PATRICK Collins joked that it was partly a case of 'if you can't beat them, join them' after agreeing a loan switch from Sheffield Wednesday to Swindon Town.

The defender, pictured, twice suffered defeat at the hands of Andy King's men in the space of a fortnight last season and he is looking forward to being part of a 'bogey' side rather than battling one.

After enjoying his first Town run out in a 2-0 friendly defeat by Millwall yesterday, the youngster signed a loan deal which will keep him at the County Ground until December 31.

The 20-year-old is looking forward to the challenge but first there was the small matter of exorcising the ghosts of last season at the County Ground.

Referring to the 3-2 league defeat back in October (the Owls had been 2-0 up with 12 minutes to play) he said: "It was devastating for me because we'd worked so hard to get 2-0 up and then all of a sudden we've lost 3-2.

"I'd prefer to win a game with Swindon than get beaten by them every time. I think 'bogey' is a bit of an insult though. They (Swindon) were just better each time we played them."

The season ended happily though with Collins part of the Owls side that secured promotion at the Millennium Stadium after a thrilling play-off victory over Hartlepool United.

He said: "It was tremendous, the best footballing experience of my life. We were 2-1 down when I came on and we went on to win 4-2.

"Hopefully, the experience I gained and the things I learned from that promotion season, I can pass on to the lads here. Last year was a real learning curve.

Collins, who can play at right back or in central defence, was only to happy to answer Andy King's call.

He said: "I signed an extension at Sheffield Wednesday and after that Paul Sturrock said he wanted me to come on loan to a good club to get some experience. Andy King rang straightaway and I was really impressed.

"Position-wise I probably prefer to play at right-back so I can support and get forward a bit more but you just do as the manager asks you to.

"I like to get on the ball and play where I can but I'm not going to mess about either."

Collins' arrival takes the number of new faces in the Town camp to eight, not that the latest arrival sees that as a huge problem.

He said: "I think Sheffield Wednesday signed nine new players at the start of last season. You just want people to gel as quickly as possible."

Barnsley offers a swift return to South Yorkshire and as for that opening week, of which the Tykes clash marks the start, Collins said: "We have to set the standard of how we want to go.

"We want to start well. Everyone wants to be successful, I'm no different."

If all goes well then Collins isn't ruling out seeing the season through at the County Ground but first thing's first.

He said: "We'll see how it goes. I just want to concentrate on improving individually while also helping the team."