Early years Ord had a modest playing career as a
central defender in
Non-League football. He took up coaching at an early age when it became apparent that he would not be offered a full-time contract. After emigrating to
Perth in 2006 he joined the
WA NTC which has produced many players who have gone on to represent
Australia. He also worked in Myanmar developing a full-time Academy for
Yangon United before returning to
Western Australia alongside
Gareth Naven with
Perth Glory in the
National Youth League.
BEC Tero Sasana In late 2010,
Peter Butler brought him to inaugural
AFC Champions League finalists
BEC Tero Sasana where he was responsible for the under 21 team. He had an immediate impact winning the Thailand FA Youth Cup beating
Buriram United 5–2 in the final. After Butler left for
Kelantan FA the club finished the season in mid table so Ord was elevated to first team Head coach for the
2012 Thai Premier League season. He rebuilt the squad promoting many young players and on the opening day of season handed debuts to five teenagers, including
Chanathip Songkrasin,
Tanaboon Kesarat and
Gilbert Koomson who then quickly established themselves as National Team players. Ord also recruited
Cleiton Silva and he proved to be an inspired signing going on to win the Golden Boot with 24 goals. Ord led his young team to six victories in the opening eight fixtures earning him the Manager of the month awards for April and May 2012. With the club unexpectedly challenging for the title and into the quarter finals of both cup competitions expectations soared and in a major coup for the league he attracted ex-
Real Betis captain
Arzu. After a run of three games without a win, Ord was dismissed and
Sven-Göran Eriksson replaced him in September 2012. Ord took some time off, spending two months in Spain to study the coaching of
Diego Simeone at
Atlético Madrid, the academy system of
Villarreal CF and the recruitment and scouting policies of
Sevilla FC.
Thailand Ord returned as part of the coaching staff for the
Thailand national team, with head coach
Winfried Schäfer offering Ord a role for the
2012 AFF Suzuki Cup campaign, mainly as an analyst and opponent scout.
Muangthong United During the tournament Ord was approached by reigning
Thai Premier League champions
Muangthong United to join their coaching staff for the 2013 season. Led by former Serbian international
Slaviša Jokanović, the club had gone the previous season unbeaten and the club's youngsters were unable to make the breakthrough to the first team. Ord recommended they implement the European 'B' team model consisting of under-21 players competing against senior professionals in
Thai League 2. Again he found success leading them to a runners-up finish missing out on the title by only one point.
Perth Glory On 20 December 2013, Ord returned to Australia with
Perth Glory as assistant coach to
Kenny Lowe, after a player revolt had led to the sacking of
Alistair Edwards. With the club in crisis it was reported that Ord had a heated dressing room exchange with temperamental Frenchman
William Gallas but this proved to be a turning point with a late season surge seeing them climb off the bottom of the table. On 16 December 2014, they reached the final of the
FFA Cup losing 1–0 to
Adelaide United at
Coopers Stadium. In August 2015, Ord was responsible for the capture of
La Liga winger
Diego Castro, from
Getafe who helped them reach the 2015
FFA Cup final for a second year running. Castro went on to win the
Johnny Warren Medal as the best player in the
A League and is regarded as one of the finest players to ever play in
Australia. On 17 May 2017, after four seasons, it was announced that Ord would leave his position with the club.
Bangladesh On 18 May 2017, Ord reportedly signed a one-year contract to be the next head coach of the
Bangladesh national team and was officially unveiled by
SAFF president
Kazi Salahuddin on 7 June 2017. He took over with Bangladeshi football in disarray having fired six coaches in just two years. Tasked with rebuilding the ageing squad he worked with Technical Director
Paul Smalley to restructure the Men's National Team program, down to Under 15 level. They subsequently achieved several credible results at
AFC level and found some success in
SAFF youth competitions. Ord also assembled a quality backroom staff for the Senior team with
Jason Brown joining him as goalkeeping coach. On 27 March 2018, they travelled to Laos where he again gave debuts to five teenagers on the way to a 2–2 draw, ending a run of away defeats that stretched back three years. Ord then declined an offer of an extended contract and resigned, returning to Thailand.
Air Force United Ord took over from
Sasom Pobprasert with the club well adrift at the bottom of the
Thai League 1 table after taking just one point from the opening eight games. On 8 April 2018, he made a positive start to his new tenure with a 1–0 away victory at
Nakhon Ratchasima. After only two months he departed by mutual consent to take up a new position with the current champions
Buriram United.
Buriram United Ord was hired by
Thai League 1 club
Buriram United to be their Head of Youth Development. but agreed to wait until 1 October 2018 before commencing. His responsibility was to lead a team of 19 staff and 120 players between the ages of 10 and 20 years old at the clubs full time residential facility. On 27 November 2021, head coach
Alexandre Gama was sacked at the end of the first leg with the club top of the table and replaced with
Masatada Ishii. In a major shake up Ord was one of seven support staff also dismissed as the club took on a new direction.
Perth RedStar Newly formed out of a merger between
ECU Joondalup and Northern Redbacks WSC, Ord was appointed as Technical Director. He oversaw success for both the Men's and Women's team as they became Champions of
National Premier Leagues Western Australia for the 2022 season. Both teams were top of their respective league in 2023 when he resigned prior to the season's end, taking up a new role with governing body
Football West. ==Honours==