Josh Ward (born 15 August 2003) is an

Australian rules footballer Australian football, also called Australian rules football or Aussie rules, or more simply football or footy, is a contact sport played between two teams of 18 players on an oval field, often a modified cricket ground. Points are scored by k ...

who plays for in the

Australian Football League The Australian Football League (AFL) is the only fully professional competition of Australian rules football. Through the AFL Commission, the AFL also serves as the sport's governing body and is responsible for controlling the laws of the gam ...

(AFL). He was recruited by Hawthorn with the 7th draft pick in the

2021 AFL draft The 2021 AFL draft comprised the various periods where the 18 clubs in the Australian Football League (AFL) can trade and recruit players during and following the completion of the 2021 AFL season. The National Draft returned to being a two day ...

Early life

Ward began his Australian rules football career at the Fitzroy Junior Football Club in the

Yarra Junior Football League The Yarra Junior Football League is the largest junior Australian rules football league in Australia. The league has a total of 32 clubs, who are based around northern, eastern and north-eastern Melbourne. There is a total of 66 divisions througho ...

, back in 2012. Ward then was selected to play for the

Northern Knights The Northern Knights is an Australian rules football club playing in the NAB League, the top statewide under-18 competition in Victoria, Australia. They are based in Preston, representing the northern suburban area of Melbourne. The Knights a ...

in the 2021 NAB League Boys season. Ward played well during his time with the Knights, averaging 30.2 disposals and being named the captain in the NAB League Boys Team of the Year. Ward was also selected as a representative for the Vic Metro squad to play in a match against Vic Country, where he was selected captain of the team and was one of the best on ground, collecting 29 disposals, two goals and eight clearances. Ward also attended

Melbourne Grammar School (Pray and Work) , established = 1849 (on present site since 1858 - the celebrated date of foundation) , type = Independent, co-educational primary, single-sex boys secondary, day and boarding , denominatio ...

with future teammate

Ned Long Ned Long is a professional Australian Rules Football player who plays for as a midfielder or forward in thAFL He has also played for Box Hill Hawks in the Victorian Football League. Early life Long represented Victoria in the Under 15 Schoo ...

. Ward scored well in the draft combine, running a time of 5:57 in the 2km time trial, the second best time in the country. The majority of the media predicted Ward to get selected by Hawthorn in the draft, and this ended up eventuating, with Ward being selected with the Hawks first pick, and 7th overall, in the

AFL career

Ward impressed early in his first pre-season with the Hawks, being named likely by the media to debut in round one. Coach Sam Mitchell expressed that Ward had been training at a 'high standard'. Ward debuted for the Hawks in their game against opening round of the

2022 AFL season The 2022 AFL season is the 126th season of the Australian Football League (AFL), the highest level senior men's Australian rules football competition in Australia, which was known as the Victorian Football League until 1989. The season features ...

, collecting 13 disposals and three marks. Despite an ankle injury concern after the game, Ward was available to play the next round. Ward received a Rising Star nomination for his performance against West Coast during round 18.

Statistics

''Updated to the end of Round 23 2022.'' , - ,

2022 File:2022 collage V1.png, Clockwise, from top left: Road junction at Yamato-Saidaiji Station several hours after the assassination of Shinzo Abe; 2022 Sri Lankan protests, Anti-government protest in Sri Lanka in front of the Presidential Secretari ...

, , , , 25 , 14 , , 2 , , 2 , , 158 , , 109 , , 267 , , 53 , , 41 , , 0.1 , , 0.1 , , 11.3 , , 7.8 , , 19.1 , , 3.8 , , 2.9 , , 0 , - class="sortbottom" ! colspan=3, Career ! 14 !! 2 !! 2 !! 158 !! 109 !! 267 !! 53 !! 41 !! 0.1 !! 0.1 !! 11.3 !! 7.8 !! 19.1 !! 3.8 !! 2.9 !! 0

Honours and achievements

Individual *

AFL Rising Star The AFL Rising Star is an Australian rules football award presented annually to the player adjudged the best young player in the Australian Football League (AFL) for the year. It was first presented in the 1993 season, and was won by Nathan Buc ...

nominee:

Personal life

Ward is the great grandson of former Hawthorn player Alex Lee. During school he also excelled academically as well as in sport achieving an ATAR above 99. He is currently studying at

Monash University Monash University () is a public research university based in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Named for prominent World War I general Sir John Monash, it was founded in 1958 and is the second oldest university in the state. The university has a ...

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Ward, Josh 2003 births Living people Hawthorn Football Club players Australian rules footballers from Victoria (Australia) People educated at Melbourne Grammar School Northern Knights players