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AP NEWS: WHITE PLAINS,NY - Taking the basketball world by surprise, long time player,
Steve Ryan, announced his retirement from the White Plains Men's Basketball League after
a 34 year reign. Ryan made his announcement in front of a packed crowd this past Saturday evening at Porter House Pub (one of the many teams Ryan played on), while trying to make
his way to the bar for a pint of Guinness. There was little reaction from the crowd, as they were probably in too much shock to pose any questions or attempt to get Ryan to change his mind.
There was a great deal of yelling and screaming, and this reporter witnessed a lot of cash changing hands.
Ryan was recruited into the league by Jim "Monsoon" Russell in 1976 to play for the now
defunct American International Rent A Car. Over the next decades, Ryan would go on to play for teams such as Starfire, Dunn's Pub and Dooley Macs. Official statistics show that Ryan scored over 50,000 points, grabbed 375,215 rebounds and dished off a league leading 37,533 assists. Unofficial statistics suggest that he consumed over 28,000 pints, 19,500 bottles of beer and approximately 100,000 wings at the conclusion of the games.
When asked about his decision to retire, Ryan was quoted as saying "It's time to let the next generation of gamers take over. I've had the good fortune to play with some incredible guys during my time in the league and played relatively injury free over the years. The icing on the cake came this past year when we won our division. This is a great way to go out, even though I haven't received my Divisional Championship Shirt yet!" At this time, Ryan started to get very emotional and could no longer speak.
Asked about the end of this era, there was no shortage of comments from the basketball world.
Frank Magaletta, Director of the League, was disappointed, but not surprised. "Steve has been
a fixture in this league longer than I have been the Director. He has been an inspiration to me
and so many other players." Magaletta went on to say, "however, I think he may have outstayed
his welcome for the past five years, or so. He'll always be a legend in his own mind." John
Bannon, an official in the league, said "Steve was one of the great players in the league for many
years. I remember him when he played on the Stepinac High School team back in '71." When
Bannon was told that that was Steve Sage, he then quickly corrected himself. "Wait, Steve Ryan?
Wasn't he the guy with gray hair that kept missing the lay-ups? He's done? Oh well." So many
of the players that Ryan shared court time with were saddened by his departure. Many said the
league just wouldn't be the same without him. Long time teammate, Larry Toglia, summed it up when he said, "Steve did the right thing. It's time the rest of us were able to take some more shots. He always was a chucker". Ryan's wife, Mary, was concerned about all the free time he would now have. "I'm not really sure what I'm going to do with him at home. Maybe he can start caddying again, or get a paper route".
Asked about his retirement, Ryan said he'll be able to spend more time doing the things he has
been missing out on during the Winter seasons. "I can finally take up snowboarding and get 'stoked' ", Ryan said. "I can concentrate on my bottle cap collection and maybe even take up ballroom dancing, in case I get the call from "Dancing With The Stars".
So the White Plains Men's League will need to find a way to carry on without Ryan. League officials are concerned about loss of revenues and diminished attendance, but will look for other means to spark interest. One official, who chose to remain anonymous, brought up the idea of donkey basketball. After hearing about this idea, long time player, John Donahoe, could only say, "Oh great, as if this league didn't already have enough crap!"
--- Steve Ryan, author and WP League Future Hall of Famer
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