Background
Ward was born in Cleethorpes, Lincolnshire.
Ward was born in Cleethorpes, Lincolnshire.
He joined the youth system at Grimsby Town at the age of 12, and worked his way through to the first-team squad by Lennie Lawrence towards the close of the 2000-2001 season. He made his debut a year later, in the last Division One match of the season, a 3–1 defeat away to Millwall on 21 April 2002. He was given a 12-month contract in June 2002, and went on to feature 14 times for The Mariners in all competitions before being released at the end of the 2003-2004 campaign.
When he received no offers from League clubs, he decided to start a degree course in Grimsby, and signed for nearby Brigg Town, newly promoted to the Northern Premier League First Division, on a semi-professional basis.
Ward left Brigg Town after four years with the club at the end of the 2007-2008 season. Ward"s younger brother Andrew also played for Grimsby Town"s junior teams.