2008–09 Cardiff City F.C. season

Cardiff City
2008–09 season
Chairman Peter Ridsdale
Manager Dave Jones
Football League Championship 7th
FA Cup 4th round
League Cup 3rd round
Top goalscorer League: Ross McCormack (21)
All: Ross McCormack (23)
Highest home attendance 20,156 vs Swansea City
Lowest home attendance 6,334 vs Milton Keynes Dons
Average home league attendance 18,449

The 2008–09 season was Cardiff City's sixth consecutive year playing in the Football League Championship and their 82nd season playing in The Football League. It was also the clubs final season playing at Ninian Park, their home ground since they entered The Football League in 1920.[1]

Season review

Events

Pre-season

Cardiff began their pre-season schedule with matches against Welsh sides Merthyr Tydfil and Carmarthen Town, with squads made up of first team players and youth players. Goals from Steve Thompson, Jon Brown and youth player Sol Taylor saw a 3–1 win over Merthyr and a hat-trick from Paul Parry along with one from Rhys Kelleher and an own goal saw the other match end in a 5–0 win for Cardiff.[4] Several days later, Cardiff flew out to Portugal to take part in the Algarve Cup, along with Middlesbrough, Celtic and Vitória de Guimarães. Before the tournament they played a warm-up match against Portuguese side Vitoria de Setubal which ended in a 1–1 draw.

Their Algarve Cup tournament began with a match against Vitória de Guimarães, coming away with a 2–0 win with both goals being scored by summer signing Ross McCormack. In the second and final game of the tournament they overcame Scottish Premier League champions Celtic 1–0 with Joe Ledley scoring the only goal as Cardiff came away as the tournament winners.[5] Returning to Britain, they played out a 1–1 draw with Swindon Town followed by a 0–0 draw with Dutch side Ajax in their first home pre-season tie. They finished their pre-season schedule with a friendly against Chasetown with a team made up of senior and youth players. The match finished 2–2 with goals from Paul Parry and trialist Wilson Oruma.[6]

League

Cardiff City playing against Nottingham Forest on 31 January

Cardiff opened their season with a home tie against Southampton, the first time they had been handed a home tie on the opening day of the season for eleven years, and went on to win 2–1 after a last minute winner by Roger Johnson.[7] Propelled by the goals of summer signing Ross McCormack, Cardiff did not suffer a defeat until their ninth league game of the season when they lost 2–1 to Birmingham City,[8] but they bounced back quickly with a 2–1 win over Coventry City[9] three days later and the sides form through October, three wins and two draws, saw manager Dave Jones awarded the manager of the month award.

A slump in form saw three defeats in the next four games but despite the loss of form the side remained in the play-off zone. During the poor spell, former player Michael Chopra returned on loan just over a year after leaving the club in a club record £5m sale to Sunderland,[10] converting a penalty on his debut in a 2–1 win over Crytsal Palace on 15 November.[11] On 22 November, the second South Wales derby of the season took place, after an earlier meeting in the League Cup, with the match ending in a 2–2 draw with both sides being reduced to ten men due to red cards for Stephen McPhail and Darren Pratley.[12] The match was the second of what would become a three-month unbeaten spell which took the side through to the end of February without defeat until they lost 1–0 to Southampton,[13] a run which saw Cardiff rise to 4th place in the table.

The following game saw Cardiff win 3–1 against Barnsley, the first time in the season they had scored more than two goals in a single game. They went on to win 3 of their 6 matches in March before meeting local rivals Swansea City for the third time during the season on 5 April. The match ended in a 2–2 draw but was overshadowed by referee Mike Dean being struck by a coin thrown from the crowd.[14] The incident was condemned by chairman Peter Ridsdale and manager Dave Jones after the match.[15] Three consecutive wins for the side meant that with 4 games remaining they needed two points to secure a play-off place but they only managed one point during the final four games, in a 2–2 draw with Charlton Athletic, which would lead to them finishing in seventh place, missing out on a play-off spot to Preston North End on goals scored.[16]

Final league standings

PWDLFAGDPts
 6Preston North End462111146654+1274
 7Cardiff City461917106553+1274
 8Swansea City461620106350+1368

Player presentations

As part of the celebrations of the clubs final year at Ninian Park former players and staff of the club were presented to the crowd at half-time during various home matches throughout the season. At the end of the season all the players were invited back for the final game at the ground against Ipswich Town.[17] The date, opponent and people presented were:

League Cup

Cardiff began their League cup campaign away to League Two side Bournemouth, coming away with a 2–1 win with both goals scored by Paul Parry in the opening twelve minutes of the match.[22] After coming through the second round with a 2–1 home win over Milton Keynes Dons, Cardiff were handed a third round tie against local rivals Swansea City in the first South Wales derby to take place in nine years. A heated encounter saw Swansea come away with a 1–0 after a deflected free-kick, with Cardiff being reduced to ten men after Stephen McPhail saw red for two bookable offences.[23] After the match fans from both clubs clashed with police.[24]

FA Cup

Entering the competition in the third round, Cardiff's first match in the FA Cup came up against fellow Championship side Reading, with goals from Ross McCormack and Joe Ledley putting Cardiff through to the next round with a 2–0 win. In the fourth round Cardiff were handed a lucrative home tie against Premier League side Arsenal. The match, taking place in a packed Ninian Park, finished in a 0–0 draw. The replay, which was originally set to be played on 3 February but was postponed due to heavy snowfall,[25] took place on 16 February, ending in a 4–0 win for Arsenal.[26]

Kits

Supplier: Joma
Sponsor(s): Vansdirect.co.uk

Home
Home Alternate
Away
Alternative
Third Alternate

Last updated: 18 September 2012.
Source: Historical Football kits

Squad at end of season

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Position Player
1 Finland GK Peter Enckelman
2 Scotland DF Kevin McNaughton
3 Northern Ireland DF Tony Capaldi
4 Scotland MF Gavin Rae
5 England DF Darren Purse (Captain)
6 Hungary DF Gábor Gyepes
7 England MF Peter Whittingham
8 England FW Jay Bothroyd
9 United States FW Eddie Johnson (on loan from Fulham)
10 Republic of Ireland MF Stephen McPhail (Vice-Captain)
11 Wales MF Paul Parry
12 England DF Roger Johnson
13 England GK Tom Heaton (on loan from Manchester United)
14 Ghana FW Quincy Owusu-Abeyie (on loan from Spartak Moscow)
15 France DF Miguel Comminges
No. Position Player
16 Wales MF Joe Ledley (Vice-Captain)
17 Republic of Ireland DF Darren Dennehy
18 England FW Michael Chopra (on loan from Sunderland)
19 England MF Riccardo Scimeca
20 England GK Stuart Taylor (on loan from Aston Villa)
21 Republic of Ireland MF Mark Kennedy
22 Greece GK Dimitrios Konstantopoulos (on loan from Coventry City)
23 Wales DF Darcy Blake
25 Poland GK Erwin Sak
26 Wales MF Jonathan Brown
29 Scotland MF Chris Burke
31 Wales DF Adam Matthews
32 Wales DF Aaron Morris
44 Scotland FW Ross McCormack

Detailed Overview

No. Name Place of birth Date of birth Club apps. Club goals Int. caps Int. goals Previous club Date joined Fee End1
1 Peter Enckelman Turku 10 March 1977 20 0 12 0 Blackburn Rovers 18 July 2008 Free 2010
2 Kevin McNaughton Dundee 28 August 1982 87 3 4 0 Aberdeen 26 May 2006 Free 2011
3 Tony Capaldi Porsgrunn 12 August 1981 54 0 21 0 Plymouth Argyle 25 May 2007 Free 2010
4 Gavin Rae Aberdeen 28 November 1977 55 4 14 0 Rangers 23 June 2007 Free 2010
5 Darren Purse Stepney 14 February 1977 99 12 West Bromwich Albion 28 July 2005 £1,000,000 2009
6 Gábor Gyepes Budapest 26 June 1981 23 1 Northampton Town 19 August 2008 £200,000 2013
7 Peter Whittingham Nuneaton 8 September 1984 70 13 Aston Villa 11 January 2007 £350,000 2011
8 Jay Bothroyd London 5 May 1982 Wolverhampton Wanderers 4 August 2008 £350,000 2011
9 Eddie Johnson Bunnell 31 March 1984 42 12 Fulham 22 August 2008 Loan 2009
10 Stephen McPhail London 9 December 1979 97 3 10 1 Barnsley 13 June 2006 Free 2011
11 Paul Parry Chepstow 19 August 1980 168 23 12 1 Hereford United 9 January 2004 £75,000 2011
12 Roger Johnson Ashford 28 April 1987 85 9 Wycombe Wanderers 4 July 2006 £275,000 2012
13 Tom Heaton Chester 15 April 1986 Manchester United 23 May 2008 Loan 2009
14 Quincy Owusu-Abeyie Amsterdam 15 April 1986 5 1 Spartak Moscow 31 January 2009 Loan 2009
15 Miguel Comminges Les Abymes 16 March 1982 5 0 Swindon Town 1 May 2007 Free 2010
16 Joe Ledley Cardiff 23 January 1987 174 21 16 1 N/A 1 June 2004 Trainee 2010
17 Darren Dennehy Count Kerry 21 September 1988 Everton 28 June 2008 Free 2010
18 Michael Chopra Newcastle upon Tyne 23 December 1983 44 22 Sunderland 6 November 2008 Loan 2009
19 Riccardo Scimeca Leamington Spa 13 June 1975 66 6 West Bromwich Albion 13 January 2006 Free 2009
20 Stuart Taylor Romford 28 November 1980 Aston Villa 13 March 2009 Loan 2009
21 Mark Kennedy Dublin 15 May 1976 34 4 Crystal Palace 10 July 2008 Free 2010
22 Dimitrios Konstantopoulos Thessaloniki 29 November 1978 Coventry City 9 February 2009 Loan 2009
23 Darcy Blake New Tredegar 13 December 1988 27 0 N/A 8 November 2006 Trainee 2011
25 Erwin Sak Lublin 15 February 1990 Sokół Pniewy 19 February 2008 Free 2009
26 Jonathan Brown Bridgend 17 April 1990 4 1 N/A 1 June 2007 Trainee 2009
29 Chris Burke Glasgow 2 December 1983 2 2 Rangers 9 January 2009 Free 2011
31 Adam Matthews Swansea 13 January 1992 N/A 14 January 2009 Trainee 2011
32 Aaron Morris Cardiff 30 December 1989 2 0 N/A 1 June 2007 Trainee 2010
44 Ross McCormack Glasgow 18 August 1986 1 0 Motherwell 28 June 2008 £110,000 2010

Squad statistics

No. Pos Nat Player TotalChampionshipFA CupLeague Cup
AppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
1 GK Finland Peter Enckelman 1501202010
2 DF Scotland Kevin McNaughton 4403903020
3 DF Northern Ireland Tony Capaldi 50301010
4 MF Scotland Gavin Rae 4614113020
5 DF England Darren Purse 2602301020
6 DF Netherlands Glenn Loovens* 20100010
6 DF Hungary Gábor Gyepes 2922722000
7 MF England Peter Whittingham 3843332031
8 FW England Jay Bothroyd 441239123020
9 FW United States Eddie Johnson 3323021020
10 MF Republic of Ireland Stephen McPhail 3603201030
11 MF Wales Paul Parry 4644023032
12 DF England Roger Johnson 5154553030
13 GK England Tom Heaton 2402101020
14 MF England Wayne Routledge* 92920000
14 MF Ghana Quincy Owusu-Abeyie 40400000
15 DF France Miguel Comminges 3303000030
16 MF Wales Joe Ledley 4654043130
17 DF Republic of Ireland Darren Dennehy 00000000
18 FW England Michael Chopra 2792790000
19 MF England Riccardo Scimeca 60401010
20 FW Scotland Steve Thompson* 51410010
20 GK England Stuart Taylor 80800000
21 MF Republic of Ireland Mark Kennedy 4003603010
22 GK Greece Dimitrios Konstantopoulos 60600000
23 MF Wales Darcy Blake 90701010
25 GK Poland Erwin Sak 00000000
26 FW Wales Jonathan Brown 00000000
29 MF Scotland Chris Burke 1611412000
31 DF Wales Adam Matthews 00000000
32 DF Wales Aaron Morris 10000010
44 FW Scotland Ross McCormack 442338213131
  • * Indicates player left club during the season.

Disciplinary record

NumberPosPlayerYellow cardRed card
4MFGavin Rae60
8FWJay Bothroyd50
15DFMiguel Comminges41
12DFRoger Johnson40
16MFJoe Ledley30
10MFStephen McPhail22
6DFGábor Gyepes21
44FWRoss McCormack21
5DFDarren Purse21
18FWMichael Chopra20
21MFMark Kennedy20
2DFKevin McNaughton20
14MFWayne Routledge20
7MFPeter Whittingham20
9FWEddie Johnson10
6DFGlenn Loovens10

Contracts

N
Pos.
Nat.
Name
Age
Status
Contract length
Expiry date
Source
12 DF England Johnson 26 Signed 3 years 2011 BBC Sport
6 DF Netherlands Loovens 25 Rejected 2 years 2010 BBC Sport
11 MF Wales Parry 28 Signed 2 years 2010 BBC Sport
19 MF England Scimeca 34 Signed 1 year 2009 BBC Sport
7 MF England Whittingham 24 Signed 3 years 2011 BBC Sport
2 DF Scotland McNaughton 26 Signed 3 years 2011 BBC Sport
6 DF Hungary Gyepes 27 Signed 3 years 2013 BBC Sport

Last updated:

Transfers

In

N
Pos.
Nat.
Name
Age
EU
Moving from
Type
Transfer
window
Ends
Transfer
fee
Source
15 DF Guadeloupe Comminges 26EU Swindon Town England Free Transfer Summer 2010 Free BBC Sport
21 MF Republic of Ireland Kennedy 32EU Crystal Palace England Free Transfer Summer 2010 Free BBC Sport
1 GK Finland Enckelman 31EU Blackburn Rovers England Free Transfer Summer 2010 Free BBC Sport
17 DF Republic of Ireland Dennehy 19EU Everton England Free Transfer Summer 2010 Free BBC Sport
44 FW Scotland McCormack 21EU Motherwell Scotland Transfer Summer 2010 £120,000 BBC Sport
8 FW England Bothroyd 26EU Wolverhampton Wanderers England Transfer Summer 2011 £350,000 BBC Sport
6 DF Hungary Gyepes 27EU Northampton Town England Transfer Summer 2010 £200,000 BBC Sport
29 MF Scotland Burke 25EU Rangers Scotland Free Transfer Winter 2011 Free BBC Sport

Loans in

No.
P
Name
Country
Age
Loan club
Started
Ended
Start source
End source
13 GK Heaton England23 Manchester United 5 May 30 June BBC Sport South Wales Echo
9 FW E Johnson United States25 Fulham 22 August 30 June BBC Sport South Wales Echo
18 FW Chopra England25 Sunderland 6 November 30 December BBC Sport BBC Sport
14 MF Routledge England23 Aston Villa 20 November 2 January Cardiff City BBC Sport
14 MF Owusu-Abeyie Ghana23 Spartak Moscow 31 January 30 June BBC Sport South Wales Echo
18 FW Chopra England25 Sunderland 2 February 30 June BBC Sport South Wales Echo
22 GK Konstantopoulos Greece30 Coventry City 9 February 30 June BBC Sport South Wales Echo
20 GK Taylor England28 Aston Villa 13 March 30 June BBC Sport South Wales Echo
Sources: For loan start source see "Start source". For loan end source see "End source".
EU = if holds or not a European Union passport; Country: when 2 flags, 1st flag = country that plays for internationally, 2nd flag = country of birth; No. = number on jersey; P = Position (for position name, pause mouse pointer on abbreviation); Name = Name on jersey (for more extensive name, pause mouse pointer on name); In/Out = In: The player came in on loan, Out: The player went out on loan; Loan club = the club that the player moved on loan to or the club that the player came from on loan; Started = the date when the player's loan started; Ended = the date when the player's loan ended.

Outs

N
P
Name
Country
Age
Type
Moving to
Transfer
window
Transfer
fee
Apps
Goals
Source
15 GK Forde Republic of Ireland28 Free Transfer Millwall England Summer Free 7 0 BBC Sport
8 FW Fowler England33 Free Transfer Blackburn Rovers England Summer Free 16 6 BBC Sport
27 FW Green England21 Free Transfer Torquay United England Summer Free 7 0 BBC Sport
36 FW Hasselbaink Netherlands36 Retired Summer N/A 44 9
6 DF Loovens Netherlands24 Transfer Celtic Scotland Summer £2,500,000 113 7 BBC Sport
13 GK Oakes England34 Retired Summer N/A 15 0 BBC Sport
30 MF Ramsey Wales17 Transfer Arsenal England Summer £4,800,000 22 3 BBC Sport
17 MF Sinclair England35 Retired Summer N/A 26 2 BBC Sport
28 DF Smith Wales18 Free Transfer Newport County England Summer Free 0 0
20 FW Thompson Scotland29 Free Transfer Burnley England Summer Free 106 17 South Wales Echo
MF Flood Republic of Ireland23 Transfer Celtic Scotland Winter Undisclosed 29 1 BBC Sport
EU = if holds or not a European Union passport; Country: when 2 flags, 1st flag = country that plays for internationally, 2nd flag = country of birth; N = number on jersey; P = Position (for position name, pause mouse pointer on abbreviation); Name = Name on jersey (for more extensive name, pause mouse pointer on name); Age = age on the day of the signing; Moving from = only indicate the club the player was playing before start playing for this club in this season, for the type of the moving see Status column; Moving to = only indicates the club the player is going to play next, for the type of the moving see Status column; Ends = when the player's current contract ends; n/a = Not applicable; Apps = Total number of competitive appearances (including substitute appearances) at the club prior to departure; Goals = Total number of competitive goals scored at the club prior to departure.

Loans Out

No.
P
Name
Country
Age
Loan club
Started
Ended
Start source
End source
MF Flood Republic of Ireland23 Dundee United 2 July 30 January BBC Sport BBC Sport
FW Feeney Northern Ireland28 Dundee United 7 July 19 May BBC Sport [ Evening Telegraph]
25 GK Sak Poland18 Newport County 2 September 2 October ENews
26 MF Brown Wales18 Wrexham 25 November 3 February BBC Sport South Wales Echo
17 DF Dennehy Republic of Ireland20 Hereford United 13 March 13 April Hereford United Hereford Times
Sources: For loan start source see "Start source". For loan end source see "End source".
EU = if holds or not a European Union passport; Country: when 2 flags, 1st flag = country that plays for internationally, 2nd flag = country of birth; No. = number on jersey; P = Position (for position name, pause mouse pointer on abbreviation); Name = Name on jersey (for more extensive name, pause mouse pointer on name); In/Out = In: The player came in on loan, Out: The player went out on loan; Loan club = the club that the player moved on loan to or the club that the player came from on loan; Started = the date when the player's loan started; Ended = the date when the player's loan ended.

Fixtures & results

Pre-season friendlies

DateOpponentVenueResultAttendanceScorers
12 JulMerthyr Tydfil
(Southern Premier Division)
AW 3 – 1Brown, Thompson, Taylor
12 JulCarmarthen Town
(Welsh Premier League)
AW 5 – 0Parry (3), Kelleher, OG
19 JulVitoria de Setubal
(Portuguese Liga)
AD 1 – 1Thompson
22 JulVitória de Guimarães
(Portuguese Liga)
AW 2 – 1McCormack (2)
24 JulCeltic
(Scottish Premier League)
NW 1 – 0Ledley
29 JulSwindon Town
(Football League One)
AD 1 – 1Parry
1 AugAjax
(Dutch Eredivisie)
HD 0 – 0
5 AugChasetown
(Southern Football League Division One Midlands)
AD 2 – 2Parry, Oruma

Championship

League Cup

FA Cup

Overall summary

Backroom staff

Awards

Team

  • Algarve Cup – Winners
  • Welsh team of the year: Winners[27]

Individual

See also

Cardiff City F.C. seasons

References

  1. "Cardiff clubs sign 20-year deal". BBC. 24 May 2008. Archived from the original on 27 May 2008. Retrieved 24 May 2008.
  2. "Historic topping off". Cardiffcitystadium.co.uk. 9 September 2008. Archived from the original on 18 February 2012. Retrieved 3 December 2013.
  3. 1 2 "Jones lands monthly gong". Sky Sports. 6 November 2008. Archived from the original on 7 April 2014. Retrieved 6 November 2008.
  4. "Parry hattrick boosts Bluebirds". BBC Sport. 12 July 2008. Retrieved 6 November 2008.
  5. "McPhail not getting carried away". BBC Sport. 25 July 2008. Retrieved 6 November 2008.
  6. "Chasetown 2–2 Cardiff". BBC Sport. 5 August 2008. Retrieved 6 November 2008.
  7. "Cardiff 2–1 Southampton". BBC Sport. 9 August 2008. Retrieved 3 February 2009.
  8. "Cardiff 1–2 Birmingham". BBC Sport. 27 September 2008. Archived from the original on 2008-09-29. Retrieved 3 February 2009.
  9. "Cardiff 2–1 Coventry". BBC Sport. 30 September 2008. Archived from the original on 2008-10-04. Retrieved 3 February 2009.
  10. "Chopra returns on loan to Cardiff". BBC Sport. 6 November 2008. Archived from the original on 1 January 2009. Retrieved 3 February 2009.
  11. "Cardiff 2–1 Crystal Palace". BBC Sport. 15 November 2008. Retrieved 3 February 2009.
  12. "Swansea 2–2 Cardiff". BBC Sport. 30 November 2008. Archived from the original on 22 February 2009. Retrieved 3 February 2009.
  13. "Southampton 1–0 Cardiff". BBC Sport. 28 February 2008. Archived from the original on 2009-03-02. Retrieved 6 May 2009.
  14. "Cardiff 2–2 Swansea". BBC Sport. 5 April 2009. Archived from the original on 2009-04-05. Retrieved 6 May 2009.
  15. "FAW start coin-throwing inquiry". BBC Sport. 6 April 2009. Archived from the original on 2009-04-09. Retrieved 6 May 2009.
  16. "Sheff Wed 1–0 Cardiff". BBC Sport. 3 May 2009. Archived from the original on 4 May 2009. Retrieved 6 May 2009.
  17. "Return of ex-bluebirds stars". Cardiff City F.C. 7 August 2008. Archived from the original on 2 October 2011. Retrieved 9 September 2013.
  18. "Ex-bluebirds at Norwich City game". Cardiff City F.C. 21 August 2008. Archived from the original on 14 February 2012. Retrieved 9 September 2013.
  19. "Former bluebirds stars". Cardiff City F.C. 16 October 2008. Archived from the original on 2 October 2011. Retrieved 9 September 2008.
  20. "Legends and Heroes". Cardiff City F.C. 30 October 2008. Archived from the original on 2 November 2008. Retrieved 2 November 2008.
  21. A second player was due to appear but pulled out due to illness
  22. "Bournemouth 1–2 Cardiff". BBC Sport. 12 August 2008. Retrieved 3 February 2009.
  23. "Swansea 1–0 Cardiff". BBC Sport. 23 September 2008. Archived from the original on 24 January 2009. Retrieved 3 February 2009.
  24. "Fans clash with police at derby". BBC Sport. 24 September 2008. Archived from the original on 2008-09-27. Retrieved 3 February 2009.
  25. "Sporting schedule hit by weather". BBC Sport. 3 February 2009. Archived from the original on 5 February 2009. Retrieved 3 February 2009.
  26. "Arsenal 4–0 Cardiff". BBC Sport. 16 February 2009. Archived from the original on 2009-02-19. Retrieved 6 May 2009.
  27. "Shane wins 2008 BBC Wales crown" BBC Sport Retrieved on 8 December 2008 Archived 10 December 2008 at the Wayback Machine.
  28. "Davies wins Welsh football gong" BBC Sport Retrieved on 6 November 2008
  29. "JOE LEDLEY SCOOPS JANUARY TITLE". Cardiff City F.C. 9 February 2009. Archived from the original on 14 February 2012. Retrieved 10 September 2013.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.