SWINDON loanee Darcy Ward gave Poole a painful night at Blunsdon before insisting: I'm still a Pirate in my heart.

The Wimborne Road asset racked up 11 paid 12 on his second outing for the Robins since joining last week.

Ward's haul helped Swindon triumph 50-42 but the Aussie star insisted his bond with his parent club remained as strong as ever.

He said: "Poole were my team last year and obviously I'm still a Pirate in my heart but this year I have a job to do at Swindon.

"There is a connection there and I do plan to go back but we're in 2015 now. I can't dwell on it."

Despite hitting double figures, the 23-year-old revealed that he had not felt at the top of his game on his home debut for the Robins.

"I didn't feel that good, to be honest," he added. "There's still a lot more to come because I'm not sharp.

"I feel the score I got was a bit lucky. I had a good meeting in a way but there's a lot to improve on.

"Obviously, it will take time to get back to where I want to be and feel myself again."

Meanwhile, Robins boss Alun Rossiter hailed as "outstanding" Ward's performance at Blunsdon.

He said: “I have got to be honest, I did play it down when I said before the meeting, 'don’t expect 15 from Darcy'.

“In my heart of hearts after watching him in practice, I knew he was ready.

“Darcy is exceptional and he has really helped and lifted the team. One rider doesn’t make a team but he was outstanding.”