Nick Ward on Joining QPR (Ben Kosky/Kilburn Times)

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Ben Kosky/Kilburn Times
Ward visit gives Rangers a liftBen

"...Ward narrowly missed out on a place in the Aussies' World Cup squad, but he is convinced his move to Loftus Road can propel him on to the big stage next time around.....Ward, who has signed a two-year contract at Rangers, observed: "If you look at the World Cup team, most of the players who were starting games play in Europe."The game is definitely getting much bigger in Australia and I'd never seen the media going on about soccer as much as they did - it's usually all about Aussie rules, rugby and cricket."But as much as the A-League is getting better, I think you've got to be in Europe to further your game.
I'm sure I made the right decision and I'm happy to be here."I was on the fringes of the World Cup squad and it was disappointing not to make it, so the Olympics in 2008 and the next World Cup in 2010 are realistic goals for me."...
: "We don't get a lot of Championship football on TV over there - it's mostly the Premiership - but I know this is also a good league because I've seen a lot of Australian players who have come over, started in the Championship and done well.
"It's a good standard and the amount of games you play here as opposed to in Australia was definitely something that attracted me." ....
I've got a target of scoring 10 goals this year and I hope we can get to the play-offs at least," said Ward. "That's what we want to aim for." I've already done a pre-season in Australia, so I'm fairly fit and I want to cement my spot in the starting line-up. This is a good opportunity for me to get some games in the Championship and hopefully get noticed.
http://www.kilburntimes.co.uk/content/camden/kilburntimes/sport/story.aspx?brand=KLBTOnline&category=sportfootball&tBrand=northlondon24&tCategory=sportklbt&itemid=WeED12%20Jul%202006%2011%3A31%3A37%3A890


Also: Photos of Nick Ward Coming to QPR - (Photos by Nick De Marco)
http://www.pbase.com/qpr/ward