Darren Philip Ward (born September 13, 1978) is an English footballer who plays as a defender. He is currently on loan at League One club Millwall from Wolverhampton Wanderers.

[edit] Playing career

Born in Kenton, Harrow, Ward started his career at Watford, making his debut on 20 April 1996 against arch-rivals Luton. But opportunities were scant for Ward in the next few seasons - he made eight appearances in 1996-97 and, after suffering a badly broken leg, only one appearance in each of the following two seasons.

Ward was loaned out to Q.P.R., in the 1999-2000 season, playing fifteen games, and was generally impressive. On his return to Watford he became one of Watford's first-team centre-halves, playing against teams like Manchester United and Arsenal in the club's final two months in the Premiership. On their return to Division 1, Ward continued to be a first team regular, making 40 appearances in 2000-01.

Gianluca Vialli's arrival at Vicarage Road in the summer of 2001 saw a considerable re-modelling of the side, and Ward was one the casualties. He moved to Millwall in October 2001 for £500,000 where he became a regular first team player, and was nicknamed 'The Peckham Beckham', due to the fact that his haircut is similar to that of former England captain David Beckham. At The New Den, Ward and Matthew Lawrence stood out at the central defensive position, as the Lions played in the 2004 FA Cup Final, against Manchester United. Ward played the full 90 minutes, as Millwall were beaten 3-0.

In May 2005 he moved across south-London to Crystal Palace for £1.1m, signing a three-year deal. Ward initially did well and his goalscoring form made him very popular, but by the end of his first season this good form disappeared, and by May 2007 he was out of the side, with Mark Hudson and Leon Cort preferred instead.

In July 2007, Ward joined Wolves on a three-year contract for an undisclosed fee however it was announced in May 2008 that he would be one of many casualties leaving the club, after spending less than a year there.^[1] However, after showing a positive attitude, Ward was taken off the transfer list and told to fight for his place.

He went on a two month loan to Watford in September 2008, the club where he began his career,^[2] but this was halted after nine appearances when he suffered a cheekbone fracture.^[3]

He joined Charlton Athletic on loan for the remainder of the 2008–09 season on 30 January 2009, but was unable to prevent the team being relegated to League One. He returned to his parent club in the summer, who loaned him out again in September 2009, this time to his former team Millwall on a three-month loan until 13 December.^[4]

[edit] Personal life

Darren is the brother of Coventry City's ex-West Ham United defender Elliott Ward. He turned down the opportunity of joining West Ham and the Premiership before opting for Palace, claiming he didn't want to keep his brother out of the team^[5]

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• Official site profile
• Darren Ward career stats at Soccerbase