Billy Ryan (hurler)

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Billy Ryan
Personal information
Irish name Liam Ó Riain
Sport Hurling
Position Centre-forward
Born (1996-07-21) 21 July 1996 (age 27)
Graigue, County Kilkenny, Ireland
Height 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)
Occupation Student
Club(s)
Years Club
Graigue–Ballycallan
Club titles
Kilkenny titles 0
Colleges(s)
Years College
St. Patrick's College
College titles
Fitzgibbon titles 0
Inter-county(ies)*
Years County Apps (scores)
2017–present
Kilkenny 15 (1-12)
Inter-county titles
Leinster titles 4
All-Irelands 0
NHL 0
All Stars 0
*Inter County team apps and scores correct as of 22:10, 17 July 2021.

Billy Ryan (born 21 July 1996) is an Irish hurler who plays for Kilkenny Intermediate Championship club Graigue–Ballycallan and at inter-county level with the Kilkenny senior hurling team.[1] He usually lines out as a centre-forward.

Playing career[edit]

St. Kieran's College[edit]

Ryan first came to prominence as a hurler with St. Kieran's College in Kilkenny. Having played in every grade as a hurler, he was eventually called up the college's senior team. On 9 March 2014, Ryan scored a point from right corner-forward when St. Kieran's College suffered a 2-13 to 0-13 defeat by Kilkenny CBS in the Leinster final.[2] On 5 April 2014, Ryan was dropped from the starting fifteen for the All-Ireland final against Kilkenny CBS. He came on as a substitute for Brian Cody and collected a winners' medal following the 2-16 to 0-13 victory.[3]

On 28 February 2015, Ryan won a Leinster Championship medal after scoring two points when St. Kieran's College defeated St. Peter's College by 1-14 to 1-06 in the final.[4] He was selected at full-forward when St. Kieran's College faced Thurles CBS in the All-Ireland final. Ryan scored three points and collected a second successive winner's medal following the 1-15 to 1-12 victory.[5]

Graigue–Ballycallan[edit]

Ryan joined the Graigue–Ballycallan club at a young age and played in all grades at juvenile and underage levels before eventually joining the club's top adult team in the Kilkenny Intermediate Championship.

On 28 October 2018, Ryan lined out at right wing-forward when Graigue–Ballycallan faced Tullaroan in the Kilkenny Intermediate Championship final. He scored three points from play and ended the game with a winners' medal following the 2-16 to 2-13 victory.[6] Ryan was again selected at right wing-forward for the Leinster final on 1 December 2018 but spent much of the game at full-forward. He was held scoreless throughout the game but ended with a winners' medal following the 2-17 to 0-15 defeat of Portlaoise.[7]

Kilkenny[edit]

Minor and under-21[edit]

Ryan was selected for the Kilkenny minor team for the first time during the 2013 Leinster Championship. On 7 July 2013, he won a Leinster Championship medal as an unused substitute following a 1-18 to 0-08 defeat of Laois in the final.[8]

On 6 July 2014, Ryan lined out at left wing-forward when Kilkenny faced Dublin in the Leinster final. He collected a second winners' medal - his first on the field of play - following a 2-19 to 2-10 victory.[9] Ryan was dropped from the starting fifteen for the All-Ireland final against Limerick on 7 September 2014. He came on as a substitute for Ross Butler at centre-forward and ended the game with a winners' medal following the 2-17 to 0-19 victory.[10]

Ryan was added to the Kilkenny under-21 panel prior to the start of the 2016 Leinster Championship. He made his first appearance in that grade on 25 May 2016 when scored three points from right corner-forward in Kilkenny's 1-11 to 0-12 defeat by Westmeath.[11]

On 5 July 2017, Ryan won a Leinster Championship medal with the under-21 team after scoring two points in a 0-30 to 1-15 defeat of Wexford in the final.[12] On 9 September 2017, he was again at left corner-forward for the All-Ireland final against Limerick. Ryan scored a point from play in the 0-17 to 0-11 defeat.[13]

Intermediate[edit]

Ryan was drafted onto the Kilkenny intermediate team in advance of the 2015 Leinster Championship. He made his first appearance for the team on 1 July 2015 when he lined out at left wing-forward in a 3-22 to 1-17 defeat by Galway.[14]

On 13 July 2016, Ryan lined out at full-forward when Kilkenny faced Wexford in the Leinster final. He scored a key goal and collected a winners' medal following the 3-14 to 2-14 victory.[15] Ryan was switched to right corner-forward for the All-Ireland final against Clare on 6 August 2016. He scored 1-04 from play and collected a winners' medal following the 5-16 to 1-16 victory.[16]

Senior[edit]

Ryan became a member of the extended training panel with the Kilkenny senior team at the start of the 2017 season. He remained on the panel for the year but made no competitive appearances.

On 18 February 2018, Ryan made his first appearance for the Kilkenny senior team when he lined out at right corner-forward in a 1-20 to 0-12 defeat of Waterford in the National League.[17] On 8 April 2018, he won a National League medal as a member of the extended panel following Kilkenny's 2-23 to 2-17 defeat of Tipperary in the final.[18] Ryan was selected at right corner-forward when Kilkenny faced Galway in the Leinster final on 1 July 2018. He was substituted before the end of the 0-18 apiece draw.[19] Ryan was switched to full-forward for the replay a week later, however, he was once again substituted in the 1-28 to 3-15 defeat.[20]

On 30 June 2019, Ryan was selected on the bench when Kilkenny faced Wexford in the Leinster final. He was introduced as a substitute for Walter Walsh but ended on the losing side following the 1-23 to 0-23 defeat.[21] On 18 August 2019, Ryan was again listed amongst the substitutes when Kilkenny faced Tipperary in the All-Ireland final. He was introduced as a substitute for Adrian Mullen and scored two points in the 3-25 to 0-20 defeat.[22]

Career statistics[edit]

As of 17 July 2021
Team Year National League Leinster All-Ireland Total
Division Apps Score Apps Score Apps Score Apps Score
Kilkenny 2017 Division 1A 0 0-00 0 0-00 0 0-00 0 0-00
2018 1 0-00 2 0-02 1 0-00 4 0-02
2019 6 1-07 5 0-04 3 0-04 14 1-15
2020 Division 1B 5 4-02 1 1-01 1 0-00 7 5-03
2021 3 1-07 2 0-01 0 0-00 5 1-08
Career total 15 6-16 10 1-08 5 0-04 30 7-28

Honours[edit]

St. Kieran's College
Graigue–Ballycallan
Kilkenny

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Brian Cody hails impact of Kilkenny debutant Billy Ryan". Sky Sports. 2 July 2018. Retrieved 15 December 2018.
  2. ^ Cormican, Eoghan (10 March 2014). "Byrne the hero as CBS grab the glory". Irish Examiner. Retrieved 4 August 2018.
  3. ^ Spillane, Trevor (5 April 2014). "19th All-Ireland for St. Kieran's after win over Kilkenny CBS". The 42. Retrieved 4 August 2018.
  4. ^ "Schools: St Kieran's back in the winners enclosure". Hogan Stand. 28 February 2015. Retrieved 4 August 2018.
  5. ^ Cahill, Jackie (5 April 2015). "Kilkenny school St Kieran's have won their 20th All-Ireland title". The 42. Retrieved 4 August 2018.
  6. ^ Knox, John (28 October 2018). "Graigue Ballycallan finish with scoring storm to go back to senior grade". Kilkenny GAA website. Archived from the original on 12 July 2019. Retrieved 12 July 2019.
  7. ^ McKenna, Conor (1 December 2018). "Eddie Brennan's first-half goal the difference as Graigue-Ballycallan claim Leinster IHC title". The 42. Retrieved 12 July 2019.
  8. ^ "Murphy points the way as Kilkenny cruise past Laois to claim crown". Irish Independent. 8 July 2013. Retrieved 15 December 2018.
  9. ^ Kelly, Niall (6 July 2014). "Kilkenny power past Dublin to retain their Leinster minor crown". The 42. Retrieved 15 December 2018.
  10. ^ O'Riordan, Ian (7 September 2014). "Kilkenny minors savour All-Ireland success against spirited Limerick". Irish Times. Retrieved 23 June 2015.
  11. ^ Dollery, Paul (25 May 2016). "Westmeath stun Kilkenny in the Leinster U21 hurling quarter-finals". The 42. Retrieved 11 July 2019.
  12. ^ O'Brien, Kevin (5 July 2017). "Kilkenny land 30 points en route to completing U21 and minor Leinster hurling double". The 42. Retrieved 15 December 2018.
  13. ^ Cormican, Eoghan (11 September 2017). "Limerick savour that September excitement in U21 hurling final". Irish Examiner. Retrieved 31 July 2018.
  14. ^ McDonald, Brian (1 July 2015). "Michael Rice returns - but it's first blood for Galway in a big week against Kilkenny". The 42. Retrieved 15 December 2018.
  15. ^ Dwyer, Michael (13 July 2016). "Late Kilkenny rally beats Wexford in Leinster decider to set up All-Ireland final with Clare". The 42. Retrieved 15 December 2018.
  16. ^ Brennan, Eoin (6 August 2016). "5-star Kilkenny secure first All-Ireland Intermediate title in 6 years". The 42. Retrieved 31 July 2018.
  17. ^ McCarthy, Tomás (18 February 2018). "Allianz HL D1A: Kilkenny defeat Waterford". GAA website. Retrieved 31 July 2018.
  18. ^ McGoldrick, Seán (8 April 2018). "Kilkenny whirlwind blows Tipperary away as Brian Cody claims ninth league title". Irish Independent. Retrieved 8 July 2019.
  19. ^ "Leinster SHC final: Cats and Tribe must meet again". Hogan Stand. 1 July 2018. Retrieved 8 July 2019.
  20. ^ Rooney, Declan (8 July 2018). "Galway retain Leinster crown after epic battle with Kilkenny". RTÉ Sport. Retrieved 8 July 2019.
  21. ^ O'Brien, Kevin (30 June 2019). "Wexford land first Leinster title in 15 years with thrilling victory over Kilkenny". The 42. Retrieved 1 July 2019.
  22. ^ McGoldrick, Seán (18 August 2019). "Tipperary are All-Ireland champions as Liam Sheedy's men see off 14-man Kilkenny in Croke Park". Irish Independent. Retrieved 16 November 2019.