Pat Ryan Calls Out 'Disgusting' Cork Rumours That Ran Rife After All-Ireland Final

Cork are set to embark on a hunt for a new manager, with it being announced yesterday that Pat Ryan would not continue in the role for the 2026 season.

Despite losing consecutive All-Ireland finals, it was widely expected that Ryan would persist in the role for 2026. Cork had made serious strides under his leadership in recent years and many felt that he would continue that process over the coming seasons.

While Ryan would be offered a new three-year term by the county board, he ultimately opted to move on.

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There had been some debate surrounding Pat Ryan's reason for departing from the role, with one report suggesting that a disagreement with the Cork county board was the driving factor.

The fallout from the All-Ireland final loss to Tipperary might have also played a part. In the aftermath of that fixture, rumours spread like wildfire about a falling out in the Cork dressing room at halftime in the game.

Pat Ryan has now addressed those rumours.

Speaking to John Fogarty and the Irish Examiner, the 49-year old labelled any suggestions of a halftime bust-up at Croke Park as 'disgusting'.

I didn't hear it until I went back into work on the Thursday or the Friday. And I was like, ‘What are you on about?’ And then fellas were showing me text messages.

And my attitude was, maybe we should have a fight. And that was my take. Absolutely, totally false. Absolutely no truth in it. And, look, the disgusting point from my part is that they were totally made-up stories, and then individual names were attached to it...

All those things were absolutely total garbage. And, to be honest, probably the most disappointing thing is that you had people that should know better who were actually thinking that it might be true.

Ryan would go on to rubbish suggestions that there was a disagreement in the Cork dressing room over a potential decision to take off Eric Downey, who was sent off for a second yellow card after the interval.

It certainly seems as though this is a sad way for Ryan's tenure with Cork to end, especially when you consider what he has given to the county as both a player and a manager.

It will be interesting to see if any further details emerge about his exit over the coming days and weeks.