Former Irish League midfielder Julian Ward is set to be appointed as new sporting director at Premier League giants Liverpool.
Ward originally joined the Reds as a scout in 2010 and has since held positions including loan player manager and technical director.
He was appointed as Liverpool’s sporting director in 2022 before leaving the following year and returned to Anfield in 2024 through his role as technical director at Fenway Sports Group – the club’s owners.
With Richard Hughes stepping down from the sporting director position earlier this month to take on the same role at Saudi Arabian club Al Hilal, Liverpool are now set to look to Ward once again with his appointment imminent, according to various outlets.
Julian Ward (centre) celebrates with Andy Waterworth and Peter McCann after scoring for Lisburn Distillery against Glenavon in October 2007. (Photo by Press Eye/Andrew Paton)placeholder image
Julian Ward (centre) celebrates with Andy Waterworth and Peter McCann after scoring for Lisburn Distillery against Glenavon in October 2007. (Photo by Press Eye/Andrew Paton)
Ward finished his playing career in the Irish League, spending two years at Larne before retiring after a spell at Lisburn Distillery.
He was originally signed for the Inver Reds by Kenny Shiels with Ward arriving in Northern Ireland to study for a PhD at Ulster University in 2005 – the midfielder enjoyed a loan stint at H&W Welders before becoming part of Larne’s squad.
Ward moved to Distillery under Paul Kirk and it was during his time with the club that he was presented with an opportunity to work for Portugal as a scout by ex-Manchester United coach Carlos Queiroz ahead of the 2010 World Cup.
Having also worked for Manchester City before an extended period at Liverpool, Ward has spent time at some of the biggest clubs in the world, but reflects fondly on memories made in the Irish League.
“I really bought into being at (Larne), and some of my best experiences in football have come from playing in the Irish League,” Ward told Larne’s website in 2020. “Paul (Curran) came in and I started to get used wide in midfield.
"I wanted to contribute although I probably didn’t feel that was my best position. In the end, I didn’t get the game time I had under Kenny and Jim (Hagan) and had to look for a new challenge.
“I had a call from Paul Kirk at Distillery and ended up going there and enjoyed it as well. I can’t speak highly enough of my time in Irish League."
Explaining how his Irish League move came about, Liverpool-born Ward said: “I had been playing at Morecombe, but before I came to Northern Ireland I was on the semi-pro scene with the likes of Southport and Hyde United.
“I was 24 when I decided to do a PHD at Jordanstown, so I moved over to come to the University of Ulster. The course began in September 2005 and by chance, I knew Conor Lynch from the University, who was at Larne at the time.
“I ended up training with Larne and Kenny Shiels, who was the manager at the time, came to watch in a game for UUJ. I scored two goals that day, so that maybe convinced Kenny he was getting a goalscoring midfielder!
“Because I had moved over in the September time I couldn’t sign for Larne outside the window. Kenny got me to the Welders until Christmas and that was good, because I could play some games for them for the first few months and get adapted to the game here.
“Once January came Kenny got me in the team and thankfully I was able to stay in it.”