Back-up keeper Scott Flinders ready to join the fray for Mansfield Town

But the 38-year-old has no qualms about a rare first team outing for a club he has grown to love over his two and half years as back-up to Pym.

“I will prepare the same as always to the same standards I always set myself. You have to be ready to play at any time,” he said, having been called on to replace Pym midway through the first half in the last game at Wrexham.

“If Pymy is ready I will help him as much as I can like I normally do before a game.

“But if he is not quite right then I will step up and hopefully put in a good performance.

“We have a great relationship and a lot of respect.

“People talk about how good Christy has been here for the past two seasons, but he was outstanding in the first season too.

“He has probably been the most consistent player in this team for the last three seasons – and he just keeps getting better.

“He is only 29 so he has a lot of years ahead of him. I am here to help him and push him.”

Flinders said the manager sets the highest standards he has experienced.

“For me, the standards set here are the best I have seen in my career – and that is driven from the top with the gaffer demanding those standards every single day,” he said.

“Whoever comes into this group they have to buy into the culture created here. It has got better every season I have been here.

“I came here from League One at Cheltenham and after a few days I saw the standards in training were a lot better than I had been used to.”

On not being first choice keeper, he said: “At my age and the role I was given when I came to the club, I knew what I was coming into.

“But it's always nice to play the games and I have been happy with my form.

“Day to day you push yourself to be consistent and when called upon you have to be ready to put in performances and help the team pick up results.

“I absolutely love it here. It's probably the last club I will have before I go into the coaching side.

“But I have loved every minute of it.

“It is hard coming into a number two role when you have always been a number one.

“But at the stage I am at now I don't think any other club could have given me this.”

On his unexpected call into action at Wrexham he said: “Putting in the performance that we did, we were gutted in the dressing room to not come away with at least a point.

“I was actually looking the other way when Christy was on the floor and it wasn't until I was told to get stripped that I realised. I was completely oblivious to what had happened.

“That is probably only the second or third game that I have had to come on in like that since I have been a pro, so the old butterflies start going as you run onto the pitch.

“But within a minute or so it feels just like you've been playing the whole game. You just tap into the experience memory box and away you go.

“Initially, you don't feel ready to go on if I am truthful, being sat there 90 per cent sure you won't be going on.

“But once I am on it just feels like I am playing week in, week out and you just crack on with it.

“I train with the lads every day so they know how I play and I know how they play. It's not like coming into a new team.”

On the season as a whole for the promoted Stags, Flinders said: “It has been a really good season so far.

“We always knew it would be a difficult campaign.

“But a lot of the players have played at this level before and so far so good.

“I think teams have been surprised how well we have done, but we know in-house the quality we have got and we have shown it in the majority of games.

“From the first game against Barnsley, for the first 25 minutes we were outstanding and the boys on the bench said, wow, this is a hell of a start.

“We have just kicked on from there and the gaffer has built a team and a squad over the last few years that have really kicked on.

“Supporters are really buying into that as well now and long may it continue.”