The World Cup was just six months away and his club were closing in on promotion to the Championship. 

Then injury struck.

Not just any injury but a ruptured Achilles. He missed the World Cup and most of the next season. He worked his way back to fitness then tore his ACL and it was another extended stint on the sidelines.

In the space of three years Patrick Kisnorbo went from captaining Leeds to having to go out on loan to get game time.

The injuries should have dented his enthusiasm for the game. Knowing how close he was to fulfilling his World Cup dreams only to have it taken away should have left him bitter.

But it is clear this is not the case - enthusiasm and ambition still drive him like a teenager...even at a chilly mid-winter training session.

Training these days is at Championship club Ipswich, where he is on loan for a month from Leeds United. The move to the Tractor Boys came about after struggling to nail down a first team spot at Elland Road under boss Neil Warnock. 

Having been back fit and available for selection since pre-season, it's been a frustrating six months for the 2009-2010 Leeds Fans Player of the Season. Having been denied a loan move to Ipswich earlier in the season, Kisnorbo is now enjoying his time working under Mick McCarthy. 

“It has been good to just have something different I have been here for two weeks and so far it’s been great, he told au.fourfourtwo.com.

"The boys are good here, the gaffer and the assistant coach TC (Terry Connor) are great - everyone involved is great.”

Kisnorbo is unsure if his loan will be extended and is unlikely to have any say in the matter, with the final decision resting with Leeds.

The uncertainty might be a little difficult to deal with but it does not seem to be faze the defender. 

“You just have to get on with it.," he said. "You have one month to prove yourself and if it’s not for yourself, it is trying to get back in the team you have come from or give something to the team that you are on loan with.”

The injuries remain a shadow over him - a ruptured Achilles tendon and then he tore his ACL just two seasons later.

Having gone through the extremely difficult rehab required for his Achilles injury that saw him miss almost a season and a half, his subsequent knee injury must have felt like a dagger to the heart, especially as he was starting to rediscover the previous form that had made him such a hit with the Leeds fans. 

He concedes it was difficult to stay motivated. He would have known what awaited him the second time round - hours alone in the gym and isolation from his teammates. But he did get through it and holds no bitterness about what injuries have denied him.  

“If you want to play football, you try and think of the bigger picture and you want to get through those tough times," he said. "When you have disappointments like the World Cup it’s hard to deal with.

"But when you look over it, it has probably made me bigger and stronger and mentally tougher, for all the negatives, there have been some positives that have come out of it.”

He may get his chance to realise his World Cup dream. If the Socceroos qualify for Brazil 2014 Kisnorbo will be 33. Not young but definitely younger than plenty of others who are likely to be in Holger Osieck’s plans. Also in his favour is the fact that centre back is a position that is lacking in depth. 

Kisnorbo says how impressed he has been with his good friend Sasa Ogenovski’s performances alongside skipper Lucas Neil - but despite that, his burning ambition is to get back into Socceroos reckoning for Brazil 2014. 

“There is nothing better than playing for your country and I have had the disappointment of missing out through injury when I had the biggest chance, so hopefully by playing regularly I can get back into the Australian team," he said.

“Representing your country is the highlight of your life as a footballer and after all the heartbreak that I have had I hope I can represent my country at a World Cup.”

But Kisnorbo isn't considering a return to Australia yet to help his case with the Socceroos.

“A few A-League clubs have contacted me but I am not ready to come home," he said. "I have been here 11-years and I love it here.

"It is where you want to be in terms of football - I just want to stay here as long as I can.”

Days like the victory over Manchester United at Old Trafford have only increased his love for football in Britain and the injuries have only made him more determined to prove himself once again against the best.

It is not about the rewards that come with it, it is about playing football at the highest possible and level and Kisnorbo more than most is willing to go through whatever it takes. 

He added: “It is hard here - people just see the fancy cars, the big houses and the money and it is far from that.

"It is a tough life here if you don’t work hard.”

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