Aynsley Pears has vowed to keep the Blackburn Rovers number one shirt and believes competition for places is as high as he has seen at the club.

Rovers have enjoyed a fantastic start to the season, remaining unbeaten in their first five Championship matches. Saturday's 3-0 victory over Bristol City was perhaps the most satisfying, with a first clan sheet of the season accompanying the three points.

Confidence around Ewood Park is high at the moment and the strength of the squad has been noted by most players in recent interviews. The bench is packed with game-changing options which is exactly what John Eustace has called for.

That's no different in goal, where Balazs Toth has arrived to compete with Pears in goal. The Hungarian International will help raise standards in the goalkeeping department.

READ MORE: EUSTACE REVEALS SECRET BEHIND ROVERS' UNBEATEN START

Pears is determined to ensure he keeps performing to retain the gloves. After conversations with Eustace, he is more determined than ever to remain number one.

"I think you can tell in training since we've had more bodies in the building, the competitiveness has gone through the roof since I've been here," he told RoversTV.

"Everyone knows they have to train and be on top of their game or they won't play. Everyone is hungry and it's a great atmosphere to train in and you can see that coming out on the pitch.

"I've got the number one shirt, I have spoken to the manager and he said if I keep performing, I'll keep it. That's what I aim to do.

"I want to play all season and I will do my best to make sure that happens. The gaffer is fair with everyone, he's a fair man.

"All you want is that if you do the business, you keep your shirt. That's why he's getting a tune out of everyone."

Rovers' first clean sheet of the season was deserved and, in truth, has been coming. They have been very good defensively this term with an impressive out-of-possession structure.

They limited Oxford to very little for an hour but, when called upon, Pears procued the good. He denied Scott Twine in the box before the rebound was superbly blocked by Hayden Carter.

At 2-0, that was a crucial moment in the match, with Yuki Ohashi going down the other end shortly after to make it three and ensure the points.

Pears admitted that the biggest challenge for any goalkeeper is remaining alert in quiet moments. It felt even sweeter after their 5-0 hammering at Ashton Gate last season, a rare low point since Eustace took charge.

"It was a huge result, we were very focused after the Burnley game to get another good result," he reflected.

"We knew they would come out hot, we owed them one from last year. The motivation was high and the execution was very good.

"I think you could definitely put it right up there (performance). We were brilliant to a man defensively and took our chances.

"Yuki was brilliant he scored two great goals. I thought we were great.

"We've been in the position a few times where we have deserved a clean sheet. Oxford scored a wonder goal, it just happened today and I felt we'd already deserved one.

"Every goalkeeper has to work on that. When you're not very busy but you have to make a big save at a crucial moment when we're 2-0 up.

"They're the best ones when you have kept yourself alert and helped your team at an important point of the game.

"I might not touch the ball for 60 minutes and then I have to make a great save. Staying switched on is probably the hardest thing as a goalkeeper."

Rovers are already halfway towards last season's tally of home wins which underlines the improvement at Ewood Park. Optimism around the club is at its highest for 12 months.

Pears admitted that the players have a spring in their step, as is always the case when results are positive. They are confident that, home or away, they can get a positive result against any opposition.

"We are going into every game, feeling like we are going to win," he said.

"Our performances have proven that and we have high expectations this season and we want to fulfil them. You could see it was a different atmosphere from the fans.

"We want to give them belief, which they might not have had previously, to come here and we will win. We want to deliver that every time we play at Ewood.

"We've played Norwich and Burnley, two good teams, and we have deserved the two points, we could've had more. We have confidence wherever we go that we have a chance to win and get the points."