Ryan Scully (born 29 October 1992) is an Irish
former professional
footballer
A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby ...
who played as a
goalkeeper
In many team sports which involve scoring goals, the goalkeeper (sometimes termed goaltender, netminder, GK, goalie or keeper) is a designated player charged with directly preventing the opposing team from scoring by blocking or intercepting o ...
.
Scully played for
Partick Thistle,
Greenock Morton
Greenock Morton Football Club is a Scottish professional football club, which plays in the Scottish Championship. The club was founded as Morton Football Club in 1874, making it one of the oldest senior Scottish clubs. Morton was renamed Green ...
,
Dunfermline Athletic
Dunfermline Athletic Football Club is a Scottish football club based in the city of Dunfermline, Fife. Founded in 1885, the club currently play in Scottish League One after being relegated from the 2021–22 Scottish Championship. Dunfermline ...
and
Hamilton Academical
Hamilton Academical Football Club, often known as Hamilton Accies, or The Accies, is a Scottish football club from Hamilton, South Lanarkshire who currently compete in the Scottish Championship, having been relegated from the 2020–21 Scotti ...
, as well as
Petershill and
Albion Rovers on loan.
Career
Partick Thistle
Scully joined
Partick Thistle in 2008 and began playing for their under-17 squad. Before arriving at
Firhill he had received no formal coaching.
Having been with Thistle for a year and a half Scully went on loan to
West of Scotland Super League side
Petershill for four weeks in 2009 to gain more first team experience.
In May 2010 he was part of the under–19 side who won the SFL Youth Cup.
Thistle defeated
Livingston 3–2 in the final with Scully making numerous saves.
At the conclusion of the 2009–10 season, Scully, along with Ross McGeough and
Ryan MacBeth, was promoted to the first team squad. Scully signed a new contract in September 2010 which would keep him with
Thistle
Thistle is the common name of a group of flowering plants characterised by leaves with sharp prickles on the margins, mostly in the family Asteraceae. Prickles can also occur all over the planton the stem and on the flat parts of the leaves ...
until May 2013.
During the
2010–11 season he appeared on the bench on several occasions before suffering a setback by dislocating a thumb ruling him out for number of weeks. After his recovery he made his senior début in the final game of the season on 7 May 2011 in a 3–0 victory against
Raith Rovers
Raith Rovers Football Club is a Scottish professional football club based in the town of Kirkcaldy, Fife. The club was founded in 1883 and currently competes in the Scottish Championship as a member of the Scottish Professional Football Leagu ...
in a
Scottish First Division
The Scottish Football League First Division was the second tier in the Scottish football league system between 1975 and 2013.
History
The First Division was introduced in 1975–76 to replace the old Scottish Football League Division Two, as ...
fixture where he kept a clean sheet.
Scully featured in pre-season
friendly match
An exhibition game (also known as a friendly, a scrimmage, a demonstration, a preseason game, a warmup match, or a preparation match, depending at least in part on the sport) is a sporting event whose prize money and impact on the player's or ...
es in advance of the
2011–12 season, the final of which was against
Dumbarton
Dumbarton (; also sco, Dumbairton; ) is a town in West Dunbartonshire, Scotland, on the north bank of the River Clyde where the River Leven flows into the Clyde estuary. In 2006, it had an estimated population of 19,990.
Dumbarton was the ca ...
in a 4–1 defeat.
He made his first appearance of the season on his nineteenth birthday keeping another clean sheet against ten-man
Dundee. After Scully's impressive displays his manager
Jackie McNamara
Jackie McNamara (born 24 October 1973) is a Scottish professional football agent, and former player, manager and executive. He won 33 international caps playing for Scotland, and filled a variety of defensive roles in his career.
McNamara beg ...
admitted to having a selection dilemma with first choice keeper
Scott Fox
Scott Fox (born 28 June 1987) is a Scottish professional goalkeeper who plays for Cove Rangers. He has previously played for Celtic, East Fife, Queen of the South (twice), Dundee, Ross County, Partick Thistle, Greenock Morton and Moth ...
fit again following a virus. Ultimately Scully was chosen in goal for the following match against league leaders
Ross County, however the match ended in 1–0 defeat for Thistle with Scully conceding his first ever competitive goal. He lost his place in the team for the ensuing match having been ruled out after incurring a
concussion in training from a boot to the head. Having remained on the bench for a number of games, Scully returned to the starting line-up with Fox having sustained a hand injury.
Thistle defeated
Queen of the South 5–0 with Scully earning his third clean sheet in four appearances.
Scully joined
Albion Rovers in the 2013 winter transfer window on a sixth month loan. After that loan spell came to an end, Scully, along with David Wilson, signed a one-year contract extension.
At the start of 2013–14 season, Scully was among three players sent out on loan to gain first team experience. He joined relegated side
Dunfermline Athletic
Dunfermline Athletic Football Club is a Scottish football club based in the city of Dunfermline, Fife. Founded in 1885, the club currently play in Scottish League One after being relegated from the 2021–22 Scottish Championship. Dunfermline ...
on a six-month loan deal. Upon joining Dunfermline, he vowed to become the first choice goalkeeper. After establishing himself in the first team, the loan spell with Dunfermline was extended until the end of the season; Scully expressed his "delight" and had no hesitation in extending his loan with the club. After 46 appearances for Dunfermline in all competitions, Scully was awarded the club's Player of the Year award.
After returning from a successful loan spell with Dunfermline, Scully signed a two-year contract extension, keeping him at the club until 2016. In July 2014, he returned to Dunfermline on a season-long loan.
Scully made his Premiership debut for Thistle on 24 October 2019, coming on as a substitute for injured goalkeeper
Tomáš Černý
Tomáš Černý (born 10 April 1985) is a Czech retired professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper. Černý has played football in the Czech Republic, Scotland, Bulgaria and Greece for Sigma Olomouc, Hamilton Academical, CSKA Sofia, Ergot ...
in a 1–1 draw with Hamilton Accies.
Thistle were relegated via the playoffs at the end of the 2017–18 season, and following that relegation, Scully was one of many players released by the club.
Greenock Morton
After his release from Thistle, Scully signed for fellow
Championship
In sport, a championship is a competition in which the aim is to decide which individual or team is the champion.
Championship systems
Various forms of competition can be referred to by the term championship.
Title match system
In this system ...
side
Greenock Morton
Greenock Morton Football Club is a Scottish professional football club, which plays in the Scottish Championship. The club was founded as Morton Football Club in 1874, making it one of the oldest senior Scottish clubs. Morton was renamed Green ...
. After losing his place in the first team to
Derek Gaston
Derek Gaston (born 18 April 1987) is a Scottish professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for Arbroath in the Scottish Championship. Gaston previously played for Albion Rovers before joining Morton in 2012.
Career
Gaston began his seni ...
, he asked to be released and was given a free transfer by mutual consent in January 2019.
Dunfermline Athletic
Scully become new
Dunfermline manager
Stevie Crawford
Stephen Crawford (born 9 January 1974) is a Scottish professional football coach and former player.
Crawford started his career with Raith Rovers, with whom he won the 1994 Scottish League Cup final and played in the UEFA Cup. This earned him ...
's first signing in January 2019, returning to
East End Park
East End Park, currently named KDM Group East End Park for sponsorship purposes, is a football stadium situated in Dunfermline, Fife, Scotland with a seating capacity of .
The stadium plays host to the home matches of Scottish Championship ...
after three-and-a-half years. He signed on a six-month deal, with the option to extend for a further year. After 18 months with the club, he was released in May 2020 at the end of his contract.
Hamilton Academical
On 2 October 2020,
Hamilton Academical
Hamilton Academical Football Club, often known as Hamilton Accies, or The Accies, is a Scottish football club from Hamilton, South Lanarkshire who currently compete in the Scottish Championship, having been relegated from the 2020–21 Scotti ...
announced the signing of Scully on a short-term deal until January 2021. On 19 May 2021 it was announced that he would leave Hamilton at the end of the season, following the expiry of his contract. However in August 2021, Scully re-joined Accies in a player coach role. Scully remained at the club until November 2021, when he left to join the police.
He re-signed for Hamilton on 29 October 2022.
Career statistics
Honours
Individual
* Dunfermline Athletic Player of the Year: 2014;
2015
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Scully, Ryan
1992 births
Albion Rovers F.C. players
Men's association football goalkeepers
Dunfermline Athletic F.C. players
Greenock Morton F.C. players
Living people
Partick Thistle F.C. players
Petershill F.C. players
Republic of Ireland men's association footballers
Scottish Football League players
Scottish men's footballers
Scottish Junior Football Association players
Scottish Professional Football League players
Association footballers from Dublin (city)
Hamilton Academical F.C. players