Jerome William Thomas (born 23 March 1983) is an English former footballer who is now head of academy recruitment at club Watford. During his playing carer he played predominantly as a left-winger and scored 25 goals in 292 league and cup appearances throughout a 16-year professional career in the English Football League and Premier League. He began his career with Arsenal, but never broke into the first team despite winning two FA Youth Cup titles with the youth team and being capped up to England under-21 level. He had two loan spells with Queens Park Rangers, before he was sold on to Charlton Athletic for £100,000 in February 2004. He played 70 Premier League games for the club, before Charlton were relegated at the end of the 2006–07 campaign. He was sold on to Portsmouth in August 2008, but only played three first team games for the club. He signed with West Bromwich Albion in August 2009, and helped the club win promotion out of the Championship at the end of the 2009–10 season. Having lost his first team place for the 2012–13 season, he spent six weeks on loan at Leeds United, before he joined Crystal Palace on a free transfer in July 2013. He played just ten Premier League games over the course of two seasons, before he joined Rotherham United in February 2016, following a six-month period spent as a free agent. He signed with Port Vale in July 2016, and spent one season with the club. Club career Arsenal Thomas played schoolboy football for Luton Town, before joining Arsenal. He helped the Arsenal youth team to win the FA Youth Cup twice. These victories came in 2000 against Coventry City and in 2001, where he scored a goal in the final over Blackburn Rovers. He was loaned out to Second Division side Queens Park Rangers in the 2001–02 and 2002–03 seasons. He made his debut in the English Football League on 30 March 2002, in a 3–2 win over Tranmere Rovers at Prenton Park. He scored his first professional goal on 6 April, the only goal of the game against Swindon Town at the County Ground in a 1–0 win for QPR. During his second loan spell in October 2002, he scored long-distance goals away at Cheltenham Town and against Oldham Athletic at Loftus Road. However, he found it difficult to break into the first team