Carlton Star Nick Stevens will be sidelined for the remainder of the 2007 season after he succumbed to a neck injury.

Stevens confirmed on Thursday at a media conference at MC Labour Park that he will have season ending surgery on his injury after he consulting numerous specialists during the week.

The 27-year-old will undergo surgery next week to correct a disc-related problem, after which he will be required to rest for several weeks.

In a decision based on the long-term health of Stevens, he and the club agreed that he would have the surgery in the expectation that he will be fit and ready to resume playing in 2008. Carlton club doctor Ben Barresi said Stevens was suffering from a prolapsed disc.

"That disc is putting some pressure on a nerve root on the left side of his neck and also putting some pressure on his spinal cord," said Barresi.

"For those reasons and in the long-term interests of Nick's health we've decided to proceed with him to have the operation sooner rather than later. Barresi added.

"There's risks with any procedure, but with advances in neurosurgical intervention these days have been excellent, and we'll be using a pre-eminent surgeon to deal with this problem." Barresi said.

Stevens told carltonfc.com.au after the conference that the result was terribly disappointing especially after the start to the season.

“Obviously it will be tough to sit out the rest of the season, we are not sure how far we will go this year, but there’s some great signs” Stevens said

“We are going to continue to improve and I don’t want to risk not being a part of the exciting and successful future, I just want to make sure I am ready to go next year.” He added.

Stevens thanked Club doctor Ben Barresi, specialists and the club for the support and advice.