THE very best of Mark Duffy is yet to come, according to the Scunthorpe United winger.

Seven games into his Iron career, the former Morecambe midfielder is looking every inch a Championship player, despite the jump from League Two.

But of those fixtures, the 24-year-old has only completed two of them, being substituted by United boss Ian Baraclough in the closing stages of the others, despite looking the main attacking threat.

Although occasionally perplexing, Duffy respects Baraclough's decisions.

"The gaffer has said sometimes it is tactical and sometimes I am looking tired towards the end of games," said Duffy, who is due to make his 34th appearance of the season at Bristol City today.

"That is understandable because the pace is a lot quicker in the Championship.

"He said in the last game I looked a lot stronger, so hopefully I will finish a game soon!

"You want to play every last second of every game.

"But against Nottingham Forest when they brought me off, they brought on Dele Adebola so we counter-acted that with Raynesy (Michael Raynes).

"It is the gaffer's decision. If we get a point or three, it does not bother me – but I do like to play 90 minutes."

Duffy, who only joined the club in January, is already one of the first names on the team-sheet following an impressive start to life in the second tier of English football.

And that, he says, is down to his team-mates.

"The players who I play with here make it really easy to adapt to this level," added the Iron's number 31.

"That is in terms of the advice they give you and making sure you are doing things right. The players with experience make sure you are in the right position.

"It would be wrong for me to say it was an easy step-up.

"It may look like I have breezed through it, but it is certainly not the case."

Being thrown into a relegation scrap brings its own pressures.

But easy-going Duffy is not one who lets it affect him.

"Obviously there is a pressure because you are down there and the league does not lie," he added.

"I don't really feel that much pressure.

"It is more when the players around you tell you how vital it is to win, that is when you get the real feeling of how important it is.

"Everyone is starting to relax a little bit, but we still know we have got a massive job to do."

United's final game of the season, at home to Portsmouth, has been moved forward a day to Saturday, May 7 (12.45pm), along with the rest of the Championship fixtures.