BLACKBURN Rovers defender Craig Short has urged Premiership managers to start scouring the lower leagues for talent rather than bringing in cheap foreign imports.

Jonathan Stead's meteoric rise from the Third Division to the Premiership has proved the quality gap can be bridged.

And Short believes there's plenty more players around in the Nationwide League who could follow in Stead's footsteps if they were only given the chance to prove themselves at a higher level.

Stead has been nothing short of a revelation for Rovers since he arrived in a £1 million deal from Huddersfield three months ago.

Five goals in his first 10 games have virtually guaranteed Rovers' place in the Premiership for a further 12 months.

And Short has been hugely impressed by the way the 21-year-old has coped with the step up in class.

"It surprises me that more players aren't bought from the lower leagues," said Short.

"People say it's too big a gap to bridge but I don't think it's that big at all.

"Jon hasn't been overawed by it, he's just taken it in his stride.

"A lot of clubs looked at him and thought 'can he make the jump?' but we took the gamble and there's probably one or two more players down there who could make the transition, so maybe clubs should start looking there now."

Rovers were teetering towards relegation before Stead arrived during the January transfer window but his infectious enthusiasm breathed new life into the club's survival fight.

And Short puts Rovers' recent revival down to a player who was lining up against the likes of Rochdale, Carlisle and Accrington Stanley earlier this season.

"We needed something because we were struggling and a lot of people at the club probably thought it was too much of a gamble," said Short.

"But from day one, you just knew Jon was going to do okay.

"The goals really are a bonus. No-one really expected him to get as many as he has.

"Two or three would have been good for him because this was probably just a settling in period.

"But he hasn't needed a settling in period.

"Every chance he's been given, he seems to have taken it.

"I can't remember him missing one yet."

Now Short believes Stead must work on building up his physique if he wants to take his game onto another level next season.

The veteran defender is adamant that Stead could go on to play for England at some point.

But the feeling is he needs to add more muscle to his game if he wants to become a more complete striker.

"When you see someone like that who's got ability on the floor and he's also quick, then they need to be physically imposing, too," added Short.

"At 20 or 21 you can't be that physically imposing but in a couple of years time people will be thinking 'I don't fancy jumping with him.'

"There's some big, strong centre halves about and he's got to be able to compete with them physically because in the other parts of his game he can compete with them already.

"He's in the gym every day working hard on building himself up and he's a natural athlete anyway. He's tall, he's very quick, and he's got a great touch.

"He just needs to focus on building himself up now and heading is probably the weakest part of his game but he scored a great header against Everton at the weekend."

Meanwhile, Huddersfield will not receive any money from Rovers even though Stead's 5 goals have helped to keep the club in the Premiership.

Town will get a six figure sum if Rovers finish in the top half of the Premiership at any time in the next 4 years, plus a substantial payment when Stead reaches 25 appearances for Blackburn.

The Terriers are also believed to have a 17.5 per cent sell-on clause.