of Tipperary at Páirc Uí Chaoimh. He was an unused substitute when Cork won the subsequent Munster final following a 3–16 to 2–07 defeat of Clare. Ryan became a regular member of the starting fifteen for the 1997 championship, first at right wing-back before later taking a midfield position. On 30 July 1997, Ryan scored a point in Cork's 1–11 to 0–13 defeat of Tipperary in the Munster final. He later won an All-Ireland medal and was named man of the match after Cork defeated Galway by 3–11 to 0–13 in the final. Senior On 20 November 1997, Ryan made his senior debut for Cork in a 2–15 to 0–15 defeat of Waterford in the Oireachtas Cup before becoming a regular member of the team during the 1998 National League. On 17 May 1998, he won a National League medal after Cork's 2–14 to 0–13 defeat of Waterford. Ryan made his championship debut at midfield on 31 May 1998 in a 1–20 to 3-11 Munster Championship quarter-final defeat of Limerick. After making a number of appearances in Cork's unsuccessful National League campaign in 1999, Ryan was dropped from the starting fifteen for the Munster Championship. On 4 July 1999, he was introduced as a substitute in Cork's 1–15 to 0-14 Munster final defeat of Clare, in what was his only championship appearance of the season. On 12 September 1999, Ryan was an unused substitute when Cork defeated Kilkenny by 0–13 to 0–12 in the All-Ireland final. In 2000, Ryan was back on the starting fifteen for Cork's first two championship games. He was dropped from the team for the subsequent Munster final on 3 July 2000, however, he was introduced as a substitute and won a second successive Munster medal after a 0–23 to 3–12 defeat of Tipperary. Ryan played his last game for Cork in a 4–12 to 1–07 defeat of Blackrock in a challenge match on 7 January 2003. Management and coaching career Sarsfields In December 2011, Ryan was appointed manager of the Sarsfields senior hurling team. In his debut season in charge he succeeded in guiding the team to the championship final. After trailing Bishopstown early in the second half, Sarsfields went on to win by 1–15 to 1-14. Sarsfields failed to retain the title in 2013 after suffering a two-point defeat by Midleton in the final, however, Ryan guided the team to a third successive final