DONS forward Peter Pawlett has been ruled out for the rest of the season after surgery on his injured knee revealed more damage than first thought.

Pawlett, who was December’s SPL Young Player of the Month, had surgery yesterday that he was expected to take a month to recover from.

However, Dons boss Mark McGhee has now revealed that the 19-year-old will miss the rest of the SPL campaign.

McGhee said: “Peter has had surgery on his patellar tendon and it turns out there was more to it than they first thought.

"It is now looking like 12 weeks rather than four, which will take him up to the end of the season.

“It is a shame for him and for the club. Hopefully, the surgery has now cleared up some of the problems he was having.

“His focus is now on getting healthy for next season.”

With the Dons having nothing to play for in the rest of the season, perversely it may be the best time for Pawlett to miss out on several meaningless games in front of low crowds full of bitter fans.

In fact, there could be an argument made for resting Fraser Fyvie and Michael Paton as well, to avoid burn-out and potential serious injury, and focusing them on the coming season.