Niall Keown admits playing under Partick Thistle's management team of Alan Archibald and Scott Paterson has been an ideal learning process for a young central defender.

The 21-year-old has only conceded two goals in the six matches he has played since arriving on loan from Reading in January.

And Keown feels playing under two centre-backs in Archibald and assistant Paterson has helped develop his game.

"That's been great," he said ahead of Saturday's visit of Ladbrokes Premiership bottom club Inverness.

"I think it helps as a player if the manager and assistant played in your position. They find it easy to give you tips and can look out for certain qualities in your game.

"They have been great with me ever since I came in. The manager has shown a lot of faith in me.

"I had bad luck with injuries in the last couple of years and hadn't played a massive amount of football, so he has shown a lot of faith in me and Scott has been great as well."

The defender also has expert opinion away from the club in father Martin Keown, the former Arsenal and England centre-back and now television pundit.

"He's got an opinion on everything, that's the problem," the Firhill player joked. "No, he watches whenever he can. He obviously has commitments on some Saturdays.

"But he enjoys coming to watch the games. He will give me a few little pointers if he feels like he needs to but he lets me figure things out for myself. He's happy if I'm happy."

Keown says he has been surprised by aspects of Scotland's top flight.

"It's more competitive than I expected," he said. "The games are higher paced than I thought they might be. There have been a few physical battles.

"It's definitely very competitive and it's a good standard. I was surprised by the pace the games are played at.

"I think it can also be determined by the quality of the pitches. The pitch at Aberdeen wasn't in the best condition. That's because they came back early for the Europa League so it's understandable, but that can sometimes affect the style of the game.

"The ball isn't kept on the floor maybe as much as it would be if the pitches were in better shape.

"We are often playing against two strikers. Down south we are playing against one up front a bit more which poses a different threat, so it's definitely been a good learning experience."