A YOUNG goalkeeper says working with Burnley's trio of England stoppers last season put him on the right professional path.

Aidan Stone joined Mansfield Town in the summer after leaving Turf Moor, and last month made his league debut for the Stags.

He got off to a successful start with a win and clean sheet at home to Newport County.

And he credits Nick Pope, Joe Hart and former Clarets stopper Tom Heaton for having a positive influence on his game and his career so far.

“Nick Pope sent me a message after the Newport game, congratulating me on my debut and telling me to keep working hard and doing what I do best," said Stone.

“In my first season at Burnley it was Nick Pope and Tom Heaton, but then Joe Hart joined the following summer and they’d all represented England.

"You get the chance to train with them after watching them on TV for the last five years, so that was a bit surreal at the time.

“They do a lot of work in the gym to maintain their bodies to keep at that optimum performance level.

“Me and Tom Heaton did a lot of work in the gym and I tried to take the exercises he was doing into my gym programmes. I still try and do that now.

"I’m only young. I only had two years at Burnley, which is really the only coaching that I’ve had.

“Learning from the best was massive for me. It’s nice to have them as colleagues but also as friends."

Stone has worked his way up from arriving as third choice keeper to becoming first choice in Mansfield's last two games.

"At the start of the season I was in and around the first team. Getting to know a lot of the lads and being in that first team environment was where I wanted to be,” the 20-year-old told Mansfield's official website.

"I knew it was going to be tough (to get in the first team, but I’m just happy to be given the chance and want to play as many games as possible, taking it game by game.

“I’m grateful for every opportunity that I get – getting the chance to come here and keep pursuing the career that I’ve always wanted was massive for me."