QPR youngster Darnell Furlong says his loan spell at Swindon Town has helped him grow from a boy into a man.

The 21-year-old spent the first half of this season on loan with the League One outfit, and impressed enough for Rs boss Ian Holloway to recall him and Michael Doughty – who was also at Swindon – earlier this month.

And the right-back, whose father Paul manages the club’s Under-18 side, says he is loving every minute of being part of the new regime.

“I’m really enjoying being back and playing again,” he said. “Ollie’s been unbelievable to me ever since I’ve been back, and I’m just going to give him everything I can.

“Swindon was a massive loan spell. I played in nearly every game I was in there, so it was really enjoyable and beneficial at the same time. I feel like I grew a lot as a player.

“I’ve gained more knowledge and feel older in myself – playing a lot of games does that to you.

“You grow as a player and become more of a man. In my first couple of loan spells, I went there as a kid, but I came back as a man after Swindon.

“It’s a different environment and you’ve got to get used to that quickly, so you’ve got to do a lot of growing up.”

Furlong, who has also had loan spells with Northampton Town and Cambridge United, signed a two-and-a-half year contract extension in W12 yesterday - but admitted he didn’t expect to be involved with the first-team this season.

He added: “I assumed I was there [at Swindon] for the year so to hear I was coming back was a nice feeling.

“I’ve always said I want to play this club, so I’m delighted to finally get a proper chance to show what I can do.”

Furlong believes the Rs, who are currently on a four-match unbeaten league run, have the right mixture of youth and experience in their squad.

“We’ve got energy, legs and experience in this team – we’ve got a bit of everything,” he said.

“We’ll try to get as high up the table as we can. The manager keeps saying there’s a change coming round here and since he’s come in everything is starting to gel.”