JACK Arnfield says that he’s patiently bided his time for a shot at the British middleweight title and is insistent that he’ll provide a fiercer challenge to Nick Blackwell’s crown than Elliott Matthews would have done.

The 26-year-old, from Blackpool, has stepped in as a late replacement for unbeaten Watford southpaw Matthews and like the majority of domestic middleweights, has kept his eyes firmly on the nation’s top prize.

Arnfield’s only defeat came in a Prizefighter tournament in February and after sealing a spot to take on Trowbridge champion Blackwell last Friday, the Lancashire man is out to grab his opportunity with both hands in Bristol on Saturday night.

“On Friday morning I got the phone call from Steve Wood, my manager, who told me Matthews was out and I was in. I was over the moon. I was ecstatic,” said Arnfield.

“I've been hunting the British title for the past 18 months, so I've kept tabs on all the champions that have come along.

“As soon as Blackwell won it in May, I had my sights set on one day fighting him.

“He's aggressive and very, very fit – you can't take that away from him.

“He's always there for the full twelve rounds, no matter who he's up against. I know it will be a hard night's work nut people underestimate how fit I am. I don't stop, from the first bell to the last bell.

“I also know he doesn't have much of an amateur pedigree or any amateur background at all.

“He fought on the unlicensed scene. I'm not saying that's a bad scene, but I think having an amateur pedigree stands for a bit more than that.”

Arnfield added: “I've never seen Matthews box before. I looked up his record and he seemed quite untested.

“He was a southpaw, but Blackwell doesn't do too badly against southpaws. He boxed Billy Joe (Saunders) and gave him a good fight, he beat John Ryder and his last opponent, Damon Jones, was also a southpaw.

“He's had a good run of southpaws, so I bet he was over the moon when Matthews was given the shot.

“I'm obviously not a southpaw but I don't think that will have too much of an impact on Blackwell. He's a professional, he's British champion and he'll be prepared for whatever is in front of him.

“I do think I'm an all-round better boxer than Matthews and a tougher challenge for Blackwell though, and I'm looking forward to showing that on Saturday.”