GOALKEEPER Rhys Taylor has already won the battle to be number one at Newport County AFC and now he’s determined to make sure he is first choice for next week’s big kick-off.

County begin their League Two campaign at Cambridge United on August 8 and, after sharing duties between the sticks with club record signing Joe Day, Taylor is still no closer to knowing if he’ll be in the starting XI.

Exiles boss Terry Butcher handed new signing Taylor the number one jersey when the squad numbers were released last week but the 25-year-old from Port Talbot says that means very little.

“No one has been given any indication of who will start once the season gets under way,” said the former Chelsea squad member.

“I didn’t pick my number, it’s up to the gaffer and whoever gets it gets it.

“We agreed to keep sharing out the games in pre-season because it’s tough when you keep playing 45 minutes, especially for the one that comes off at half-time because the game is in full flow and you’ve not touched the ball.

“Playing 90 minutes is a fair way to do it and whatever happens happens.”

But Taylor, who arrived at Rodney Parade from Macclesfield Town this summer, is clear that he wants to be Butcher’s top dog.

“I wouldn’t have come here if I didn’t have that mindset but me and Joe get on well anyway so whoever ends up playing will back the other,” he said.

“If you look at a lot of top clubs now they’ve got two number ones basically and that’s the way to get the best out of the keepers – competition is healthy.

“We’ve got two keepers at the same level and it’s the first time really that I’ve been in a battle but I was at Chelsea for eight years and mixed it with Petr Cech, who was the best keeper in the world.”

Taylor admits County’s pre-season displays have been inconsistent but he feels Sunday’s 0-0 draw against Championship club Queens Park Rangers showed they are heading in the right direction.

“We’ve been hit and miss really but pre-season is about getting better and results don’t matter,” he added.

“It’s about fitness and working on team shape and I think it really showed against decent opposition in QPR.

“We looked tight and organised and we were happy with the performance.

“It is good for us to show that we can mix it with those sorts of players and get a result and a clean sheet is always a bonus as well.”