Melbourne Victory has confirmed Nick Ward as its Under-23 marquee player for the upcoming Hyundai A-League season.
Under the Hyundai A-League's salary cap regulations, clubs can include one Under-23 player outside the salary cap, up to an amount of $150,000, enabling them to retain talented young players.
Ward had already agreed to stay with the club until the end of April next year, but now at least part, if not all, of his salary will not be counted as part of the cap.
Ward, who joined the Victory from English championship side QPR in December, has spent much of the past six months balancing his playing commitments with his rehabilitation from a groin injury.
H said the Victory's sports medicine facilities were second to none and that was one of the reasons he decided to extend his original deal.
"I think it came down to my injury as well. The treatment I got here has been first class. I don't think I've missed a game. They've monitored it. They've taken me out of training when I've had to. I get treatment every day," he said.
"You get the lifestyle here in Australia and also in my case, better treatment than I was getting in the UK."
Victory football operations manager Gary Cole was also of the belief that the club's medical staff has been crucial to retaining Ward, while the salary cap exemption had also played its part.
"His groin's the best it's felt for a very long time. He's been very appreciative of the medical and fitness staff here and he's in good shape physically," he said.
"Under the arrangement, we can spend up to $150,000 outside of the salary cap. But it's a fantastic opportunity for us to do a few more things within the salary cap."
"What this has enabled us to do is keep him in the country for at least another 12 months and that's a good thing for Melbourne Victory and good thing for the Hyundai A-League."
Ward's nest assignments are in the Victory's final AFC Champions League game against Chonburi next Wednesday and the exhibition match against Juventus on May 30. But after that his focus firmly turns to proving he is part of the Australian squad which travels to Beijing for the Olympics.
"That's the plan for me. The Olympics is a massive thing. I didn't go on the last camp because of the injury and I wanted to be fit. I took six weeks off for training, just working in the gym. It's gonna be a tough time because I don't get an off-season, but the Olympics only come around once in a lifetime," he said.