Ryan Dow (born 7 June 1991) is a Scottish
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 plays as a
midfielder
A midfielder is an outfield position in association football.
Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. As central midfielders often go across boundarie ...
or
forward for
Scottish Championship
The Scottish Championship, known as the cinch Championship for sponsorship reasons, is the second tier of the Scottish Professional Football League, the league competition for men's professional football clubs in Scotland. The Scottish Champio ...
club
Arbroath.
A product of the
Dundee United
Dundee United Football Club is a Scottish professional football club based in the city of Dundee. The club name is usually abbreviated to Dundee United. Formed in 1909, originally as Dundee Hibernian, the club changed to the present name in 1 ...
youth system, he turned professional in 2007. After making his first team debut in 2011, he went on to become a first team regular after a spell on loan to
Forfar Athletic. He left Dundee United in the 2016 close season and signed for
Ross County in September. Dow moved to Peterhead during the 2018–19 season, initially on loan. In May 2019 he signed for
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 ...
.
Early life
Ryan Dow was born in
Dundee on 7 June 1991. He attended
Harris Academy
Harris Academy is a co-educational comprehensive school in the West End of Dundee, Scotland. Harris Academy was founded in 1885 and is the oldest state school in Dundee. Harris Academy is also one of the largest state run schools in Dundee in ...
in the city, and was part of the school football team that won the Scottish Schools' Shield in 2005. having previously been attached to
Dundee as a youth player, Dow joined
Dundee United
Dundee United Football Club is a Scottish professional football club based in the city of Dundee. The club name is usually abbreviated to Dundee United. Formed in 1909, originally as Dundee Hibernian, the club changed to the present name in 1 ...
in 2005, going on to sign a professional contract in June 2007.
Playing career
Dundee United
Dow's first involvement with the Dundee United first team came in July 2007, when he appeared as a substitute in a pre-season friendly against
Airdrie United. Over the next three years he established himself in the Dundee United youth and reserve sides, and was top scorer for the under-19 team in season 2008–09.
It was announced in July 2009 that Dow would be joining
Forfar Athletic on loan, but the move was never completed.
Dow made his competitive debut for the Dundee United first team on 1 May 2010, at home to
Rangers. After coming on as an early substitute, he set up United's goal in the 2–1 defeat. Dow was named man of the match and, shortly afterwards, he signed a contract extension until 2012.
Dow was named in 12 matchday squads during the 2010–11 season, but made only one substitute appearance, against
St Mirren in November 2010.
He was loaned out to Forfar Athletic in March 2011 for the remainder of the season, to gain experience. He made twelve appearances for the
Second Division
In sport, the Second Division, also called Division 2 or Division II is usually the second highest division of a league, and will often have promotion and relegation with divisions above and below. Following the rise of Premier League style compet ...
club, scoring three goals and helping them reach the promotion play-offs. Dow later described his time at Forfar as "a great experience... It does toughen you up when you go down to the lower leagues".
Over the next two seasons, Dow began to feature more regularly in the Dundee United squad. He scored his first goal for the club on 20 September 2011, when he opened the scoring in a
Scottish League Cup
The Scottish League Cup (also known as the Viaplay Cup for sponsorship reasons) is a football competition open to all Scottish Professional Football League (SPFL) clubs. First held in 1946–47, it is the oldest national League Cup in existen ...
tie against Airdrie United. He signed an extended contract in October 2011, keeping him at Dundee United until 2014. His first league goal came on 11 May 2013, in a 2–1 win over
Inverness Caledonian Thistle
Inverness Caledonian Thistle Football Club, commonly known as Caley Thistle, is a professional football club based in Inverness, Scotland. The team currently competes in the Scottish Championship, the second tier of the Scottish Professional ...
.
Dow began to play more regularly after
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 ...
became Dundee United manager in 2013. He was selected to start in the first match of the
2013–14 season, ahead of more established players like
Gary Mackay-Steven
Gary Sean Mackay-Steven (born 31 August 1990) is a Scottish professional Association football, footballer who plays as a Midfielder#Winger, winger for Scottish Premiership club Heart of Midlothian F.C., Heart of Midlothian. He will become a free ...
.
As the season progressed, Dow was often selected in the middle of a front three formation, despite strong competition for the attacking positions in the team. He later had an extended run in the first team and scored his first goal of the season, in a 3–1 win over
Motherwell on 21 February 2014. His second goal came on 26 March 2014, as Dundee United beat Inverness 2–1. Then, on 26 April 2014, Dow scored his third goal of the season in a 5–1 win over Motherwell. On 13 May 2014, Dow signed a new contract until 2016, ending three months of negotiations. A few days after signing his new deal, Dow started in the
Scottish Cup Final
The Scottish Football Association Challenge Cup, commonly known as the Scottish Cup, is a knockout cup competition in Scottish football. Organised by the Scottish Football Association, it is the third oldest existing football competition in the w ...
, as Dundee United lost 2–0 to
St Johnstone.
Dow was released by Dundee United at the end of the 2015–16 season, with the club having been relegated to the
Scottish Championship
The Scottish Championship, known as the cinch Championship for sponsorship reasons, is the second tier of the Scottish Professional Football League, the league competition for men's professional football clubs in Scotland. The Scottish Champio ...
.
Ross County
Dow signed for
Ross County on 9 September 2016, having recovered from injury. He extended his contract with Ross County for a further two years in May 2017. Dow left
Ross County on 3 January 2019, by mutual consent having made 54 appearances for the club scoring only 1 goal.
Peterhead
On 14 September 2018, Dow joined
Scottish League Two
The Scottish League Two, known as cinch League Two for sponsorship reasons, is the fourth tier of the Scottish Professional Football League, the league competition for men's professional football clubs in Scotland. The Scottish League Two was e ...
side
Peterhead
Peterhead (; gd, Ceann Phàdraig, sco, Peterheid ) is a town in Aberdeenshire, Scotland. It is Aberdeenshire's biggest settlement (the city of Aberdeen itself not being a part of the district), with a population of 18,537 at the 2011 Census. ...
on loan until January 2019. On 3 January 2019, he left Ross County and joined Peterhead on a free transfer.
Dunfermline Athletic
Following a successful spell with Peterhead, it was announced on 14 May 2019, that Dow had signed a one-year deal with
Scottish Championship
The Scottish Championship, known as the cinch Championship for sponsorship reasons, is the second tier of the Scottish Professional Football League, the league competition for men's professional football clubs in Scotland. The Scottish Champio ...
club
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 ...
. He scored his first goal for the club in a 3–2 win away to
Scottish Premiership
The Scottish Premiership, known as the cinch Premiership for sponsorship reasons, is the top division of the Scottish Professional Football League (SPFL), the league competition for men's professional football clubs in Scotland. The Scottis ...
side St Mirren in the group stage of the League Cup. Dow was released at the end of the 2021/2022 season following the team's relegation to
League One
The English Football League One (often referred to as League One for short or Sky Bet League One for sponsorship purposes, and known as the Football League One from 2004 until 2016) is the second-highest division of the English Football Leag ...
.
Career statistics
Honours
;
Peterhead
Peterhead (; gd, Ceann Phàdraig, sco, Peterheid ) is a town in Aberdeenshire, Scotland. It is Aberdeenshire's biggest settlement (the city of Aberdeen itself not being a part of the district), with a population of 18,537 at the 2011 Census. ...
*
Scottish League Two
The Scottish League Two, known as cinch League Two for sponsorship reasons, is the fourth tier of the Scottish Professional Football League, the league competition for men's professional football clubs in Scotland. The Scottish League Two was e ...
: 2018-19
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dow, Ryan
1991 births
Living people
Scottish men's footballers
Dundee United F.C. players
Forfar Athletic F.C. players
Ross County F.C. players
Peterhead F.C. players
Dunfermline Athletic F.C. players
Scottish Premier League players
Footballers from Dundee
Men's association football forwards
Men's association football wingers
Scottish Football League players
Scottish Professional Football League players
People educated at Harris Academy
Arbroath F.C. players