“The situation with Lawrence a year ago was actually quite simple,” he said. “We as a club had to make a calculation on whether we wanted to keep Lawrence or not.

“And the only way in which we could keep him was with the deal that was agreed in the end.

“The calculation was made up of the fact that, if we were very successful as a team and Lawrence was very successful in the park, the risk would be that we would lose him at the end of the first season.”

Jones accepts that some fans might be disappointed by that agreement.

“But I defy anybody to push back against the fact that it was the correct decision for the club that Derek [head coach McInnes] and I took whereby we had Lawrence for the year,” he said.

“He scored 20-plus goals, his leadership on and off the park was of the highest level.

“So, while I naturally understand the disappointment that our fans will feel that losing their captain and their their striker, it was the only deal in which was going to be possible for us to move forward and I back the decision that we made and I’m thankful for the year that we had with Lawrence.”

Meanwhile, Jones said Devlin’s situation is “ongoing” after the 27-year-old joined Australia’s squad with his Hearts contract coming to an end.

“Discussions are still in place with Cam’s representatives,” he added. “They’re positive discussions and I would hope that we will have some form of closure in respect of him staying or leaving in the coming the coming week or so.

“Fantastic news he’s made the Australia squad – that is so important to him and, for us, we are delighted and proud that he has made that.

“So we wish him all the best at the World Cup and we will we will monitor the situation closely with regards to his deal with us.”