Ray Ryan remembered as a Sarsfields man to the core

As is the way of things in sporting organisations, being the chairperson rarely confers special powers – instead, if often means that you end up having to do the jobs for which nobody else can be found.

So it was that Sarsfields chairman Keith Mulcahy ended up being involved with the club’s junior C team last year. When they found themselves short a goalkeeper for a challenge match away to Cobh, Mulcahy dialled a familiar number – that of his friend, former Sars and Cork player and then-minor manager Ray Ryan.

Ryan, whose death at the age of 43 was announced on Tuesday, was always willing to serve his club.

“I gave Ray a buzz to see if he’d be able to get one of the minors to stand in goal for us,” says Mulcahy, “but, instead, he said he’d play.

“As a garda, he was stationed in Cobh so he came up to the pitch on what was the lunch-break of his shift, he played the match – and did his hamstring! But that was what Sars meant to him; he was going to take any chance that he could to wear the jersey.”

The blue, black and white shirt was one he wore with distinction during a career that encompassed four county SHC wins. For each of the victories – Bride Rovers in 2008, Glen Rovers in 2010 and 2014 and Bishopstown in 2012 – Ryan was centre-back, the anchor of the defence, his consistent high performances taken as a given.

“It was probably unfair,” Mulcahy says, “Pat was on the Cork panel for so long and Ray kind of ended up being known as ‘Pat’s brother’.

“But the whole family – Marian and Paddy and then Pat, Trevor, Ken and Ray – have always been steeped in Sars and have given their lives to the club.

“Before 2008, the club hadn’t won the county since 1957 and then we won four in seven years and Pat and Ray were heavily involved in those.”

When the playing days ended – apart from occasions such as that moonlighting for the junior C team – Ray became involved on the coaching side.

“Obviously, as well as playing hurling for Sars, he played football for Glanmire and he was part of their minor management team under Mark Hopkins a few years ago.

“He was involved with our senior team as well and then last year he had the minors, they got to the county final.

“He was keen to improve on that this year and I was only talking to him on Monday about things he had planned. Then, on Monday evening, I was chatting to Pat when he was on his way in to Cork training and I mentioned having talked to Ray and how enthusiastic he was for the year ahead.

“Pat laughed and said, ‘That’s Ray!’”