NEW keeper Jamie Stephens is determined to push Lenny Pidgeley all the way for a starting place as Newport County AFC continue their preparations for life in League Two.

Stephens made an impressive debut against Swindon Supermarine on Wednesday and, with Pidgeley ill, he gets another chance to shine in today’s friendly in East Germany against Carl Zeiss Jena.

The former Liverpool goalkeeper accepts that Pidgeley will start the season as the Exiles’ number one, but he insists that he won’t be happy to settle for a place on the bench in the long term.

“It was nice to be out there,” said the 19-year-old after Wednesday’s match. “It’s good to be back into pre-season and getting games. I enjoyed it.

“I’ve come here to play as much as I can and I want to enjoy my football.

“It was a big decision to come here,” he added. “There were a few other options for me but there are some great people here.

“Ryan Mackerness, the goalkeeping coach, and Justin Edinburgh and Jimmy Dack are brilliant people so I think it was a good decision for me.

“They were very decisive and they showed a lot of interest in me from the start.”

And Stephens, who ended last season on loan at Welsh Premier League club Airbus UK Broughton, is backing himself to give ex-Chelsea man Pidgeley a run for his money.

“It’s a big challenge for me but hopefully I get my chance and get some games here,” he said.

“I think Lenny will be the number one because he’s a top keeper. He’s a lovely person and I can learn a lot from him, but I want to try to push him.

“We share a laugh about it because he was at Chelsea and I was at Liverpool. He’s a top quality player and I want to push him but I hope he has a good season too.

“I was sad to leave Liverpool because I made many friends there and I absolutely loved my time up there,” he added. “It was a great experience learning from Pepe Reina every day and training with the likes of Luis Suarez was unbelievable but sometimes you have to move on and move forward.”

Stephens is aware that life at Rodney Parade will be different from his experience with the Merseyside giants but he’s looking forward to League Two football.

“The club deserves to be in the Football League because they worked their socks off last season and had a great win at Wembley in the play-off final,” he said.

“I had a great time at Airbus. It was a great experience and it’s nice to be back in Wales.

“And we have some great players here. I’ve seen Christian Jolley in training the last two weeks.

“He’s a great finisher and he runs like Usain Bolt so he’s going to be a real threat for us this season.”