster's attempted come-back had subsided and the game had been won, he made way for Al Kellock's fairytale farewell.
After the best part of a decade, during which time he had seen the Warriors' average gate treble to around 6,500, Scotland's departing lock left the stage for the final time in the best showbiz tradition, leaving them clamouring for more.
Nobody could have dared script it, least of all the man himself.
In his hour of triumph, Kellock paid tribute to the architect of Glasgow's expanding empire, Townsend. ''Gregor makes people better players,'' Kellock said. ''He understands the game better than any coach I have ever played with. He has been absolutely phenomenal.
''You look at a young fellow like Finn Russell. All he's known with Glasgow is semi-finals and finals. When the pressure comes on he plays like he does because he's used to winning.''
Russell demonstrated that to priceless effect during the final moments of the semi-final against Ulster. Had it not been for the vision, nerve and skill behind launching arguably the pass of the season for DTH van der Merwe's equalising try, Ulster would surely have made it another all-Ireland finale.
To shatter that illusion, all Russell had to do was land a touchline conversion from the wrong side of Scotstoun for a right-footed kicker. Even on a rare off-night, and the semi-final was one such occasion for the Warriors, good teams find a way of winning.
It had been, as Townsend pointed out, a year of 'overcoming adversity', starting with last year's PRO12 Final in Dublin when Leinster and the occasion proved much too much for them.
Adversity hit them again almost right from the start of the season. It says everything about the Warriors' depth that they finished up ruling the PRO12 roost despite the sledgehammer blows which began with the removal of Test wing Sean Maitland.
Alex Dunbar and Mark Bennett had established themselves as the best centre pairing in the tournament only for both to require surgery. In their absence Peter Horne, his campaign adorned by a hat-trick of tries in Cardiff, and Richie Vernon, whose work at the barricades somehow prevented O'Connell scoring, kept the show on the road.
For others, not just Kellock, it marked the end of the road. Dougie Hall, the 34-year-old hooker from Dingwall, is also retiring. Others, like van der Merwe and Niko Matawalu, are moving on, to the Scarlets and Bath respectively.
To refer to the Warriors' crowning as a squad effort is to under-estimate the effort. Winning it involved a playing cast of 52, more than half of whom scored at least one try.
To their credit, Munster, shorn of the injured Conor Murray and Peter O'Mahony, made no excuses because they had none. ''You look at the calibre of rugby that Glasgow had to play to beat us,'' coach Anthony Foley said. ''And you kind of take your hat off to them.''
For the new Guinness PRO12 champions, recognition at last of a job very well done. Glasgow's Lord Provost, Sadie Docherty, led the tributes as Kellock & Co. returned to a heroes' welcome: "Huge congratulations to Glasgow Warriors. They did the city proud with a tremendous performance. It's great to see all their hard work pay off.''
For Townsend, the challenge now is to push onwards and upwards to take the Guinness PRO12 flag towards the summit of the European game. ''This,'' he said, ''Is just the start.''
How fitting that after the most enthralling end to any PRO12 campaign, the smartest and the brightest team of the season should be anointed as the best.
Follow us on Facebook, join the conversation on Twitter, sign up to our YouTube channel for extensive match highlights and sign up for our newsletter for regular updates on the GUINNESS PRO12
63x46.png){kind=logo}