By Ian Gordon, PA Sport, Sydney

Stephen Parry's coach believes the Liverpool swimmer will become Britain's best in the next few years.

Parry marked his first Olympic Games by finishing sixth in Tuesday's 200metres butterfly final in Sydney.

But Dave Calleja, who coaches Parry at the Stockport Metros club, reckons the 23-year-old can go on to to enjoy success on the international stage.

"The boy did good - but he can do better," said Calleja. "I think Stephen is going to be the most outstanding British swimmer in the next few years.

"I think he is going to do a great job for British swimming. He might be 23, but compared to other guys he has not got much experience of racing at this level. That is what he needs now.

"An Olympic final is just like eight gladiators going into a ring. Only one is going to come out a winner and it is very tough especially in a place like Australia where there are 17,000 people watching.

"If you can hold it together and perform the way Stephen did, you have done an outstanding job. He is a great lad and deserves all the success that is going to come his way."

Calleja, who coached James Hickman to seventh in the butterfly at the 1996 Olympics, added: "If it goes on like this, I'll have a gold medallist by 2020."

But Calleja believes British swimming does have a bright future despite the failure to pick up any medals in the Sydney International Aquatic Centre with the competition now past the mid-way point.

Parry is one of just three men to make a final - Paul Palmer and James Salter finished fifth and sixth in the 200m freestyle - while Palmer and Birmingham's Georgina Lee are the only two to have broken individual national records.

"The British public have got to keep the faith," added Calleja. "We have come a long way in the last few years, but the rest of the world is also moving on.

"We are getting more people into finals, but now we have got to make the next step up and get onto the podium at the Olympics.

"But it is not going to happen in the next four years - it will be eight or 12 years from now.

"Australia took 12 years to reach the top so people who assume we are going to do it in half that time are wrong. I think the team have been doing a great job."