Alan Tate says he is happy to don the gloves in an emergency
Defender Alan Tate said he is happy to operate as emergency goalkeeper for Swansea but wished his latest cameo had been under better circumstances.
Regular stopper Dorus de Vries suffered a suspected broken jaw after a 26th-minute challenge from QPR captain Martin Rowlands in Tuesday's 0-0 draw.
"Unfortunately it's a bad injury he's picked up," Tate told BBC Sport Wales.
"I knew as soon as Richie Evans, the physio, signalled for the stretcher, I knew that was it."
Swansea manager Roberto Martinez had opted to go into the match at the Liberty Stadium without a replacement keeper on the bench.
"You make decisions for a reason," Martinez said. "We have won a lot of points and games through the substitutions and that's what we cover with five subs.
"When there are five subs, there are areas you can cover and having a goalkeeper on the bench always reduces your chances and that's a gamble we have to take.
"It's the same if you don't have a left-back on the bench, you are taking that position and you become exposed.
"When you have someone like Alan Tate who has got that attitude, it's something you can afford to do.
"When you lose your goalkeeper, you really have to squeeze Queens Park Rangers high up and work extremely hard.
"They only had one shot - off target - in the second half and one corner in the whole game and that tells you the whole story. We had 25 attempts, seven on target and 11 corners."
Tate was happy to take up the challenge, making his first league appearance of the season, and says he is happy to play wherever Martinez wants him to.
"I enjoy playing for the club no matter what, even if I've come off the bench to play in goal I don't mind," added Tate, who last played in goal for the Swans in 2004 when replacing Roger Freestone at Hartlepool.
"I played a lot in goal when I was a kid... I think I've improved a bit, keeping a clean sheet!
"Everyone in front of me did a great job - the back four and the three lads in centre midfield worked really hard to stop them having a shot."
De Vries will undergo an operation on his injuries on Wednesday, with the suspicion that the Dutchman has broken his jaw and his cheekbone.
The likelihood is that De Vries will be out for between five and seven weeks, with Birmingham's on-loan Polish keeper Artur Krysiak set to take over.
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