Ray Jones Rated one of "Ten of the Best Prospects Outside the Premiership" in Guardian List

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For what it's worth! But nice to read. (Would be interesting to go back a year or two and look at they then rated as among the Ten Best Prosepects - and where they are now!

Football League Spy: 10 to watch in 2007
Guardian Blog - Guardian Unlimited January 5, 2007
Ten of the best prospects outside the Premiership to keep a close eye on during the next 12 months.
Barely a day goes by without David Nugent, Gareth Bale and Freddie Eastwood being linked with a big-money move to a Premiership club. But the lower leagues are awash with talent beyond these obvious names, as our following list shows. Please feel free to add your suggestions below.

1) Matthew Jarvis (Gillingham) He may stand just 5ft 8in high, but at 20, right-footed left-winger Jarvis has already played 100 games for Gillingham. Lightning-fast and also comfortable up front, Jarvis has already been linked with Arsenal, Tottenham and Newcastle, among others, but apparently doesn't want to move. "Matt is happy at Gillingham," insists his agent Mark Curtis. "He has a good relationship with the manager and loves the fans."

2) Brett Pitman (Bournemouth) Alongside fellow teenager Sam Vokes, the 18-year-old Pitman has scored freely throughout Bournemouth's youth ranks and is now doing the same in the first team, with four goals in nine appearances since November. "Brett is a sniffer who will score goals," says manager Kevin Bond. "He's only young and while I think his all-round game can improve, he'll get on the end of things."

3) Chris Porter (Oldham Athletic) The 2006-07 season has proven a breakout campaign for 23-year-old striker Porter, who joined Oldham in the summer of 2005 from local rivals Bury for £150,000. After just seven goals in 31 league games last season, Porter has rocketed to joint top of the League One scoring table with 17 goals in just 20 games this season. Athletic boss John Sheridan reckons Porter can still improve, but he may do so elsewhere - Wolves, Leeds and Plymouth are considering bids.

4) Gary Roberts (Ipswich Town) After impressing on loan during the first half of the season, left-winger Roberts made his move from Accrington to Ipswich permanent earlier this week. A former Liverpool schoolboy, Roberts has even played in Europe - starting both legs of Bangor City's 2003 Intertoto defeat to Romanians Gloria Bistrita.

5) Luke Summerfield (Plymouth) The 18-year-old son of former Argyle midfielder Kevin Summerfield has taken full advantage of injuries at the club to break into the first team and swiftly adapt to life in the Championship. So quick, in fact, that he scored a 30-yard belter on his full debut at Colchester in August. Since then the creative midfielder has made 17 further appearances (10 as a substitute) and is probably the pick of the Pilgrims' talented batch of youngsters, among them Gary Sawyer, Dan Gosling, Cherno Samba and Scott Laird.

6) Chris Cohen (Yeovil Town) Cohen has been described as that most delightful of combinations: a graceful workaholic. The 19-year-old midfielder is a product of West Ham's youth academy, but is now a vital part of the Glovers' push for promotion from League One. "Chris has been fantastic for us," says club captain Terry Skiverton. "The longer we can hang on to him the better."

7) Lee Frecklington (Lincoln City) Having risen up through the club's youth system, 21-year-old Frecklington has helped his hometown club to third place in League Two. He's a dynamic midfielder, described by some as a League Two version of Steven Gerrard, and has already scored seven goals this season, including this one against Grimsby. He's already attracted the attention of scouts from Wigan and Sheffield United and turned out for Ireland B in November 2006.

8) Ray Jones (QPR) A rare reason to be cheerful at Loftus Road this season, the young striker's scoring record - five in 14 games - still isn't the greatest. But at 18, he already stands 6ft 4in and weighs in at 14½st, and defenders across the country must be wondering how they'll handle him once he bulks out. His manager John Gregory is confident that, with a bit more experience, Jones can play at the highest level. "He could be in a position where he is ready to go into Arsenal's or Manchester United's first team at the age of 23," he admits.

9) Dean Gerken (Colchester United) After a couple of cameos early in the season, 21-year-old goalkeeper Gerken took over from the injured Aidan Davison at the beginning of December and hasn't looked back. A former trainee, he has made some stunning saves on the way to conceding just six goals in eight league starts this season. "I've been about a long time," says U's midifielder Kevin Watson, "and Dean is one of the best young keepers that I have seen."

10) Billy Sharp (Scunthorpe) OK, it may not be the most surprising decision to name a 20-year-old who has scored 43 goals over the last two seasons in our list of rising stars, but Sharp's talent is hard to ignore. He's quick and can score with either foot, but the Guardian's Steve Claridge reckons it's a footballing brain packed with more craft than a crochet convention that's the key to his success.

Compiled by James Dart, Tom Lutz and Paolo Bandini - Guardian