Rowles thought his World Cup dream had died at Tynecastle
...but timely recovery means Aussie star can help put Hearts on the map
KYE ROWLES didn’t get a chance to celebrate his first goal for Hearts. The pain surging from his fractured foot saw to that. The defender timed his jump and header to perfection as he put his team in front against St Johnstone back in August.
However, the awkward landing not only snapped a bone but left him on the verge of a broken dream.
The Australian had signed on at Tynecastle with two immediate and lofty objectives — a crack at European football and a place in his country’s World Cup squad.
Rowles’ metatarsal misery meant he missed the entirety of Hearts’ eight-game Euro run but he’s staged a comeback just in the nick of time to book a plane ticket to Qatar.
The 24-year-old returned from the bench at Motherwell last weekend and was named in Graham Arnold’s squad on Tuesday.
The following night he was back in the starting line-up and put in an assured performance as Hearts lost 1-0 at Ibrox.
But Rowes saw red in yesterday’s 1-1 draw with Livingston to complete an eventful week in returning to action.
‘To get injured scoring your first goal? That was unfortunate,’ he says with classic understatement. ‘But it’s fully healed now.
‘Obviously the World Cup was in my mind. At first I thought I would be back with three or four games to spare but in the end time was tight. Hats off to all the medical staff for pushing me as much as they could within safe limits.
‘It took a few weeks to get up to speed but it’s passed all the tests and Wednesday night was a good indicator.’
A delighted Rowles will have the company of two club mates as he checks in at Edinburgh Airport this afternoon.
Tynecastle wing-back Nathaniel Atkinson was always likely to make the cut for Qatar but Cammy Devlin’s late run into contention offered no guarantees.
A video clip has emerged on social media of Arnold making the phone call in which he invited the little midfielder to the Middle East.
Devlin’s emotional reaction will have come as no surprise to anyone who has witnessed the infectious enthusiasm he brings to every performance in Hearts’ midfield. ‘I’m pleased for Cammy,’ adds Rowles. ‘Nate and I were in there a bit earlier but we kept telling him his time would come.
‘He is now peaking at the perfect time and he deserves the call-up.
‘He has been over here for a season and a bit and really cemented his spot for Hearts. ‘He has been one of our best players in each game.’ In addition to the Hearts trio there will be another four Premiership players in the Australian camp. Keanu Baccus (St Mirren), Aaron Mooy (Celtic), Aziz Behich (Dundee United) and Hibs’ Martin Boyle have also been selected, while Jackson Irvine and Jason Cummings are also well known to Scottish fans.
The environment seems to suit the Aussies, something that played into Rowles’ decision to join Atkinson and Devlin in Edinburgh during the close season.
He was still a Central Coast Mariners player when he picked up his first cap against Jordan in June but, by the end of that international fortnight, he’d not only secured a new club but helped Australia navigate two play-off matches against the UAE and Peru to book their place at the finals.
‘I wasn’t expecting to play in those play-offs and I signed for Hearts while I was in camp, so it was a hectic time,’ he admits. ‘I flew straight here and it has been awesome. Scotland is a good fit for the Australian players.
‘Everyone is welcoming and I think that suits the Aussie culture.
‘When players come to the national team camps they have nothing but good words to say about playing here. That goes a long way because if a player gets offered the chance to come here, they jump at it.
‘That’s what happened with me. I’d known Cammy and Nate for a few years, so I was able to ask them what was in store.
‘But it wasn’t just that. The opportunity to play European football was a big draw — unfortunately I never got the chance to experience that!
‘Just being over here, you have more sets of eyes watching you each week. That in itself is more appealing than being back home.’
Although selected to play in those all-important games in June, Rowles knows he has no guarantee of starting any of Australia’s three group matches against France, Tunisia and Denmark.
He’d love to be facing Kylian Mbappe when the Socceroos’ tournament kicks off against France a week on Tuesday, even better if he has familiar company alongside him at the Al Janoub Stadium.
‘There’s not much you can say about Mbappe — he’s one of the best in the world, so you have just got to try shut him out for as long as you can and hope that he doesn’t get a chance. Because nine times out of ten he will take it. That’s the beauty of qualifying for tournaments like this. It’s the biggest competition in the world, the pinnacle of football in my opinion. You don’t get an easy group at the World Cup and nor do you want one, to be honest.
‘You want to play against the best but there’s a reason that we are there, too — we have played our way in and we deserve to be there.
‘To have the three Aussies from Hearts all going together to the World Cup — you just couldn’t write that script any better.
‘Even if one of us gets on it will be a dream come true. But if the stars align and all three of us are out there at the same time, it would be a pretty special moment for sure.’
Rowles started those play-off games as the left-sided centre-back in a defence also containing Atkinson and Behich. With veteran Trent Sainsbury omitted from the squad, he may find himself involved from the start. ‘I’ve no clue who will start,’ he shrugs. ‘It’s up to the gaffer but I am fresh after my lay-off. I’m also leftsided which I think goes a long way.
‘I have to get my head down, work hard and hopefully I’ll be rewarded.’
As excited as Rowles, Devlin and the rest may be, the appetite for the first-ever winter World Cup does not appear to have extended to the wider football audience.
The games will doubtless draw big TV audiences when they roll round but the toxic politics around FIFA’s decision to take the tournament to Qatar, allied to the unconventional scheduling, have reduced the build-up to barely a side issue.
‘It’s very strange,’ admits Rowles. ‘This is my first cycle of it, so I can’t really speak too much about the differences but, seeing the injuries round the world, I don’t think it’s the greatest idea to have it in the middle of the season.’