Australia’s Young Defenders Shine in Goalless Draw Against Paraguay

Australia’s goalless draw with Paraguay will not linger in the memory for its scoreline. The night belonged to the two young defenders who refused to treat a World Cup as something to tiptoe through.

Jordy Bos and Lucas Herrington walked off the pitch without a goal between them, but with a dressing room full of admirers — and a clear message that the Socceroos’ future is already here.

Bos tears it up on the “wrong” side

Asked to play on the right of a back three instead of his natural left, Bos did not just cope. He dominated.

The Feyenoord fullback drove relentlessly down the flank, repeatedly linking with Cristian Volpato and dragging Paraguay’s shape out of alignment. By the final whistle, he had created more chances than anyone else on the pitch, taken the most shots and completed the most dribbles.

All of that from a defender playing out of position.

Nestory Irankunda, who knows a thing or two about elite talent, did not bother with restraint.

“He’s the best player in the world, Jordy Bos,” Irankunda said after the match. “Best wing back in the world, and he’s so talented, but what a guy.

“He done so well at right back today, but he got so high up the pitch today, and he showed glimpses of what he can do with the ball.

“We’ve always known Jordy for doing great things, and today he was incredible.”

The praise was not hollow. Bos attacked with the conviction of a winger and defended with the discipline of a seasoned fullback. His performance drew comparisons with Gareth Bale’s early days, when the Welshman terrorised teams from deep before morphing into a superstar forward at Real Madrid.

Bos’s own football education came watching another left-footed menace.

He grew up studying Arjen Robben, the Dutch icon who made cutting inside from the flank feel inevitable and unstoppable. Bos tried to channel that same ruthlessness.

“Unfortunately, I didn’t score like him, but I tried, tried my hardest,” Bos said.

“I think I could have scored a couple, but I think from now on if everyone puts their best foot forward and we get chances, we just have to finish it.

The sky’s the limit.”

The scoreboard did not reward his ambition, but the performance did something more important for Australia: it announced a defender who looks increasingly comfortable carrying the creative burden on the biggest stage.

Herrington steps out of the shadows

On the opposite side of the back three, away from the spotlight and the headlines, Lucas Herrington quietly made history.

At 18, he became the youngest Australian ever to start a World Cup match, snatching the record from his own teammate Irankunda. No fuss, no theatrics. Just a composed debut that hinted at why some of Europe’s heaviest hitters, including Barcelona, have been circling.

Herrington’s rise has been rapid, and the noise around his future has grown with every appearance for club and country. The teenager, though, has parked the speculation.

“I’m here at the World Cup, so that’s my main focus. I just want to help the team as much as possible, and we can deal with that after,” he said.

It is the kind of clarity Irankunda recognises and endorses. Signed by Bayern Munich at 17, he has already lived through the frenzy that now surrounds Herrington.

“He’s so talented and I feel like this is just a glimpse of what he can do, a small glimpse of what he can do, and I feel like he can just get better from here and I feel like we’ll see a better side to him,” Irankunda said.

“I’ve just told him to try to stay away from it [the speculation around his future].”

Herrington’s World Cup did not start with fireworks. He watched the first two games from the bench, learning in silence while others carried the load. When his chance finally arrived against Paraguay, he looked like a player who had used that time well.

“It’s my first World Cup at 18. It’s in probably everyone’s best interest for a young player just to watch and observe the first couple of games,” he said.

“I’m just grateful my opportunity came out and I really enjoyed it. I loved it every minute.”

No bravado. No talk of records. Just an 18-year-old who understands that patience and perspective are as valuable as pace and power.

A new backbone for the Socceroos

Australia’s 0-0 with Paraguay will go down as a functional result, enough to seal progression to the round of 32 and keep the campaign on track. But beneath the surface, it felt like something more significant.

Bos rampaging from right back, Herrington quietly locking down his side, Irankunda and Volpato buzzing ahead of them — this is not just a youth movement, it is the early sketch of a new backbone.

The veterans still set the standards, but the kids are no longer waiting their turn. They are taking it.

If Bos keeps attacking World Cup defences with the swagger of a winger and Herrington continues to grow under the weight of expectation, how long before this back line stops being about promise and starts being about fear for the opposition?

The sky, as Bos put it, might not be the limit at all. It might just be the starting point.