GREATER Western Sydney veteran Callan Ward might have inspired the Giants to one last victory as a player with a stirring team talk when his side was on the ropes against Richmond, but coach Adam Kingsley expects the “fantastic clubman” to continue to make an impact off the field.
Ward was in tears after he injured his right knee while attempting a tackle and was subbed out in the opening term but returned on crutches to address his teammates at the last break with his side trailing the Tigers by 28 points on Saturday.
The Giants surged home with the only five goals of the final term to snatch a three-point triumph over the Tigers at Engie Stadium before Kingsley said the club is “expecting” that Ward has suffered an anterior cruciate ligament tear.
“It doesn’t look great. Obviously incredibly disappointing for our footy club … such an important person, important player,” Kingsley said.
“I don’t know what it’ll look like for the rest of the season but he’ll be around supporting us.
“He’s a fantastic clubman, he sees the game really well and there’s no doubt that he’ll add value in whatever he does. It just won’t be on the field, unfortunately.”
If scans confirm the Giants’ worst fears, Ward will miss the rest of the season and likely bring the curtain down on the 35-year-old’s decorated career.
The Giants’ inaugural co-captain signed a one-year deal to play on in 2025 and chase an elusive premiership while living apart from his wife and three young children who have moved to Melbourne.
Kingsley said that Ward’s injury early in the game “sucked the life out of our players” as the Tigers booted the next four goals, while Lachie Whitfield was seen giving his crying teammate a hug and kiss on the forehead before the Giants gradually turned the game.
Ward put his personal pain aside after Kingsley asked him to speak to the players at three-quarter time with the match and a place in the top eight on the line.
“That’s just a reflection of who he is. He puts the team ahead of himself and he’s done that for 17 years,” the Giants coach said.
“He saw the need to try and get his troops moving and stepped in. I’m not sure exactly what he said to them, but whatever he said, it worked.
The Tigers led by as much as 34 points halfway through the third term as they went on to dominate centre clearances 16-5 and contested ball 149-120, leaving Kingsley to concede “we didn’t deserve to win that game”.
The return of Dion Prestia for his first game of the season after being sidelined with an Achilles injury helped the Tigers take charge of the stoppages, while former Giants Jacob Hopper and Tim Taranto were also influential.
But the narrow defeat is the third in a row where the Tigers have paid the price for one poor quarter while they also suffered from wayward kicking for goal when on top in the second and third terms.
“That is deflating. I feel we’ve almost got a split personality in the rooms at the moment,” Tigers coach Adem Yze said.
“I’m so proud of our effort, so proud of our start, and to be fair, so proud of every quarter really. The last quarter got away from us a little bit, but it wasn’t method, it wasn’t system, it was just slight role execution.
“Their good players played really well in the last quarter and they just finished their work.
