Callum Burton relishing fight for AFC Telford starting spot

His arrival at the New Bucks Head, coupled with the quicker-than-expected return to fitness of fellow loanee Matt Urwin, has created an intriguing if admittedly unexpected battle for the shirt, writes Matt Maher.

Burton, fresh from a man-of-the-match performance in Saturday's 1-0 win over Altrincham, will again wear it for tonight's visit of Brackley Town but knows he cannot allow his standards to drop if he wishes to retain it. Not that the challenge particularly fazes him.

"You just want to play well and hope that is enough to keep your place," said the 20-year-old. "I found out at around quarter-to-two on Saturday that I would be playing.

"I knew Matt was fit because I saw him at training on Thursday. You always want to play and you are always nervy. I played the first game at Salford and just wanted to continue the run going."

Burton, who joined the Bucks on an initial month-long loan, is currently splitting his time between parent club Shrewsbury and the Bucks, with whom he trains twice a week.

Fiercely ambitious, the England youth international intends to use his performances in National League North to catch the eye of Town boss Paul Hurst. He remains in constant contact with Shrewsbury goalkeeping coach Danny Coyne.

"As soon as I get the footage we sit down and have a look at it, dissect the game," explains Burton. "I think it helps. You want to put right what you have not done so well. Having an analyst is great for development.

"The manager (Hurst) is very good at speaking to players. I have had a few conversations with him now. He'll tell you the truth. He told me to get out on loan and get some game time.

"This is about getting through to him that I'm good enough to challenge for a place at Shrewsbury."

Telford will hope a by-product of Burton's ambition is an easing of their own relegation fears from National League North. The keeper can already claim to have played a significant part, after making a string of saves to help the below-par Bucks squeeze past Altrincham to a victory which saw them climb five points clear of the drop zone.

Brackley, who still have ambitions of gate-crashing the play-offs, are likely to pose a far sterner challenge.

"The three points on Saturday were massive," said Burton. "I have always had my eye on Telford. I believe they should be higher in the league.

"I think it's a great club. I played here two years ago with Nuneaton. It was a big club when it was in Conference Premier. Coming down to the Conference North I think they are below where they should be in the league for the size of the club and the calibre of the players.

"I think we have started to prove that with recent performances.

"Shrewsbury are in a similar situation in League One. Being around them, every three points is a massive bonus for the team.

"You want to get as many points on the board as you can. You don't want to be coming to the last five games and grounding out wins. You want to be safe."