New Hatters signing Jerome was 'blown away' after one meeting with Luton boss Jones

Striker couldn't believe the presentation on display from Hatters chief
New Town signing Cameron JeromeNew Town signing Cameron Jerome
New Town signing Cameron Jerome

Summer signing Cameron Jerome has admitted that a single meeting with Town boss Nathan Jones left him in no doubt that joining the Hatters was his number one option this season.

The 34-year-old forward put pen to paper at Kenilworth Road on Friday, after his contract at League One MK Dons was up, making Luton the 10th club of his lengthy 18-year career.

Jerome had a number of other offers on the table, but when speaking to the press yesterday (Tuesday), revealed how the chat with Jones instantly made his mind up for him.

He said: “It was quite surprising as I just thought it would be a general conversation, no manager has ever actually given me a presentation throughout my career, so it was quite remarkable that he’s gone to the time and effort to show me certain things.

“How he operates as a manager, what he demands from a player, he asks you questions about what you want as a player, where you want to go in your career, what you want to achieve, this is the club’s DNA.

“He likes to have your input and your ideas, it was quite remarkable that he went to all that time and effort and had the presentations set up for when I was there.

“It was really, really impressive to be honest with you and was one of the key factors that when I walked out of the room, I thought straight away, he was a manager I definitely want to play for.

“When a manager does that for you, it immediately tells me he wants me, he believes in me.

“He wants me, the club want to invest in me and that’s something as a player gives you that warm feeling, that excitement and that thrill.

“The minute I walked out of the room with my agent, I said, ‘that’s someone I definitely want to play for, so if you can make it happen, let’s get it done.’”

It wasn’t just Luton from the second tier who were after Jerome, but none could match the plans that the Hatters and Jones in particular had in mind, as he continued: “There was a few teams who were enquiring about my availability, one or two offers came in as well as Luton.

“There was certain interest from Championship, from abroad and some of the teams in League One also.

“It was about picking the right project for me, that is what it is about at this age.

“I think I’ve earned the right to pick and choose what I want to do at this stage of my career.

"Having met Nathan, sat down with him and some of the staff at the club and had a meeting, I was blown away by the idea and the philosophy and the progress the club is making.

“That is something I want to be a part of, something going forward and progressing.

“That was the big factor in coming down and signing for Luton.”

When asked if had heard much about Jones as a manager prior to their first meeting, Jerome added: “I’ve seen Luton progress through the divisions and obviously he left momentarily to go to Stoke.

“That didn’t quite work out for various reasons, but I wouldn’t put that down to his management, I’d put that down to the situation at the football club at the time.

“When he came back, the back end of last season with eight to 10 games to go, you can see that the club were sort of written off at the time, bottom of the league, seven or eight points adrift.

“Remarkably he turned it around in so little time, so it goes to show the ability he has as a manager and a coach and a motivator and the respect that the group has for him.

“But to come back and keep them in the division was a remarkable achievement and to kick on last year, and finish as high as they did, it’s showing he’s getting the best out of the group he’s got.

"So it’s about progress and the football club want to go forward and they believe the manager’s the right person to take them forward.

"I’m sure he’s got 100 per cent trust from the football club and the fans as well."