EMOTIONAL boss Neil Middleditch expressed his relief for Darcy Ward and then tipped his “surrogate son” to fulfil his rich potential on the world speedway stage.

Pirates team manager Middleditch was speaking after Poole star Ward was yesterday found not guilty of sexual assault by a jury of five women and seven men at Bournemouth Crown Court.

The two-times world under-21 champion was alleged to have sexually assaulted a 17-year-old girl during an encounter in a Poole hotel room last August.

A 17-year-old boy, who cannot be named for legal reasons, was also cleared of one charge of rape and three of sexual assault involving the same girl on the same date.

Ward, 20, had been supported throughout the trial by the Pirates hierarchy, including long-serving boss Middleditch.

In an interview with the Daily Echo outside court, Middleditch described his feelings and looked to the future.

Middleditch said: “My wife Suzi and I have been here every day and Matt Ford and his fiancée Helen have been here. We have all been supporting him. Somebody has been here for Darcy every single day.

“The outpouring of emotion at the result just proved how much it had been telling on him.

“First and foremost, Darcy is a friend and he is like a surrogate son, if you like, to my wife Suzi and me because he has been with us since he has been at Poole.

“We were both very emotional when the verdict was announced.

“I don’t even want to talk in terms of the club – it seems unfair when we are talking about a man’s future. I am delighted for the club but I am more delighted for Darcy.

“He is a young man and he has got a big career ahead of him and this could have ruined him – end of story. Thankfully, it is all behind us now.”

Widely regarded as the leading young talent in world speedway, Ward has performed brilliantly for Pirates in recent weeks.

A key member of last year’s Elite League-winning team, the Australian has regularly led the scoring charts in Poole’s unbeaten start to 2012.

Middleditch paid tribute to Ward’s professionalism and added: “Relief is the biggest emotion and the fact it was the right outcome without a shadow of a doubt. We have got to put this behind us and move on now.

“We have been trying to not discuss it too much but the pressure on Darcy has been incredible. How he managed to get on and ride a speedway bike the way he has done over the past couple of weeks is beyond me.

“His career is now his main goal. He is one of the most outstanding riders in the world at this present time and now he can just move forward.”