St Kilda draftee Jack Bytel will have surgery this week to repair a bulging disk in his lower back.

Bytel, drafted by the Saints with pick 41 in the 2018 AFL Draft, was recruited with a pre-existing back injury that has restricted him to light duties throughout the pre-season.

General Manager of Football Simon Lethlean said the club understood that surgery was the likely scenario when selecting the talented midfielder.

“Jack is a player with a lot of promise, and he couldn’t have been more impressive in terms of his character since joining the club,” Lethlean said.

“We knew when selecting Jack that his injury would likely require surgery, but we wanted to see him complete a block of rehab training to know for certain that it was the best option.

“The specialists are confident this procedure will allow Jack to put this injury behind him and we look forward to Jack becoming the player we know that he can for the Saints over the coming years.

Jack will have a four-six week recovery period before beginning a rehab program that will see him gradually increase his training over the next few months.