What a difference a year makes for Peter Pawlett.
Rewind to 2012 and the Aberdeen attacker was on loan at St Johnstone fearing for his future.
Today he is an integral member of the Dons team under Derek McInnes and has committed his future to the club to the summer of 2017.
Hard to believe? The player can scarcely take it all in himself.
Pawlett said: “I didn’t really see myself being in this position a year ago but at the start of the season the manager gave me a chance and I’ve tried to show with my performances I can do a job here, and I’ve been rewarded.
“I was always confident in my own ability and going away and playing some football at St Johnstone gave that opportunity and gave me my confidence back. It’s a big club here and I’m really grateful to be given the opportunity to be here longer.”
Pawlett, who was joined by team-mates Jamie Langfield and Jonny Hayes in signing new contract extensions yesterday, is thriving under McInnes and cited his manager’s influence as the main factor in his quick decision to re-sign.
He added: “The manager is the main factor in me staying. The way he works and how he talks to me made the decision an easy one for me.
“We want to achieve something here and that was part of the talks I had with the manager. If we keep pushing on and picking up points we can do well but the cup is also a massive thing for us.
“I’m absolutely delighted to renew my contract here. I’m really enjoying my football here at the moment and I enjoy working with the manager and Tony Docherty. The mood is the most positive I’ve felt in my time here. We’ve got a great group of lads here and the team spirit is good. It’s a great place to be.”
The contract news comes as a timely boost for the Dons squad ahead of their trip to SPL champions Celtic tomorrow.
The Hoops are undefeated in the Premiership so far but Pawlett is relishing the chance to test himself against Neil Lennon’s side.
He said: “Celtic are the champions and it will be a difficult place to go. It’s the first game back after the international break and a few of their players have been away so hopefully it will work in our favour.
“They’ve got a big European game coming up too but I’m sure their main focus will be on playing us. They’ve learned from last season and we know we can’t take anything for granted.
“It’s important we bounce back from the Hearts game. It was disappointing to look at the league table and see us back in third place. We felt after our first-half performance we would go on to win the game and it was disappointing to lose.
“Celtic are a decent side and all we can do is try to put pressure on them by winning games. Nobody is saying we are going to win the league but we are trying to pick up points regularly.
“With the form we are in the players are full of confidence going into the game. Our record there isn’t good but that only makes us doubly determined to put it right.”