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2008–09 season of Watford F.C. From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Watford Football Club are an association football team from the county of Hertfordshire, England. Waford has played in the Championship since being relegated from the Premier League in 2006–07. The club finished the season in 13th position out of 24 Championship teams. The club went through four managers during the season.
2008–09 season | |||
---|---|---|---|
Chairman | Graham Simpson (until December 2008) Jimmy Russo (from December 2008) | ||
Manager | Aidy Boothroyd (until October 2008) Malky Mackay (caretaker in November 2008) Brendan Rodgers (November 2008 – June 2009) Malky Mackay (June 2009) | ||
Stadium | Vicarage Road | ||
Football League Championship | 13th | ||
FA Cup | Fifth round (eliminated by Chelsea) | ||
League Cup | Fifth round (eliminated by Tottenham Hotspur) | ||
Top goalscorer | League: Tommy Smith (17) All: Tommy Smith (17) | ||
Highest home attendance | 16,386 (vs Wolverhampton Wanderers, 25 October 2008) | ||
Lowest home attendance | 13,193 (vs Burnley, 27 January 2010) | ||
Average home league attendance | 14,858 | ||
| |||
The 2008–09 season was their second consecutive one in the Football League Championship, following relegation from the Premier League in 2006–07.[1]
They reached the fifth round of both the League Cup and FA Cup, where they were eliminated by Premier League sides Tottenham Hotspur and Chelsea respectively. Both teams went on to reach the finals of the corresponding competitions, with Chelsea going on to win the 2009 FA Cup Final.[2]
Off the pitch, there were a series of personnel changes through the course of the season. Chairman Graham Simpson and chief executive Mark Ashton resigned, and were replaced by Jimmy Russo and Julian Winter respectively. Following a decline in form throughout 2008, manager Aidy Boothroyd left the club by mutual consent, and was replaced by Brendan Rodgers. In turn, Rodgers controversially left the club a few weeks after the last game of the season, having previously suggested that rumours linking him to Reading were "questioning his integrity".[3] His replacement was first team coach and former player Malky Mackay.[4]
The season is perhaps best remembered for the "ghost goal" incident, which occurred in a league match against Reading on 20 September 2008. Following a corner from Reading player Stephen Hunt, John Eustace kicked the ball across the line, level with the six-yard box. Initially, linesman Nigel Bannister seemed to signal for a goal kick, and players from both sides ran away from the penalty area, waiting for goalkeeper Scott Loach to take it. However, Bannister walked over to referee Stuart Attwell, and after a brief discussion, Attwell awarded Reading a goal. The match eventually finished 2–2. The match also marked Loach's debut; the "ghost goal" was the first goal he conceded in his Watford career.[5][6]
Date | Stadium | City | Opponent | Result | Attendance | Goalscorers | Source | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Watford | Opponent | |||||||
9 August 2008 | Selhurst Park | London | Crystal Palace | 0–0 | 15,614 | |||
16 August 2008 | Vicarage Road | Watford | Charlton Athletic | 1–0 | 14,413 | Smith | ||
23 August 2008 | City Ground | Nottingham | Nottingham Forest | 2–3 | 20,005 | Smith (2) | ||
30 August 2008 | Vicarage Road | Watford | Ipswich Town | 2–1 | 16,345 | Eustace, O'Toole | ||
13 September 2008 | Hillsborough | Sheffield | Sheffield Wednesday | 0–2 | 17,066 | |||
16 September 2008 | Vicarage Road | Watford | Plymouth Argyle | 1–2 | ||||
20 September 2008 | Vicarage Road | Watford | Reading FC | 2–2 | ||||
27 September 2008 | A | Sheffield United | 1–2 | |||||
30 September 2008 | A | Burnley FC | 2–3 | |||||
4 October 2008 | Vicarage Road | Watford | Preston North End | 2–1 | ||||
18 October 2008 | A | Southampton FC | 3–0 | |||||
21 October 2008 | Vicarage Road | Watford | Cardiff City | 2–2 | ||||
25 October 2008 | Vicarage Road | Watford | Wolverhampton Wanderers | 2–3 | ||||
28 October 2008 | A | Preston North End | 0–2 | |||||
1 November 2008 | Vicarage Road | Watford | Blackpool FC | 3–4 | ||||
9 November 2008 | A | Swansea City | 1–3 | |||||
15 November 2008 | A | Barnsley FC | 1–2 | |||||
22 November 2008 | Vicarage Road | Watford | Queens Park Rangers | 3–0 | ||||
25 November 2008 | A | Bristol City | 1–1 | |||||
29 November 2008 | Vicarage Road | Watford | Doncaster Rovers | 1–1 | ||||
6 December 2008 | A | Birmingham City | 2–3 | |||||
10 December 2008 | Vicarage Road | Watford | Norwich City | 2–1 | ||||
13 December 2008 | Vicarage Road | Watford | Coventry City | 2–1 | ||||
20 December 2008 | A | Derby County | 0–1 | |||||
26 December 2008 | Vicarage Road | Watford | Bristol City | 2–4 | ||||
28 December 2008 | A | Queens Park Rangers | 0–0 | |||||
9 January 2009 | A | Reading FC | 0–4 | |||||
17 January 2009 | Vicarage Road | Watford | Sheffield United | 0–2 | ||||
27 January 2009 | Vicarage Road | Watford | Burnley FC | 3–0 | ||||
31 January 2009 | A | Wolverhampton Wanderers | 1–3 | |||||
17 February 2009 | Vicarage Road | Watford | Swansea City | 2–0 | ||||
21 February 2009 | A | Blackpool FC | 2–0 | |||||
28 February 2009 | Vicarage Road | Watford | Crystal Palace | 2–0 | ||||
3 March 2009 | A | Plymouth Argyle | 1–2 | |||||
7 March 2009 | A | Charlton Athletic | 3–2 | |||||
10 March 2009 | Vicarage Road | Watford | Nottingham Forest | 2–1 | ||||
14 March 2009 | Vicarage Road | Watford | Sheffield Wednesday | 2–2 | ||||
18 March 2009 | A | Cardiff City | 1–2 | |||||
21 March 2009 | A | Ipswich Town | 0–0 | |||||
4 April 2009 | A | Doncaster Rovers | 2–1 | |||||
7 April 2009 | Vicarage Road | Watford | Southampton FC | 2–2 | ||||
11 April 2009 | Vicarage Road | Watford | Barnsley FC | 1–1 | ||||
13 April 2009 | A | Norwich City | 0–2 | |||||
18 April 2009 | Vicarage Road | Watford | Birmingham City | 0–1 | ||||
25 April 2009 | A | Coventry City | 3–2 | |||||
3 May 2009 | Vicarage Road | Watford | Derby County | 3–1 |
Overall | Home | Away | |||||||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD |
46 | 16 | 10 | 20 | 68 | 72 | −4 | 58 | 11 | 6 | 6 | 42 | 32 | +10 | 5 | 4 | 14 | 26 | 40 | −14 |
Last updated: 17 March 2013.
Source: Fussballdaten.de
Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
11 | Queens Park Rangers | 46 | 15 | 16 | 15 | 42 | 44 | −2 | 61 |
12 | Sheffield Wednesday | 46 | 16 | 13 | 17 | 51 | 58 | −7 | 61 |
13 | Watford | 46 | 16 | 10 | 20 | 68 | 72 | −4 | 58 |
14 | Doncaster Rovers | 46 | 17 | 7 | 22 | 42 | 53 | −11 | 58 |
15 | Crystal Palace | 46 | 15 | 12 | 19 | 52 | 55 | −3 | 56[lower-alpha 1] |
Match | Date | Stadium | City | Opponent | Result | Attendance | Goalscorers | Source | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Watford | Opponent | ||||||||
3 | 3 January 2009 | Vicarage Road | Watford | Scunthorpe United | 1–0 | 8,690 | Rasiak 67' | — | [MR 1] |
4 | 24 January 2009 | Vicarage Road | Watford | Crystal Palace | 4–3 | 10,006 | DeMerit 17' Cork 27' Hoskins 67' Rasiak 70' |
Hill 48' Ifill 83', 90' |
[MR 2] |
5 | 14 February 2009 | Vicarage Road | Watford | Chelsea | 1–3 | 16,851 | Priskin 69' | Anelka 75', 77', 90' | [MR 3] |
Match | Date | Stadium | City | Opponent | Result | Attendance | Goalscorers | Source | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Watford | Opponent | ||||||||
1 | 12 August 2008 | Vicarage Road | Watford | Bristol Rovers | 1–0 | 5,574 | Hoskins 88' | — | [MR 4] |
2 | 28 August 2008 | Vicarage Road | Watford | Darlington | 2–1 | 5,236 | Francis 37' O'Toole 116' |
Blundell 90' | [MR 5] |
3 | 23 September 2008 | Vicarage Road | Watford | West Ham United | 1–0 | 12,914 | Mullins 70' (o.g.) | — | [MR 6] |
4 | 11 November 2008 | Liberty Stadium | Swansea, Wales | Swansea City | 1–0 | 9,549 | Williamson 21' | — | [MR 7] |
5 | 3 December 2008 | Vicarage Road | Watford | Tottenham Hotspur | 1–2 | 16,501 | Priskin 13' | Pavlyuchenko 45' (pen.) Bent 76' |
[MR 8] |
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
|
|
Date | Nationality | Position | Name | Club From | Fee | Reference |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
18 July 2008 | DF | Jon Harley | Burnley | Free | [9] | |
26 January 2009 | DF | Mike Williamson | Wycombe Wanderers | Undisclosed | [10] | |
2 February 2009 | MF | Don Cowie | Inverness CT | Nominal | [11] |
Date | Nationality | Position | Name | Club To | Fee | Reference |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
30 May 2008 | MF | Jordan Stewart | Derby County | Free | [12] | |
8 July 2008 | MF | Toumani Diagouraga | Hereford United | Undiclosed | [13] | |
22 July 2008 | FW | Darius Henderson | Sheffield United | £2,000,000 | [14] | |
6 August 2008 | DF | Danny Shittu | Bolton Wanderers | Undisclosed | [15] | |
23 January 2009 | FW | Lionel Ainsworth | Huddersfield Town | Undisclosed | [16] | |
27 February 2009 | FW | Moses Ashikodi | Shrewsbury Town | Free | [17][18] |
Date | Nationality | Position | Name | Club From | Length | Reference |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
15 August 2008 | FW | Grzegorz Rasiak | Southampton | Full-Season | [19] | |
27 November 2008 | MF | Liam Bridcutt | Chelsea | One Month | [20] | |
31 December 2008 | DF | Gavin Hoyte | Arsenal | Until end of season | [21] | |
2 January 2009 | MF | Jack Cork | Chelsea | Until end of season | [22] | |
2 February 2009 | MF | Aleksandrs Cauņa | Skonto FC | Until end of season | [11] | |
24 March 2009 | DF | Danny Rose | Tottenham Hotspur | Until end of season | [23] |
Date | Nationality | Position | Name | Club To | Length | Reference |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
30 May 2008 | FW | Nathan Ellington | Derby County | Full-Season | [12] | |
5 August 2008 | FW | Moses Ashikodi | Hereford United | Until January | [24] | |
21 November 2008 | FW | Lionel Ainsworth | Hereford United | One Month | [25] | |
12 January 2009 | DF | Leigh Bromby | Sheffield United | Until end of season | [26] | |
23 January 2009 | DF | Cédric Avinel | FC Gueugnon | Until end of season | [27] |
No. | Pos | Nat | Player | Total | Championship | FA Cup | League Cup | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||||||
Goalkeepers | |||||||||||||
1 | GK | EST | Mart Poom | 7 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
14 | GK | ENG | Scott Loach | 38 | 0 | 31 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 4 | 0 | ||
16 | GK | ENG | Richard Lee | 11 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
Defenders | |||||||||||||
2 | DF | ENG | Gavin Hoyte | 10 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
3 | DF | ENG | Mat Sadler | 16 | 0 | 15 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
6 | DF | USA | Jay DeMerit | 38 | 1 | 32 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 0 | ||
12 | DF | ENG | Lloyd Doyley | 43 | 0 | 37 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 0 | ||
15 | DF | ENG | Jon Harley | 43 | 1 | 37 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 0 | ||
23 | DF | ENG | Adrian Mariappa | 47 | 1 | 39 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 5 | 0 | ||
24 | DF | ENG | Mike Williamson | 17 | 1 | 17 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
Midfielders | |||||||||||||
4 | MF | ENG | Jack Cork | 21 | 1 | 19 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | ||
7 | MF | SCO | Don Cowie | 11 | 3 | 10 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
11 | MF | JAM | Jobi McAnuff | 45 | 3 | 40 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | ||
14 | MF | JAM | Lee Williamson | 38 | 3 | 34 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 1 | ||
Forwards | |||||||||||||
9 | FW | HUN | Tamas Priskin | 41 | 14 | 36 | 12 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 1 | ||
21 | FW | ENG | Tommy Smith | 49 | 17 | 44 | 17 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
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