Neill Collins is one of five former Sunderland players in the North End squad, so Monday night could be quite a game for Brown, Carter, Elliott, Wallace and North End's No.6. After an enforced 16-day break between fixtures he was delighted to be only a few days away from getting back to competitive action.

The 26-year-old defender now has nine games under his belt in the Lilywhite and was looking forward to locking horns with another fellow former PNE loanee in Andy Carroll and Co as the Championship's undoubted stars arrive under the Deepdale floodlights for the game of the week in the Football League's top division.

Collins admits that the team would have preferred to get back into action immediately after the disappointment of the display at Watford, but is thankful that the tedium of 16 days worth of training has been broken up, with the club allowing Alan Irvine and the playing staff the chance to get some hard work done in warmer climbs.

As an ex-Sunderland player, does that add any extra spice to Monday's game?
I don't think it adds any extra spice. Newcastle are a big enough club on their own right, so if you are not looking forward to that game, what can you look forward to. Everyone is looking forward to it. It is a chance to test ourselves against a team who is top of the league. If you are top of the league you know you are there to be shot at and Newcastle will know that. To play live on Sky on a Monday night is always something to look forward to.

No-one likes the international break, but did it come at a comparatively good time for PNE?
I don't know if it came at a good time. We made the most of it, we knew it was coming, so we can't complain about it, but after the performance at Watford we were dying to get back out and have a game. Normally you would want a game on a Tuesday night, but we didn't have that opportunity. We went away, worked hard and it is up to us to start again on Monday night.

Monday's opponents are probably the most recognisable faces in the Coca-Cola Championship, so you know what you are up against?
We know what we are up against. You don't have to introduce the players to anyone. We know who they are, they are Premiership quality players who have adapted well to the Championship, so no-one is under any illusions as to the difficulty of the game, it is going to be a tough game, but these are the games you want to test yourselves in and want to play in.

The next few weeks look difficult, but mouth-watering in terms of the fixture list.
It's a fantastic fixture list in the next few weeks; that's what you are in the game for. The fixtures have been reasonably good so far and now we are looking at some really tough fixtures, Newcastle, away to Blackpool and Cardiff and it is a good test for us. We will concentrate a game a time, boring as it sounds, as that's what you have to do.

How have you and your team-mates dealt with the unprecedented gap between games?
It has not been great to have so long between games, because you want to be playing games, you don't just want to train all the time. But the Club have been good, we have been away for a few days, we have worked hard and we've managed to break things up. So it has not been too tedious; it has been different and it hasn't felt that long. Now we are only a few days away and we can start concentrating on the game.

The manager has been able to add to his squad this week, what will Michael Tonge bring to the dressing room?
Michael Tonge is a proven player at this level. He has an excellent record at Sheffield United, so it is great to add another player to the squad. We are running with one of the smallest squads in the Championship, but a good squad, and he adds even more quality. He will add good creativeness in the middle of the park and good competition.

The game on Monday is one of the most-anticipated of the season, are you looking forward to it?
Every time I have played at Deepdale, whether it is for the Club or against it - coming down with Wolves or Sunderland - it always seems a wee bit more partisan at night games and I look forward to having them on my side, especially against a big club like Newcastle who will have good support. It should be a great atmosphere and hopefully we can give the fans something to cheer about.

The ticket office will have extended opening hours between 9am and 5pm on Saturday 21st November for purchase of tickets for this game in person at Deepdale and over the phones on 0844 856 1966. You can also buy online until 3pm on Monday 23rd November, with collection at the game, by clicking here.