Born Barnstaple 1975.

Ryan, then nineteen, played in goal for the reserves against Swansea City in December 1994. He also played against Tiverton in a friendly in January 1996.

He went on to have a long non-league career with Bideford, Bodmin, Tiverton and, most notably, Taunton Town with whom he won the FA Vase in 2001.   

Ryan later became a firefighter and played for the English fire services team from 2009.