NEW Dumbarton forward Lewis Vaughan reckons manager Stevie Aitken is destined for bigger things. The 21 year-old recently moved to The Rock on loan from Raith Rovers and made his full debut against Hibs on Saturday, picking up the man of the match award for an eye-catching display despite The Sons going down 1-0.

Aitken was recently crowned the Championship’s manager of the month after leading Dumbarton to three wins and a draw in December, and Vaughan has already been impressed with his new boss as he looks to settle in quickly at the part-time outfit.

He said: “The manager has been brilliant since I’ve come in. He was a big part in me coming to Dumbarton. He was obviously at a lower league team in Stranraer and has come here. I’m really happy to play under him as I think he’s a great manager. You can see how well he’s done here.

“He’s got the boys on a good run and hopefully we can continue that. I could see him going to a bigger club in the future.

“You wouldn’t think it was a part-time club. The boys have been great since I’ve been in. They work hard in training on a Tuesday and Thursday night. You can see that fitness isn’t a problem against a full-time team. It must be one of the best part-time teams in Scotland.”

Vaughan is looking to get his career back on track as he recovers from a cruciate injury ligament and hopes this loan spell at Dumbarton can help him get his fitness back up before he returns to Raith in the summer.

He added: “I did my cruciate last season and was out for a long time. The injury was one of the worst things I’ve done in my life. At times you do think “what’s the point?” but it’s worth it for days like Saturday when big clubs like Hibs come to a wee place like Dumbarton.

“Now I just need to get games under my belt. My aim here is just to get as many games, goals and man of the match awards as I can and help shoot Dumbarton up as high as we can go.

“Then I’ll be back to Raith in the summer and I just want to play football again. At 21 that’s all I want. I was out for a long time last season and I just want to score goals and have fun. I certainly did that against Hibs.”