SWINDON Town head coach Ben Garner hailed the strong relationship his side has with National League South outfit Chippenham Town after midfielder Mo Dabre joined the Bluebirds on a long-term youth loan.

Swindon have seen Ricky Aguiar, Harry Parsons, Harrison Minturn and now Dabre head west for loan spells with Mike Cook’s men at various points this season – all of which have proved greatly beneficial to the three parties.

With first-team opportunities at the County Ground limited for all, a short spell at the Thornbury Surfacing Stadium has allowed Aguiar in particular the opportunity to shine on a regular basis before coming back to Garner’s group with a few more strings to his bow.

Chippenham boss Cook has been delighted with the contribution of all his Swindon loanees so far and is hopeful Dabre can aid the Bluebirds’ push towards the league’s top seven.

Likewise, Garner praised the hard work and dedication of his players to want to make the step down and improve both as players and as people.

Asked if he was surprised about the success the partnership had produced, Garner said: “No, not really.

“Those of us that have seen Ricky grow on a daily basis, it doesn’t come as much of a surprise when he comes into the team after a long time out and it looks like this huge transformation – that’s been an ongoing process. That’s been testament to Ricky’s hard work and dedication to improving.

“The loans at Chippenham have worked very, very well – we’ve got a good relationship there.

“Harry (Parsons) and Ricky, and we’ve got Harrison Minturn there doing very well at the moment. Mo Dabre is going to go there ready to play tomorrow.

“It’s great experience, it’s a good level, we know they’re well looked after there.

“As I’ve said before, the beauty of it is that they still train with us and get the development that we want on the coaching side of things.

“It’s been really beneficial having Chippenham there, and something that’s really helped us this season.”

Minturn – last weekend’s man of the match against Eastbourne Borough – and new-signing Dabre will aim to help Chippenham take three points at home to Hampton & Richmond Borough on Saturday (3pm kick-off).