Ryan began his career with Derby County's youth academy in 2007. He spent five years at the club and made 1 league appearance before joining Scottish club Ayr United on loan in August 2011. He made 12 league and cup appearances for Ayr but returned to Derby in January 2012 and was released at the end of the season.
Ryan signed for Sligo Rovers on 1 July 2012 and made 6 league appearances that year, adding 11 more in 2013 before joining Longford Town on loan at the end of July. He scored twice in 9 league appearances for the Midlands club and left Sligo on his return from Longford at the end of the 2013 season. In January 2014 Ryan committed to the newest Galway club to grace the League of Ireland, Galway FC.
Ryan became a key part of the Galway side, playing in thirty league and play-off games for them, scoring five goals in the process, as Galway earned promotion to the Premier Division by winning the play-offs. He remained a key figure for Galway in 2015. Now named Galway United Ryan played in 26 of the club's Premier Division games, scoring six goals as the Tribesmen finished tenth in the league table. He also played in the EA Sports Cup Final, which Galway lost on penalties to St Pats.
Ryan continued to mature as a midfield playmaker in 2016 making 29 starts for Galway and chipping in with 12 goals before quitting Eamonn Deacy Park at the end of the season to sign for Stephen Bradley at Shamrock Rovers ahead of the 2017 campaign.
In November 2017, Shamrock Rovers announced they were releasing Ryan. Ryan signed for Galway United ahead of the 2018 season.
Ryan signed for Finn Harps in December 2019 as he returned to LOI football after taking a year out. Having appeared in all 21 of the club's games in 2020, Ryan re-signed with Harps for the 2021 campaign and also played there in 2022 before leaving at the end of that season and signing for Limerick side, Treaty United.
He didn't play a single game for Treaty, leaving the club just days before the start of the 2023 season citing work commitments.
| Competition | Apps | Subs | 🟨 | 🟥 | Mins | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Europa League | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 251 |
| FAI Cup | 14 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 1028 |
| Friendly | 22 | 6 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1824 |
| League Cup | 14 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 910 |
| LOI First Division | 61 | 0 | 5 | 13 | 1 | 5416 |
| LOI Premier Division | 153 | 52 | 11 | 23 | 1 | 11609 |
| Setanta Cup | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 252 |
| Champions League | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Career Total | 270 | 75 | 27 | 38 | 2 | 21290 |
| Season | Competition | Team | Apps | 🟨 | 🟥 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | FAI Cup | Finn Harps | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2022 | LOI Premier Division | Finn Harps | 24 | 2 | 7 | 1 |
| 2021 | FAI Cup | Finn Harps | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2021 | Friendly | Finn Harps | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2021 | LOI Premier Division | Finn Harps | 14 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| 2020 | FAI Cup | Finn Harps | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| 2020 | Friendly | Finn Harps | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 2020 | LOI Premier Division | Finn Harps | 19 | 1 | 3 | 0 |
| 2018 | FAI Cup | Galway United | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2018 | Friendly | Galway United | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2018 | League Cup | Galway United | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2018 | LOI First Division | Galway United | 26 | 1 | 5 | 0 |
| 2017-2018 | Europa League | Shamrock Rovers | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2017 | FAI Cup | Shamrock Rovers | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| 2017 | Friendly | Shamrock Rovers | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2017 | League Cup | Shamrock Rovers | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2017 | LOI Premier Division | Shamrock Rovers | 21 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 2016 | Friendly | Galway United | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 2016 | League Cup | Galway United | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2016 | LOI Premier Division | Galway United | 29 | 5 | 6 | 0 |
| 2015 | FAI Cup | Galway United | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2015 | Friendly | Galway United | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2015 | League Cup | Galway United | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2015 | LOI Premier Division | Galway United | 26 | 3 | 4 | 0 |
| 2014 | FAI Cup | Galway United | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2014 | Friendly | Galway United | 6 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 2014 | League Cup | Galway United | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2014 | LOI First Division | Galway United | 26 | 2 | 6 | 1 |
| 2014 | LOI Premier Division | Galway United | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| 2013-2014 | Champions League | Sligo Rovers | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2013 | FAI Cup | Longford Town | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2013 | Friendly | Sligo Rovers | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| 2013 | League Cup | Sligo Rovers | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2013 | LOI First Division | Longford Town | 9 | 2 | 2 | 0 |
| 2013 | LOI Premier Division | Longford Town | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2013 | LOI Premier Division | Sligo Rovers | 11 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 2013 | Setanta Cup | Sligo Rovers | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 2012-2013 | Europa League | Sligo Rovers | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2012 | League Cup | Sligo Rovers | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2012 | LOI Premier Division | Sligo Rovers | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
