After a breakout 2023-24 season, Jed Ward is enjoying his time on loan at Forest Green Rovers. He is focused and is more determined than ever to return to the Gas as the No.1 goalkeeper.
Football has a peculiar way of doing things.
What began in the unassuming, quiet corners of West Ruislip - home to National League side Wealdstone - culminated in Croatia’s capital city, Zagreb, where Bristol Rovers academy graduate Jed Ward was able to don his national team’s colours for the very first time.
A debut cap for the England Men’s Elite Squad in June 2024 was the crowning moment of a remarkable 12 months for Ward. In that time, the 21-year-old was recalled from a season-long loan at Wealdstone in the National League, unseated first-choice goalkeeper Matt Cox, before going on to make 18 appearances in Sky Bet League One for his boyhood club.
“I think everything happened so quickly,” reflected Ward. “I was recalled from my loan at Wealdstone in November just to play one EFL Trophy game against Newport County. I did think to myself, ‘why has this happened?’ - I was enjoying my time at Wealdstone, where I was playing regularly. Everything happens for a reason, however. After a lot of hard work, I managed to get myself into the starting eleven in January and then went to my first England camp in March before making my national team debut in June.”
2023/24 was a breakthrough season for the boy from Bradley Stoke, whose journey with Rovers began more than a decade ago, starting in the academy at eight years old. Fresh after penning a new four-year contract that will keep him at Rovers until the summer of 2028, the Gas’ Young Player of the Season began his preparations for the new league campaign, determined to hold onto the No.1 shirt. But, as Ward acknowledges, nothing in football is ever guaranteed.
“After playing around 20 league games last season, I was either going to start this one as first-choice at Rovers, or I was going to need to go out on loan and gain some more experience. I’m still young, and the manager needs to fully be able to trust his goalkeeper because it’s the most vulnerable position on the pitch. I would have liked to have gone to League Two, but the way football is, it doesn’t always work out that way. It became a case of me trying to prove to people that I should be back playing at Bristol Rovers. I had to go out and get it.”
Step forward, Forest Green Rovers. After seven years in the EFL and back-to-back relegations, the Green Devils were heading back to the National League. Keen to make this a brief stay, Steve Cotterill’s side made a number of statement signings over the summer, including the additions of former Wrexham captain Ben Tozer and ex-Gas midfielder Liam Sercombe. And the recruitment did not stop there.
“They’ve got a great set-up. It’s a League One club playing in the National League, so it has everything that I need, really,” remarked Ward. “The stadium is in Nailsworth, which is pretty much in Stroud, allowing me to live at home in Bristol with my parents! We have a really good group of lads and players who should be playing League One in defence for us, who make my job so much easier.”
An early favourite for promotion from the fifth tier, Forest Green have soared to the top of the table. At the time of writing, after 19 matchdays, Ward and his team boast the league’s strongest backline, conceding only 16 goals so far. By contrast, at the same stage last season, Ward and former club Wealdstone were teetering on the brink of relegation, having surrendered 27 goals.
“It’s been different,” revealed Ward. “I haven’t really experienced anything like it in my career, playing for a team that is fighting for promotion. It’s just given me a different side of things, and I’ve had to deal with some new pressures because a club like Forest Green should be in the Football League, and you want to get them back to where they belong.
“In the National League, you’ve still got to make saves, play your passes and make quick decisions. There’s obviously a technical difference between the National League and League One but it’s the same sort of actions.
“In League One, you’ve got the money to spend on more technically gifted players which allows you to play different styles of football. The National League is just such a physical game in comparison, and if you don’t have the physicality as a goalkeeper to defend your box and come for crosses, you’ll get found out.
“A lot of clubs look for set pieces, long throw-ins, and balls into the box to try and score goals because they haven't got the technical players. They look for mistakes and thrive off that. There have been a few times this season when I haven’t been strong enough from corners, and other teams have scored as a result. You’ve just got to grow from those experiences. I’ve had years of doing it and have developed different kinds of strategies to deal with them, using them as learning and motivation.”
Goalkeeping can, at times, be an unforgiving task. So why bother?
"People always think, ‘Why would you want to become a goalkeeper? Why would you want to put yourself into a position where you could get battered by everyone for making a mistake?’ It’s such a vulnerable position, and you’ve got to be so mentally tough to play there because you’re going to make mistakes and do things wrong, which inevitably leads to goals.
“But I think until you understand the position and the thrill that you get out of doing all the other stuff, it completely tops all of that. I enjoy putting myself in places and positions where other people don’t want to put their head, put their arms, put their legs. You know you’re going to get a ball in the face, and you’re probably going to get stood on. I think you’ve just got to be mentally different to deal with the challenges and pressures of being in goal.”
What sets Ward apart from his peers is a clarity of mind, coupled with an unwavering desire to learn and recover from setbacks. Seven league clean sheets and counting this season is a testament to Ward’s hard work and resilience as he continues to build on the success of previous loans at fellow non-league sides Swindon Submarine, Prescot Cables and Hungerford Town.
A particularly wide grin stretches across Ward's face when he is asked to look back on the second half of his 2023/24 season. As the conversation moves back towards his ambitions with the Gas, Ward - described by manager Matt Taylor as the “long-term solution to Rovers’ goalkeeping department” - is mindful not to look too far ahead into the future, however.
“Last season, it was a really nice feeling, being a proper part of the first-team set-up and being around the Rovers fans,” said Ward. “I’m very grateful that everything played out like it did. This season, I have had to put that aside, however, and focus on where I am at Forest Green.”
That is not to say that Ward has not been keeping a keen eye on proceedings over in BS7, nor has not remained in contact with some of his Rovers colleagues.
“I speak to Scott Brown, the goalkeeper coach, who regularly asks me how I’m getting on. I know that if I ever need anything he’ll be there for me. He’s watching all my clips and comes to my games whenever he can. It’s nice that he and a few of the other lads are keeping in touch.
“When it is time to come back to Bristol Rovers, I’ll start focusing on that again. But I have always lived by the mantra of not getting too high when you’re high and not getting too low when you’re low - it’s about trying to find that middle ground and taking it day by day. By getting the experience at Forest Green, with me helping them out and them helping me, I can hopefully have a positive season and then go back to League One with more experience and a point to prove.”
For Ward, the here and now at Forest Green Rovers remains his priority - the rest will take care of itself. The 21-year-old knows what he wants.
As for his Christmas list, this year?
“Forest Green to get promoted and Bristol Rovers to finish in the playoff places!”
