WARD is a one-sided word. It finishes 5 compounds in this list and heads none of them, so it can end a chain but never sit in the middle of one.
Each of these makes a compound ending in WARD.
WARD never leads. All five of its compounds here put it last, because this WARD is the Old English suffix -weard, meaning turning toward: BACKWARD, DOWNWARD, LANDWARD and OUTWARD each name a direction faced. WAYWARD is the odd one out, meaning turned away from the way rather than toward it.
KEYSTONE is a free daily puzzle built entirely out of chains like these. You get the two ends and have to fill the two words in the middle. Three bridges a day, no account, no cookies.
Each of these has a page like this one. There is also an index of all 60.
AWAY · BACK · BALL · BED · BLACK · BOARD · BOAT · BOOK · BOY · BREAK · CHECK · CROSS · DAY · DOOR · DOWN · FALL · FATHER · FIRE · FOOT · GROUND · GUARD · GUN · HAND · HEAD · HOOD · HOUSE · LAND · LESS · LIFE · LIGHT · LINE · LOAD · MAN · MOTHER · NIGHT · OFF · OUT · OVER · PAY · POINT · POST · POWER · ROOM · RUN · SET · SHIP · SIDE · SOME · STEP · SUN · TAKE · TIME · TURN · UNDER · WALK · WATER · WAY · WOOD · WORK