Gerald Ryan ONZM passed away peacefully on 26 May 2018.
When Gerald Ryan’s son started playing the accordion in the 1970’s he took an interest in how accordion organisations were set up. In succession he created constitutions for the New Zealand Accordion Association Inc, the Accordion Examination Board of New Zealand Inc, and the North Shore Accordion Orchestras Inc. These well worded and strong documents set all of these organisations up to succeed and grow and all still survive today two generations later. He remained the Solicitor for all of these organisations.
Soon his daughter was also playing in the orchestra system and Gerald became even more involved.
When the New Zealand Accordion Assn planned to host the 1980 Coupe Mondiale, the world premiere International Accordion Competition, Gerald Ryan quickly became a prime mover. The standing of his family at that time ensured that the Prime Minister, Sir Robert Muldoon, presided over the Opening Ceremony at the Town Hall and the promotion was sufficient, that over 2,000 people were in the audience.
 Picture above while receiving the New Zealand Order of Merit (ONZM) for his contribution towards the people of New Zealand.
The New Zealand Accordion Association recognised the contribution of Gerald Ryan to the accordion in New Zealand by honouring him with Life Membership in 1993.
His generous help, knowledge and continuous enthusiasm was well respected throughout the accordion world.
Gerald Ryan was also a very successful businessman and was the head of many important sporting organisations.
His funeral was held on Friday 1st June 2018 at Sacred Heart Chapel with the senior school providing a moving haka as his casket was carried from the Chapel. |
Agi Ryan and Gerald Ryan
"If I helped one person in their journey through life, then I am happy.
Our father taught us all to treat people as though they were family. Everyone deserves to be heard and given a fair chance."
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| Dearly loved husband to Agi, much loved father and father-in-law to Gerald and Joanna, Sophia, Peter and Rachel, and adored grandfather to Georgina, Jeremy, Jacob, Dominic, Charlotte and Michelle. |
Tribute to ex-New Zealand Rugby League and Warriors Chairman
Gerald Ryan |
Written by Richard Becht.
Rugby league has never been short on so-called colourful characters. Former New Zealand Rugby League chairman Gerald Ryan, who passed away last Saturday aged 87, was that and then some.
He was one of eight brothers - including two sets of identical brothers - from a rather remarkable family.
Frank, who died last year aged 84, was a long-time Mount Albert mayor who worked tirelessly for his community and subsequently became even better-known through his daughter, internationally-acclaimed actress Lucy Lawless.
There was also Gerald's twin Kevin, the legendary criminal lawyer, who became a Queen’s Counsel in 1998 and died at the age of 77 in 2008. He appeared in more than 100 murder trials, most famously acting for Arthur Allan Thomas.
Gerald, born in Westport, developed a deep love for rugby league, racing and law. Indeed, in 2011 he was made an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit for his contribution to rugby league, racing and the community. He also became a New Zealand Rugby League life member in 2006.
Quirkiness and exuberance were among the traits that stood out in a man who was more than dogged in fighting for New Zealand rugby league’s cause during his term as NZRL chairman from 1997-2001. It could be said he had a tendency to speak his mind first and consider the consequences later, which made for some raised eyebrows, gasps and certainly some juicy quotes for media people.
One of his best quips was given a fresh airing in the obituary published on the NZRL’s website.
Ryan was by no means alone in his dislike for Australia's referees and he didn’t miss his target when he directed a verbal volley at them over the bias he perceived in the way they were controlling the Warriors' matches in the late 1990s. He put it this way: “There are orangutans and blind grandmothers from the South Island who could do better than some Australian referees.”
As fate would have it, his chairmanship coincided with troubled times for the game in New Zealand (troubled times and rugby league tend to go together more often than not). Ryan’s challenge was to oversee the code when the Super League-aligned NZRL was at odds with the establishment in the shape of the Australian Rugby League, and then to guide the game out of the troubled waters after the code came back together.
It was also a period when the NZRL had a shareholding in the Warriors, with Ryan serving as chairman of both the Auckland Rugby League and the Auckland Warriors as various stages.
One of his special passions was crusading for the rugby league cause in universities. He had been playing rugby union at club level in Auckland in the 1950s when he became a rebel by switching to rugby league.
As Carey Clements notes on the Facebook page for the New Zealand Universities’ and Tertiary Students’ Rugby League, Ryan was a foundation player in the first Auckland University side in 1957, the first treasurer on the New Zealand Universities’ Rugby League council in 1968 and chairman some years later when the NZURL was reformed after being disbanded
“There was a lot of controversy about switching to league at the time,” he said.
“In fact, when we first turned out we were banned for life but when my brothers played for University (in rugby league), they used different names because they were also playing senior rugby union at the same time.
“We all had assumed names. I think mine was Winston Churchill and my twin brother Kevin used Clark Gable or something like that. Tony and Frank used other names as well. It was also confusing for teams we played for because we were two pairs of identical twins. People always got us confused throughout our lives, off the field as well.”
Ryan’s interest in and dedication to rugby league in universities was rewarded when New Zealand caused a huge upset by winning the University Rugby League World Cup in Brisbane in 2005. |
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