Kye Rowles has hailed his World Cup learning curve, despite the ‘bittersweet’ ending to Australia’s bid for glory.
The Hearts defender was central to the Socceroos’ success in Qatar, where they became just the second team from Down Under to reach the knock-out stages.
Rowles formed a formidable partnership with Harry Souttar at the heart of Graham Arnold’s defence and only a goalkeeping mistake denied them an opportunity to go further in the tournament.
Mat Ryan’s error cost the Aussies dearly against a Lionel Messi-inspired Argentina as they exited the tournament with a battling 2-1 defeat on Saturday night.
But Rowles insists he will return to Hearts armed with magical memories and phenomenal lessons after coming up against Messi, France superstar Kylian Mbappé and Christian Eriksen of Denmark over his four games in the Middle East.
The 24-year-old, who joined Hearts in the summer from Central Coast Mariners, said: “It’s a whole bunch of learning, really, coming up against France, top five team, Argentina, top three, [and] Denmark, top 10.
“You [are against] the best players, best teams and you can’t give them a second. If you switch off for any time in the game, you get punished.
“And I think we were great with that after the first game [a 4-1 defeat to France] and just unfortunate that we got caught short in the end."
Rowles added: “Amazing experience. Obviously, my first time at a World Cup and to be in the knockouts is pretty special, but it’s a bit bittersweet.
“I’m really proud of the performance we put on, but just an unfortunate result in the end.”
