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| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Peter Ward | ||
| Date of birth | (1964-10-15)15 October 1964 (age 61) | ||
| Place of birth | Chester le Street,County Durham, England | ||
| Height | 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)[1] | ||
| Position | Midfielder | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1982–1985 | Chester-le-Street Town | ||
| 1985–1985 | Newcastle United | 0 | (0) |
| 1985–1986 | Chester-le-Street Town | ||
| 1986–1989 | Huddersfield Town | 37 | (2) |
| 1989–1991 | Rochdale | 84 | (10) |
| 1991–1995 | Stockport County | 142 | (10) |
| 1995–1999 | Wrexham | 120 | (14) |
| 1999 | Morecambe | 1 | (0) |
| Managerial career | |||
| 2011 | Stockport County | ||
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Peter Ward (born 15 October 1964) is an English professionalfootball manager who played over 350Football League games as amidfielder. He was a player, manager, assistant manager and coach atStockport County.
Ward played for Chester le Street,Newcastle United,Huddersfield Town,Rochdale,Stockport County,Wrexham andMorecambe. He started his career with the local Chester le Street town side and was spotted whilst playing in the Northern League by Jack Charlton at Newcastle United. However, following Jack Charlton's departure he was released by the St James' Park club and he returned to play for Chester-Le-Street Town. The following year he was given another opportunity when he was subsequently transferred to Huddersfield Town. Following a successful spell at the Yorkshire side where he featured alongside players such as Duncan Shearer he left forSpotland.
At Rochdale he helped the side into the 5th round of the FA Cup where they were defeated byCrystal Palace atSelhurst Park, in what was the club's most successful ever run in the competition. On the way Rochdale defeated Whitley Bay from Ward's home region of the North East. His most successful spell in his professional career came when he moved ontoEdgeley Park, playing under the legendary Uruguayan Manager,Danny Bergara, for Stockport County and this is where he met Jim Gannon. During his time at Stockport he played atWembley four times, however he lost on each occasion. Ward was also renowned for his set pieces and his tough tackling. Ward then saw out his professional career with Welsh sideWrexham with whom he helped reach the FA Cup quarter-finals in 1997, and played in the side that missed out on reaching the League One play-off's on goal difference in 1997/98. Ward retired from playing in the summer of 1999, but he was persuaded out of retirement to make one appearance for Football Conference sideMorecambe in a 1–2 home defeat byKingstonian in October 1999.
Following Ward's playing career being terminated due to a persistent injury, he took up coaching at Stockport County's Centre of Excellence, but following County's 6–0 loss toMacclesfield Town on 26 December 2005, ManagerChris Turner was sacked. Ward's former teammateJim Gannon was appointed as manager, and Ward was promoted to his assistant atEdgeley Park. During this spell, Gannon & Ward led County from 24th inLeague Two up to 5th inLeague One by Christmas 2008. Overseeing one of the most successful periods in the club's history, including aFootball League record of nine consecutive wins without conceding a goal between January–March 2007 and winning theFootball League Two Playoffs in 2008. Gannon, Ward & much of the backroom staff were made redundant in May 2009, due to County entering administration. On 30 June 2009 he was appointed as Gannon's assistant atMotherwell. The tenure was short-lived, however, and they were both out of work by Christmas. Following the takeover ofStockport County by the 2015 consortium in June 2010, Ward took up the offer to take charge of first team training of his former club during the close season whilst the new board searched for a permanent manager. After the dismissal of their appointee,Paul Simpson, Ward was temporarily placed in charge of first team affairs as caretaker manager[2]
Following Gannon's appointment at League Two rivalsPort Vale, Ward was thought to be favourite to get the Stockport job permanently. His first game in charge was a 5–1 home defeat byGillingham. In his second match, however, a much improved performance resulted in a 3–3 draw against second-placedRotherham United, with County at one point 3–1 ahead. He was replaced byRay Mathias (also employed as caretaker manager) on 9 March 2011[3] but joined the coaching staff. He left Stockport in July 2011.[4]