Éamonn Ryan: A lifetime of service as player, coach, manager

Éamonn Ryan was at the helm when Na Piarsaigh won the club’s maiden Cork SHC title in 1990 before his storied tenure as Cork ladies football manager

Cork manager Eamonn Ryan celebrates with selector Shane Ronayne after the final whistle in the 2014 All-Ireland final. Picture: Brendan Moran 

He will be remembered most for his 12 silverware-laden years with the Cork ladies, but the very reason Éamonn Ryan was first approached by Cork ladies football officials ahead of the 2004 season was because of what he had already achieved as a player, coach, and manager.

As told in Mary White’s book, Relentless: The Inside Story of the Cork Ladies Footballers, midfielder Juliet Murphy googled Ryan ahead of their first session with the new coach and knew there and then that they’d hit the “jackpot”.