TALENTED young striker Alex MacDonald is hoping to follow in the footsteps of Jay Rodriguez and make his mark on the first team squad.

The 18-year-old earned a call-up to the senior side and was offered a one-year professional contract at the end of last season, after making his debut as an 80th minute substitute in the penultimate game at home to Cardiff City.

And although he has yet to record his first appearance this term, having only been named on the bench once as an unused substitute in the Carling Cup first round win at Bury in August, he is revelling in the emergence of fellow former youth team striker Rodriguez.

The Burnley-born 19-year-old has made Owen Coyle’s 16 in nine of the last 10 games, and after coming off the bench to hit the winner in the Clarets Carling Cup third round game against Fulham - setting up next week’s mouthwatering clash with Chelsea - he has kept a fit-again Ade Akinbiyi out of the frame.

Rodriguez credits regular appearances in a three-month loan spell with Scottish First Division side Stirling Albion for his development, and MacDonald admitted he would relish the opportunity for a similar experience.

“Jay said when he came down from his spell in Scotland that he felt he got a lot of experience from it, playing against bigger, stronger players in the Scottish First Division, and he scored a few goals while he was up there as well,” said MacDonald.

“He said he really enjoyed it and knows it would benefit me, so that would be really good.

“I’d be happy to do anything - I’d take an opportunity to go out on loan with both hands just to get first team experience and hopefully come back and make my mark on Burnley.

“With the reserve league this year there aren’t as many teams as we’d like to be in it, and you’ll have one game and then it will be called off.

“You want to be playing week in week out because when you’re training that’s what you look forward to. Your goal is to play well on a Saturday and get three points, and when that’s taken away from you or you’re not playing every week it hurts you.”

He added: “Jay’s hardly been out the 16 ever since, which he’s fully deserved because he’s worked really hard and he’s getting his rewards.

“I’ve just got to keep plugging away and working hard and hopefully that could be me one day.

“Being good friends with him we always speak about things in training, and give each other pointers here and there.

“He’s been really good and is a sort of model for me.”

Meanwhile, MacDonald admitted he is already feeling the benefits of a week-long international excursion with Scotland Under 19s.

The Warrington-born front man, whose dad hails from Glasgow, scored once against Azerbaijan, twice against San Marino, and contributed to a 1-0 win over Hungary as the youngsters finished top of their group in the European Qualifying Championship to progress to the Elite Round of the competition in May next year.

“The manager, Billy Stark, said he was really pleased with me, and all the other coaches gave me great feedback which was a really big confidence booster,” he said.

“Playing international football against quality players and training with other quality players of my age, everything’s a really good experience and you feel the benefits as well, especially when you’re not coming back to do the same thing every day, it’s nice to have a break away from playing your club football.

"And it’s always good to get other opinions from coaches on things that I need to pick up on here and there.

“It was a really good experience.

“A lot of the lads in the Scottish team have all had first-team experience, and some of them have even scored in the SPL (Scottish Premier League), so they’re all at a really good standard and they’re all really good players.

“I played up front in all three games, and to be honest that’s my favourite position, but anywhere on the pitch I’m always happy to just put on the shirt and play.”

And with Burnley on such a good run of form in the Championship, MacDonald was keen to stay in touch with events back home.

“I was speaking to Chris McCann and Jay while I was away and they were all really pleased for me that I’ve been playing well over there, but I was still always looking out for the lads back here and they said they’d been doing really well,” he said.

“It’s always good to come back into a happy dressing room.

“I just want to play football and get that new contract, which is the main aim.”