Ryan Tunnicliffe

Ryan Tunnicliffe

Tunnicliffe playing for Peterborough United in 2011-12
Personal information
Full name	Ryan Tunnicliffe [1]
Date of birth	(1992-12-30) 30 December 1992 (age 31)
Place of birth	Heywood, England
Height	6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) [2]
Position(s)	Midfielder
Team information
Current team	Adelaide United
Number	22
Youth career
	Manchester United
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2009–2014	Manchester United	0	(0)
2011–2012	→ Peterborough United (loan)	27	(0)
2013	→ Barnsley (loan)	2	(0)
2013–2014	→ Ipswich Town (loan)	27	(0)
2014–2017	Fulham	59	(2)
2014	→ Wigan Athletic (loan)	5	(0)
2014	→ Blackburn Rovers (loan)	17	(1)
2017	→ Wigan Athletic (loan)	9	(1)
2017–2019	Millwall	51	(4)
2019–2021	Luton Town	64	(3)
2021–2023	Portsmouth	60	(3)
2023–	Adelaide United	12	(1)
International career
2007–2008	England U16	8	(0)
2008–2009	England U17	10	(4)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 14 January 2024

Ryan Tunnicliffe (born 30 December 1992) is an English professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for A-League Men side Adelaide United.

Born in Heywood, Greater Manchester, he began his career with Manchester United but failed to break into the first team and joined Peterborough United, Barnsley and Ipswich Town on loan before making a permanent move to Fulham in January 2014. After loan spells with Wigan Athletic (twice) and Blackburn Rovers, Tunnicliffe left Fulham for Millwall in 2017. Two years later, he left for Luton Town. He has also played internationally for England at under-16 and under-17 levels.

Club career

Manchester United

Born in Heywood, Greater Manchester, Tunnicliffe was first scouted by Manchester United at the age of nine, while playing for local side Roach Dynamos. He progressed through the Manchester United academy and signed as a scholar in July 2009. He turned professional in December the same year. ^[3]

Tunnicliffe was a "key performer" as the United under-18 side won the FA Youth Cup in 2011. ^[3] His performances that season earned him the club's Jimmy Murphy Young Player of the Year award. ^[4]

Peterborough United (loan)

On 1 July 2011, Manchester United agreed for Tunnicliffe to spend a six-month loan spell at Peterborough United, ^[5] alongside teammate Scott Wootton. ^[6] He made his debut in the opening game of the season on 6 August in a 2–1 home win over Crystal Palace, coming on as a substitute for Lee Frecklington in the 87th minute. ^[7] He then made his first start in a League Cup game against Stevenage and set up the opening goal for teammate David Ball. ^[8]

Return to Manchester United

After returning from the loan spell at Peterborough United, Tunnicliffe was a regular in the Reserves and helped the team win two trophies at the end of the campaign, scoring his first goal for Warren Joyce's team at Chelsea. ^[3]

Tunnicliffe made his senior Manchester United debut on 26 September 2012, when he came on as a substitute in the 2–1 League Cup win over Newcastle United; he came on in the 77th minute for Marnick Vermijl to win his father a bet that he had made 10 years earlier, with a return of £10,000. ^[9]

Barnsley (loan)

On 21 February 2013, Barnsley signed Tunnicliffe on a 28-day loan after Scott Golbourne was ruled out for the rest of the season following knee surgery. ^{[10] [11]}

Ipswich Town (loan)

On 26 July 2013, Tunnicliffe joined Ipswich Town on a six-month loan. ^[12] He was a regular in the Ipswich side throughout the first half of the 2013–14 season, but although manager Mick McCarthy expressed an interest in extending Tunnicliffe's loan deal, ^[13] Tunnicliffe returned to Manchester United in January 2014.

Fulham

After just two appearances for the Manchester United first team, Tunnicliffe joined Fulham for an undisclosed fee on 31 January 2014, along with fellow Manchester United reserve midfielder Larnell Cole. ^[14] There he was reunited with former Manchester United coach René Meulensteen, then in charge of Fulham. He made his debut for Fulham in a 2–2 draw against his former club Manchester United nine days later. ^[15]

After Meulensteen's sacking as Fulham manager, Tunnicliffe and Cole were deemed by Meulensteen's successor Felix Magath to be surplus to requirements at the club, despite being played in every match eligible under Meulensteen. On 25 February 2014, just 25 days after signing for Fulham, Tunnicliffe joined Wigan Athletic on loan until the end of the season as cover for the injured Ben Watson. ^[16] On 10 April, it was reported that Wigan manager Uwe Rösler had attempted to terminate Tunnicliffe's loan but Fulham refused to take the player back. ^[17]

On 1 September 2014, Tunnicliffe joined Blackburn Rovers on a season-long loan deal. ^[18] On 1 January 2015, he was called by his parent club thus ending the loan deal. ^[19]

Tunnicliffe was given a two-match ban for the start of the 2015–16 season, a £5,000 fine and ordered to take an educational course after calling Middlesbrough's Patrick Bamford a "sausage boy" over Twitter. ^[20]

Millwall

On 29 July 2017, Tunnicliffe signed with Millwall on a two-year deal following his release from Fulham. ^[21] After appearing for 31 times in the 2018–19 season, he was released by Millwall in July 2019. ^[22]

Luton Town

On 1 July 2019, Tunnicliffe became Luton Town's third signing since winning promotion to the Championship. ^[23]

Portsmouth

Tunnicliffe agreed a two-year contract with League One club Portsmouth on 26 June 2021, with the option of a further year, effective once his Luton contract had expired at the end of that month. ^[24] He scored his first goal for Portsmouth in a 1–0 win against Shrewsbury Town on 17 August 2021. ^[25]

Adelaide United

On 19 September 2023, Tunnicliffe signed for a club abroad for the first time, joining Adelaide United on a two-year deal. ^[26]

International career

Tunnicliffe made his England under-16 debut in October 2007 at the age of 14, ^[27] captaining ^[28] the side to a 2–2 draw against Northern Ireland in the Victory Shield. ^[29] He played for the under-16s a further seven times. ^[30] In August 2008 he made his first appearance for the England under-17 team against Portugal. He was part of the squad for the 2009 European Championship. He has played a total of ten times for the under-17s, scoring four goals. ^[30]

Personal life

Tunnicliffe attended Siddal Moor Sports College. ^[28] On 14 October 2012, Tunnicliffe was charged for drink-driving by Greater Manchester Police, after his car collided with a van in Green Lane, Heywood. ^[31]

Career statistics

Club

As of match played 18 April 2023

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition

Club	Season	League			Cup		League Cup		Other		Total
		Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Manchester United	2010–11 [32]	Premier League	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
	2011–12 [33]	Premier League	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
	2012–13 [34]	Premier League	0	0	0	0	2	0	–		2	0
	2013–14 [35]	Premier League	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
	Total		0	0	0	0	2	0	0	0	2	0
Peterborough United (loan)	2011–12 [33]	Championship	27	0	1	0	2	0	–		30	0
Barnsley (loan)	2012–13 [34]	Championship	2	0	1	0	–		–		3	0
Ipswich Town (loan)	2013–14 [35]	Championship	27	0	2	0	0	0	–		29	0
Fulham	2013–14 [35]	Premier League	3	0	–		0	0	–		3	0
	2014–15 [36]	Championship	22	0	2	0	0	0	0	0	24	0
	2015–16 [37]	Championship	27	2	0	0	2	0	0	0	29	2
	2016–17 [38]	Championship	7	0	0	0	3	0	0	0	10	0
	Total		59	2	2	0	5	0	0	0	66	2
Wigan Athletic (loan)	2013–14 [35]	Championship	5	0	–		–		0	0	5	0
Blackburn Rovers (loan)	2014–15 [36]	Championship	17	1	–		–		0	0	17	1
Wigan Athletic (loan)	2016–17 [38]	Championship	9	1	1	0	0	0	0	0	10	1
Millwall	2017–18 [39]	Championship	24	1	2	0	1	0	0	0	27	1
	2018–19 [40]	Championship	27	3	3	0	2	0	0	0	32	3
	Total		51	4	5	0	3	0	0	0	59	4
Luton Town	2019–20 [41]	Championship	40	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	40	1
	2020–21 [42]	Championship	24	2	2	0	2	0	0	0	28	2
	Total		64	3	2	0	2	0	0	0	68	3
Portsmouth	2021–22 [43]	League One	30	2	0	0	1	0	1 [lower-alpha 1]	0	32	2
	2022–23 [44]	League One	30	1	3	0	0	0	4 [lower-alpha 1]	0	37	1
	Total		60	3	3	0	1	0	5	0	69	3
Adelaide United	2023–24	A-League Men	12	1	0	0	-		-		12	1
Career total			333	15	17	0	15	0	5	0	370	15

1. Appearance(s) in EFL Trophy

Honours

Individual

• Jimmy Murphy Young Player of the Year: 2010–11 ^{[ citation needed ]}

References

1. "Notification of shirt numbers: Luton Town" (PDF). English Football League. p. 39. Retrieved 22 September 2020.
2. "Ryan Tunnicliffe: Overview". ESPN. Retrieved 17 September 2020.
3. "Ryan Tunnicliffe". ManUtd.com. Manchester United. Retrieved 6 August 2011.
4. Marshall, Adam (18 May 2011). "Ryan is Academy star". ManUtd.com. Manchester United. Retrieved 6 August 2011.
5. "Peterborough sign Man Utd's Ryan Tunnicliffe on loan". BBC Sport. British Broadcasting Corporation. 1 July 2011. Retrieved 5 August 2011.
6. "Fergie Jnr defends Man Utd link". Sky Sports. 14 July 2011. Retrieved 6 August 2011.
7. "Peterborough 2–1 Crystal Palace". BBC Sport. British Broadcasting Corporation. 6 August 2011. Retrieved 6 August 2011.
8. "Stevenage 3–4 Peterborough (aet)". BBC Sport. British Broadcasting Corporation. 9 August 2011. Retrieved 9 August 2011.
9. "Ryan Tunnicliffe's Manchester United debut wins 100–1 bet for father". The Guardian. Guardian News and Media. 26 September 2012. Retrieved 27 September 2012.
10. Marshall, Adam (22 February 2013). "Tunnicliffe's a Tyke". ManUtd.com. Manchester United. Retrieved 22 February 2013.
11. "Manchester United's Ryan Tunnicliffe agrees Barnsley loan". BBC Sport. British Broadcasting Corporation. 21 February 2013. Retrieved 22 February 2013.
12. "Ryan Arrives on Loan". ITFC.co.uk. Ipswich Town FC. 26 July 2013. Retrieved 26 July 2013.
13. "Ipswich Town eager to keep Ryan Tunnicliffe". BBC Sport. British Broadcasting Corporation. 18 September 2013. Retrieved 1 February 2014.
14. "Transfer Deadline Day: Fulham sign Mitroglou and Heitinga". BBC Sport. British Broadcasting Corporation. 31 January 2014. Retrieved 1 February 2014.
15. "Manchester United 2-2 Fulham" BBC Sport. 9 February 2014. Retrieved 10 February 2014.
16. "Championship: Wigan complete Ryan Tunnicliffe loan from Fulham". Sky Sports. BSkyB. 25 February 2014. Retrieved 25 February 2014.
17. "Wigan try to send loanee Ryan Tunnicliffe back to Fulham but told 'we don't want him'". The Daily Telegraph. 10 April 2014. Retrieved 22 April 2014.
18. "Transfer deadline day: Blackburn sign Duffy, Steele and Tunnicliffe". BBC Sport. 1 September 2014. Retrieved 25 September 2014.
19. "Fulham recall Ryan". Rovers. Retrieved 1 January 2015.
20. Taylor, Jonathon (16 June 2015). "Ryan Tunnicliffe gets two-match ban for Patrick Bamford 'sausage boy' tweet". Gazette Live. Retrieved 16 June 2015.
21. "Midfielder Tunnicliffe joins Millwall". BBC Sport.
22. "Ryan Tunnicliffe: Luton sign Millwall midfielder on free transfer". 1 July 2019. Retrieved 20 July 2019.
23. "NEW SIGNING | RYAN TUNNICLIFFE JOINS THE TOWN!". lutontown.co.uk. Retrieved 20 July 2019.
24. O'Sullivan, Cash (26 June 2021). "Portsmouth unveil fourth summer signing as Ryan Tunnicliffe transfer confirmed". Hampshire Live. Reach. Retrieved 29 June 2021.
25. "Portsmouth 1–0 Shrewsbury". BBC. 17 August 2021. Retrieved 18 August 2021.
26. "Reds boost midfield stocks with Englishman, Tunnicliffe". Adelaide United . 19 September 2022.
27. "Sky Sports Scout – Ryan Tunnicliffe". Sky Sports. 16 March 2011. Archived from the original on 24 July 2011. Retrieved 6 August 2011.
28. "Ryan aims high". Manchester Evening News. 19 December 2007. Retrieved 6 August 2011.
29. "Late strike denies Lions". thefa.com. The Football Association. 11 October 2007. Retrieved 6 August 2011.
30. "Ryan Tunnicliffe". thefa.com. The Football Association. Retrieved 6 August 2011.
31. "Manchester United's Ryan Tunnicliffe on drink-drive charge". BBC News. British Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 14 October 2012.
32. "Games played by Ryan Tunnicliffe in 2010/2011". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 3 September 2017.
33. "Games played by Ryan Tunnicliffe in 2011/2012". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 3 September 2017.
34. "Games played by Ryan Tunnicliffe in 2012/2013". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 3 September 2017.
35. "Games played by Ryan Tunnicliffe in 2013/2014". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 3 September 2017.
36. "Games played by Ryan Tunnicliffe in 2014/2015". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 3 September 2017.
37. "Games played by Ryan Tunnicliffe in 2015/2016". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 3 September 2017.
38. "Games played by Ryan Tunnicliffe in 2016/2017". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 3 September 2017.
39. "Games played by Ryan Tunnicliffe in 2017/2018". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 3 September 2017.
40. "Games played by Ryan Tunnicliffe in 2018/2019". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 3 September 2017.
41. "Games played by Ryan Tunnicliffe in 2019/2020". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 3 September 2017.
42. "Games played by Ryan Tunnicliffe in 2020/2021". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 3 September 2017.
43. "Games played by Ryan Tunnicliffe in 2021/2022". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 3 September 2017.
44. "Games played by Ryan Tunnicliffe in 2022/2023". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 3 September 2017.

External links

• Ryan Tunnicliffe at Soccerbase