Peterborough United people should be proud to see a local boy hit the big time

It’s another feather in the cap for the club Academy as a third graduate in less than 12 months has made a big step up in standard.

The fact, this time, Posh will receive only a fraction of the £4 million fees Harrison Burrows and Ronnie Edwards commanded is of course disappointing, particularly for the man who shoulders the club’s financial burden, which remain considerable with debt reducing only slowly.

Chairman Darragh MacAnthony is damned if he does and damned if he doesn’t in terms of player departures. Selling the club’s top talent for however many millions provokes criticism. Holding on to them and losing them for nothing prompts social media scoffing.

The decision of a player nurtured by Posh for 13 years to make a move that hurts the club financially is bound to sting, but it’s a shame that reaction was publicly uttered because it led to retaliation and mud-slinging which rather overshadowed a story that should have been greeted with immense praise as well as surprise.

A Peterborough youngster who played for his hometown club from the age of nine moving into the same division as Harry Kane is a phenomenal achievement for the player, his representatives and, just as impressively, for Posh.

I had my reservations about Jones making it at Championship level never mind in one of the big 5 European leagues, but better judges than me clearly believe technical and finishing ability can be added to international sprinter speed.

Jones scored just 11 League One goals in 46 appearances for Posh last season and has 43 goals in over 200 senior games for his sole club. They are not numbers to worry Bayern Munich and the rest, but I admire the player’s decision to leap out of his comfort zone and test himself against the best.

A different country, culture and language in the brutal world of professional football would be too scary for many 22 year-olds to even contemplate.

His club St Pauli will be relegation favourites so will presumably be defending deep and counter-attacking swiftly. If so Jones has a chance and we should all wish him well.

It’s not fair to suggest Posh didn’t try to keep him. They did. They offered him a new deal. If anything they were caught out by being too relaxed about Jones winding the contract down believing a bumper fee would still be received. Moving overseas has scuppered that.

The fear is very real the same will happen now with Kwame Poku which would be another financial bodyblow to a club that were also denied a cool £1 million payday from the Burrows transfer by Sheffield United throwing Championship promotion away.

Skilled players, and those with obvious potential, will always attract plenty of interest when there is little financial outlay or risk. It’s just a desperate shame for Posh that a club from Germany won the race for Ricky. Don’t blame the player though. He must do what’s best for himself.