Australia 20-19 Wales, Sydney, June 23
Howley proud of touring side
ESPN Staff
June 24, 2012
Caretaker boss Rob Howley casts an eye over training, North Sydney Oval, Sydney, Australia, June 21, 2012
Rob Howley was left to rue a horror penalty count in the third Test © PA Photos
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Caretaker coach Rob Howley has expressed pride in his touring squad, but insists Wales should strive for more than garnering respect when playing the likes of Australia.

Wales were beaten 20-19 in the third and final Test in Sydney on Saturday, having lost the previous two encounters 27-19 and 25-23. Howley, deputising as coach because of Warren Gatland's injury, believes Wales will take a great deal from the tour down under.

"I am immensely proud of this group of players and there are a lot of good ingredients that have come out of the last three weeks that should make them feel pretty proud of their efforts," he said.

"There were moments in the match we could have controlled better. But those moments will come again in the Autumn Series and the Six Nations and, hopefully, we will have learned how to make the most of them.

"A lot of things happened in the last 10 minutes [of each Test] and it was a new experience for a lot of these young players, who hadn't played in a three-Test series before. It has been a fantastic learning curve for us discovering how to get back up for games week in, week out.

"The respect we have had over here has been great, but this Welsh team is better than that. We want to win international games and the one thing you need to do when you gain respect is come to places like Australia and win."

© ESPN Sports Media Ltd.

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