Ward ruled out with knee injury

Dundalk were dealt a massive blow on Tuesday evening when it was confirmed that Keith Ward will miss the remainder of the 2013 season with a knee injury.

The midfielder firstly announced the news on his twitter account before it was confirmed by the Lilywhites.

The former Bohemians man picked up the injury in Friday evening's victory over St. Patrick's Athletic. The initial fear was that Ward sustained a knee cartilage problem however a scan has revealed the damage to be much more significant and is in fact the ligament which was harmed.

Speaking to the club's official website after learning of his injury, the 22 year-old admitted he was 'shocked' by the news as he thought the injury was improving.

“I am in shock at the moment to be honest”, Keith told dundalkfc.com this evening. “The injury was painful on Friday night and I couldn’t really sleep. But I thought it had been improving and was beginning to walk on it. However, the news from the scan has showed that it is much more serious than first feared”.

Just found out done me cruciate season over for me nightmare especially with team doing well gona have to put a lock on the fridge now haha

— Keith Ward (@KWard102) June 18, 2013

Ward, in his second spell at the club, came off the bench on Friday evening and played a key role in Dundalk's victory. He explained how the injury occurred.

“It probably looked like nothing to the supporters watching me as there was no Pats player near me. I was dropping off to pick the ball up from Sullo when I heard a crack in my knee. I knew that wasn’t good! But it wasn’t too sore. Paul Cheshire came on to me  and asked if I was able to put pressure on it but it was no good so I had to come off. After the game it was feared that it could be a cartilage problem. I was warned that it would be painful and it would swell up. Even though it was sore it didn’t swell up so I was quite optimistic”.

The ex-UCD player is now facing the prospect of missing the rest of the season after featuring in all of Dundalk's 17 league matches to date. 'Wardy' though isn't sure if his injury will derail his side's fledgling title bid.

“It’s bad for me but it’s not a major disaster for the team. There is a great buzz about the fans and the players – especially after the win last Friday night. The team are getting a bit of recognition now for playing good football. I think we can keep it going in the second half of the season."