Does anybody actually know when he is due back or is it all rumors that he wont play again this season. If the guy can get his body & mind fit he is a class act and it can't be underestimated how much he is missed in the side. Maybe his body isnt up to it, maybe he'll go on a run of 30 games. Personally i hope it is the latter
We moved Garbutt on supposedly due to the amount of time he spent injured - why should Ward get any better treatment?
You don't know what happens behind the scenes though? Garbutt was probably a sick note and took any chance he could to sit in the stands, Ward just seems to want to be out there contributing.
Retaining Ward is still a no-brainer for me, although I agree we can't afford him to have another season-long lay-off shortly after he returns.
Quite simply, Ward possesses the heart and signs of the leadership qualities that are currently missing from the team. Plus, he's homegrown. Imagine what the likes of Powell would do with him if we let him go.
I reckon we would have beaten Saints if he'd stayed on the field for the whole of that game. Could have completely changed the complexion of our season. Sigh.
Sinfield said last season, there is a lot of the salary cap sat in the stands, issue is, same players again out injured sat in the stands. I fully understand what individuals on here are saying, and as a club Leeds have a duty of care to their players. I also believe that some players have the slightest knock and they are missing for 6 weeks. When Ward plays we are a much better team, problem is he, like others do spend a lot of the season sat in the stands as opposed to on the pitch. No easy answer but at this stage of the season some players do play with knocks some are happy to sit in the stands, it just seems that Ward is constantly injured, no doubt he isn't, but looking back over his career he does seem to get a mid season rest. Sometimes you have to make that decision renew his contract or let him go, personally if he has another bad year with injuries next season then let him go at the end of his contract.
Sinfield said last season, there is a lot of the salary cap sat in the stands, issue is, same players again out injured sat in the stands. I fully understand what individuals on here are saying, and as a club Leeds have a duty of care to their players. I also believe that some players have the slightest knock and they are missing for 6 weeks. When Ward plays we are a much better team, problem is he, like others do spend a lot of the season sat in the stands as opposed to on the pitch. No easy answer but at this stage of the season some players do play with knocks some are happy to sit in the stands, it just seems that Ward is constantly injured, no doubt he isn't, but looking back over his career he does seem to get a mid season rest. Sometimes you have to make that decision renew his contract or let him go, personally if he has another bad year with injuries next season then let him go at the end of his contract.
Which is an entirely sensible approach, ‘get rid now’ isn’t
Didn’t JJB go through similar when he was younger? He turned out OK