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Daily Record
Daily Record
Sport
Ross Pilcher

Hearts set for £500k windfall after Kye Rowles and Nathaniel Atkinson help Australia book World Cup spot

Australia's qualification for the 2022 World Cup could land Hearts a windfall of nearly £500,000.

Jambos duo Kye Rowles and birthday boy Nathaniel Atkinson both started as the Socceroos booked their place in Qatar with a penalty shoot-out playoff victory over Peru.

Graham Arnold's men will now jet off to the Middle East for the finals this winter, and it could mean money in the bank for Robbie Neilson.

Thanks for FIFA's Player Benefit scheme, the Tynecastle club will be due just under £7000 in compensation for every day the pair are away with the national team, regardless of whether they get any playing time or not.

Based on the Aussies going out in the group stages, Hearts would land just under £350,000 from the pair's selection.

Club teammate Cammy Devlin 's form since arriving in Edinburgh last summer has seen him touted for a call-up, and Neilson admitted he's been close, but missed out due to injuries and unfortunate times during the campaign.

Should he also get the nod, then that would be worth another £175,000, taking the total amount due to the best part of half-a-million.

Rowes is the latest player to arrive at Hearts from Down Under, taking their Australian contingent to three after Devlin and Atkinson made the switch from the A-League.

He's agreed a three-year deal in Gorgie and will join up with his new teammates ahead of their pre-season training camp in Spain next week.

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