Collins came off the bench in the second half of the 26-7 win over the Cherry and Whites to become the fourth member of the Saints Senior Academy to make his first team bow in this season's LV= Cup.
And when the 18-year-old scythed through Gloucester's defence and turned on the afterburners shortly after coming on it looked like this would be a dream debut for the Northampton-born winger.
But the play was called back for a forward pass earlier in the move, and while Collins admitted his frustration in his media commitments after the game he was also pretty pragmatic.
"I didn't hear the whistle go, and when I realised I was pretty gutted!" he said. "I thought I was in, but there's not a lot I could have done about it.
"I want to do as well as I can and make the most of every opportunity I get, and even sitting on the bench for the first team is a positive experience for me.
"I just want to do my best for the team. I don't want to do stupid things for myself; I want to keep my focus on trying to do the simple things well and build from there."
Having now earned his club tie with his debut, Collins could also add a national cap to his season's collection after having been chosen in the England Under-20 squad for the forthcoming Six Nations.
The campaign includes a first Under-20s match at Franklin's Gardens for six seasons - against Italy on Friday, March 8th - and Collins says that a large and vocal crowd will make all the difference to England's youngsters.
"I'm looking forward to hopefully getting an opportunity with the England Under-20s, having not played at that level before," he added. "There are five of us in the squad, and it's good to have some of your mates around you when you go away with the national squad.
"Playing for England would be good, but to play at your home ground in England colours would be something else, especially if we have a good crowd to play in front of as well."
Tickets for the Under-20 international between England and Italy on Friday, March 8th are now on general sale. Tickets cost just £7 for juniors/concessions and £12 for adults in all areas of the game and can be booked by CLICKING HERE and following the straightforward instructions!
