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Good job then that in Jamie Ward they have someone who is willing to play through the pain – and is not too bothered about how he looks.

Ward's injury situation has mirrored that of his club as a whole, with the midfielder hit on more than one count.

The attack-minded ace fractured his wrist in the defeat at Coventry back in September and worse was to follow as he battled on despite the injury in the Sheffield derby three days later only to tear his hamstring and be stretchered off.

There was little chance of Ward resuming normal service with the latter setback, his return having to wait some eight weeks.
But the diminutive star was back in the side for the draw at Barnsley earlier this month – wearing a rather unattractive but protective covering on his wrist.

That will remain in place until Christmas but that won't stop no- nonsense Ward, who is desperate to do his damnedest for United's promotion quest and is already annoyed at missing so many games through injury.

Ward said: "Obviously, I have done my hamstring as everyone knows, but I don't know how many people know about my wrist.

"I fractured that against Coventry and I have had the operation while I was injured so I can get back quicker.

"It's fine. I've still got to wear a protective thing on it for games and training but otherwise it's all right. It's all looking good.

"I was just at the hospital this week for the doctor to say 'yeah, it's all recovering well, it's all healing all right'. That's all really.

"I will probably have to keep the covering on for another six weeks just to be on the safe side but I can play without it restricting me.

"I have to have it quite thickly padded so that's the only thing that bothers me, but you get used to it while it's on your arm during a game and what not.

"I'm not on a football pitch to try and look pretty and stuff – I'm just here to play football and get stuck in.

"We've had quite a few injuries and for myself it's not been a good season injury-wise so far. Hopefully, I can stay out of the treatment room from now on."

Ward's double whammy was a particularly bitter pill to swallow given his sensational start to the season, the wide man having netted four goals in seven games including the opener which sparked victory in the Steel City derby.

The Solihull-born player admits he had got off to an absolute flyer – exactly the aim following his sending-off when last seen in a Blades shirt, for two bookable offences, the second one for handball, in the play-off final back in May.

"I couldn't have asked for anything more from myself," said the 23-year-old. "With the way Wembley went, it really wasn't good for me and I'll always feel like I'll need to repay the fans in some way and, to a certain extent, the rest of the players as well as the manager."

Ward, signed from Chesterfield back in January, also says it took him no time at all to settle in at Bramall Lane.

"After a couple of weeks I felt at home," he said. "Obviously, we have got a good bunch of lads and it helped that I knew one or two people here at the time, so it was just the fact of getting used to the football.

"At first I saw Gary Speed and thought 'can I talk to him or not' because of what he has done in the game and the amount of respect I had for him. It was just one of those things, but now I have bedded in and I just want my football to do the talking."

Ward is also out to justify some of his own talking, the 5ft 5in star turning down a move to Barnsley to join the Blades and admitting his decision was based on who he considered the likely challengers for promotion.

At present, on league placings at least, there is not much in it but Ward is hoping that will change.

"I spoke to Barnsley and I spoke to Sheffield United and obviously I made my decision on that," he explained.

"You have to think about everything in football and realistically Sheffield United are the best contenders of the two clubs to get promoted. Looking at the positions they were in when I came to sign made it a lot easier, plus where I live in Chesterfield it's not far to commute. I can get to training in 25 minutes/half-an-hour so it's all right.

"Obviously, I want to play in the Premiership and I'm at a big enough club to get to the Premiership. That's my aim and if I'm doing well and the rest of the team's doing well, we know we've got the players to get promoted.

"It's just a matter of us all blending in and putting our bodies on the line for every other lad who's in that squad."

Ward is clearly one player prepared to lay himself on the line, a broken wrist no barrier to the former Aston Villa youth player who is now excelling at Bramall Lane.

The Northern Ireland under-21 international admits his side have had to battle in adversity thus far but he can finally see light at the end of the tunnel.

It's fingers crossed the injuries, and United's troubled times, stop here.

"At one stage we had 11 players injured," he said. "You looked at those players and you'd have put that side out against anyone and fancied your chances.

"We've just got to get on with it, though.

"We've not had the best of runs while we've picked up so many injuries but now it is time to forget about all of that and kick on for the rest of the season.

"Hopefully, everyone will get behind the team and the staff and the fans just need to roar us on to winning games."