2008–09 Dundee United F.C. season

Dundee United

2008–09 season
Chairman	Eddie Thompson (to 15 October 2008) Stephen Thompson (from 21 November 2008)
Manager	Craig Levein
Scottish Premier League	5th
Scottish Cup	Fifth round
League Cup	Semi-finals
Top goalscorer	League: Francisco Sandaza (10) All: Francisco Sandaza (10)
Highest home attendance	14,077 (v Rangers, 24 May 2009)
Lowest home attendance	5,926 (v Inverness, 14 February 2009)
Home colours Away colours
← 2007–08 2009–10 →

The 2008–09 season covers the period from 1 July 2008 to 30 June 2009 and is the club's one hundredth season, having been founded as Dundee Hibernian in 1909.

Review and events

The pre-season period began with a number of new signings at the club. Dundee midfielder Scott Robertson was one of three players to agree pre-contract deals in June and he was followed by fellow player Paul Dixon shortly afterwards. Willo Flood returned on a second successive season-long loan and fellow Cardiff City player Warren Feeney followed on a similar deal, with Spanish striker Francisco Sandaza and Irish forward Roy O'Donovan (loan) the final signings.

A number of players who were out of contract left the club following the end of the 2007–08 season, including Christian Kalvenes who moved to Burnley, and Mark Kerr, who followed Lee Mair, Stuart Duff and Lee Miller in recent years by signing for New Firm rivals Aberdeen. Last season's top scorer Noel Hunt left in July to join his brother Stephen at English side Reading.

Chairman Eddie Thompson lost his battle with prostate cancer and passed away in the early hours of 15 October.

Chronological list of events

This is a list of the significant events to occur at the club during the 2008–09 season, presented in chronological order. This list does not include transfers, which are listed in the transfers section below, or match results, which are in the results section.

• 22 Jul: The club reject a £500,000 bid from Reading for striker Noel Hunt.^[1]
• 23 Jul: Reading's increased offer for Hunt – thought to be about £600,000 – is considered.^[2]
• 28 Jul: Former United player and manager Paul Sturrock announces he has Parkinson's disease, just days before United face his club Plymouth Argyle in a friendly.^[3]
• 28 Aug: United reject an approach from former manager Craig Brewster – now at Inverness CT – for Darren Dods.^[4]
• 31 Aug: Former United player Jamie Dolan dies of a heart attack whilst out jogging.^[5]
• 04 Sep: Garry Kenneth scores in Scotland under-21's 3–1 win against Slovenia. David Robertson also appeared as a late substitute.^[6]
• 06 Sep: Winger Craig Conway extends his contract until 2011.^[7]
• 09 Sep: Garry Kenneth's eighth Scotland under-21 cap ends in disappointment as defeat in Denmark ends their hopes of qualifying for the 2009 European Championship.^[8]
• 10 Sep: Director John Bennett resigns from the board with immediate effect.^[9]
• 20 Sep: Defender Mihael Kovačević suffers a fractured cheekbone during the closing stages of the 1–0 win at Aberdeen.
• 15 Oct: Chairman Eddie Thompson passes away after losing his battle with prostate cancer.^[10] The match against Rangers, scheduled for three days later, is postponed as a mark of respect.
• 20 Oct: The club announce admission for the upcoming match against St. Mirren will be only £5 to allow as many as possible to pay their respects to late chairman Eddie Thompson.^[11]
• 22 Oct: The funeral of late chairman Eddie Thompson is held in Broughty Ferry with around 1,000 supporters attending.
• 03 Nov: Rangers chairman David Murray apologises after suggesting abuse between some United and Dundee fans on certain websites was "just as bad" as between Celtic and Rangers.^[12]
• 05 Nov: Young striker Ryan Dow is named the SPL 'Rising Star' for September.^[13]
• 14 Nov: Stephen Thompson, son of late chairman Eddie, is officially named as the club's new chairman.
• 15 Nov: Scott Robertson is named in the Scotland squad to play Argentina, being called up as a late replacement due to injuries.
• 18 Nov: David Goodwillie makes his Scotland under-21 debut as a half-time substitute in the friendly defeat to Northern Ireland.
• 19 Nov: Robertson becomes the 19th United player to be capped by Scotland, appearing as a 59th-minute substitute for Barry Ferguson.
• 28 Nov: Manager Craig Levein turns down an approach from Football League Championship side Watford.
• 02 Dec: Levein signs a new contract until May 2012, with coaches Peter Houston and Gary Kirk following suit.
• 18 Dec: Lukasz Zaluska announces he will leave the club at the end of his contract, expecting to join Celtic.
• 08 Jan: Captain Lee Wilkie signs a new three-year contract.
• 12 Jan: Full-back Sean Dillon joins Wilkie in signing a new three-year contract.
• 17 Jan: The contract renewals keep on coming with Garry Kenneth and David Goodwillie signing until May 2012, and David Robertson and Kevin Smith signing until May 2011.
• 22 Jan: The seventh, eighth and ninth contract extensions this year are announced, with new deals for Darren Dods, Prince Buaben and Morgaro Gomis.
• 12 Mar: The club announce Nike will be the official kit supplier for the next four seasons from 2009-10.
• 11 Apr: United's 1-0 victory at Hamilton Academical secures a top-six finish for the second successive season.^[14]
• 18 Apr: Striker Kevin Smith suffers a broken leg and dislocated ankle while on loan at Raith Rovers, ruling him out for six months.^[15]

Match results

Dundee United have played a total of 44 competitive matches during the 2008–09 season,^[16] as well as six first team pre-season friendlies. The team finished fifth in the Scottish Premier League.

In the cup competitions, United lost to Celtic in the League Cup semi-final, while they were beaten by Hamilton Academical in the Scottish Cup fifth round.

Friendlies

The club began pre-season by winning the Keyline Cup in Oban on 12 July^[17] before embarking on a short trip to Dublin where they played two friendlies against local sides.^[18] Upon returning to Scotland, United beat Raith Rovers 4-0 and fellow Fife side Dunfermline Athletic 3-2^[19] before a match against Barcelona for the second year running.^[20] The friendlies culminated in a win at Plymouth Argyle where United faced former Terror Paul Sturrock.^[21] United also sent sides to play in victories against Cowdenbeath,^[22] Arbroath,^[23] Forres Mechanics,^[24] Dundee North End^[25] and Blairgowrie.^[26] A final friendly was planned against Lochee United^[27] but was postponed due to heavy rain. In April, the club racked up an 8-0 win at Brora Rangers to mark the opening of the ground's new floodlights, with Andis Shala scoring a hat-trick.^[28]

Friendly	Univ. College Dublin		2 – 1		Dundee United	UCD Bowl	14 July 2008
McNally  54' (pen.) King  77'					Hunt  35'	Attendance: 500 Referee: D Coombes

Friendly	Tolka Rovers		2 – 3		Dundee United	Frank Cooke Park	16 July 2008
Kelly  2' Connor  33'					Wilkie  11', 83' Hunt  85'

Friendly	Raith Rovers		0 – 4		Dundee United	Stark's Park	19 July 2008
					Feeney  8', 14', 60' (pen.) Hunt  70'

Friendly	Dunfermline Athletic		2 – 3		Dundee United	East End Park	22 July 2008
Thomson  58' Phinn  67'					Sandaza  60', 63' Robertson  86'	Referee: S Finnie

Friendly	Dundee United		1 – 5		Barcelona	Tannadice Park	26 July 2008
Buaben  25'					Henry  26' Messi  55', 76', 78' Eto'o  61'	Attendance: 12,000

Friendly	Plymouth Argyle		0 – 1		Dundee United	Home Park	2 August 2008
					Sandaza  47'	Attendance: 4,120 Referee: S Tanner

Friendly	Brora Rangers		0 – 8		Dundee United	Dudgeon Park	21 April 2009
					McCord  5' Shala  7', 31', 77' Swanson  13' Dillon  16' Goodwillie  54', 83'

Scottish Premier League

Main article: Scottish Premier League 2008–09

Action during the 2–0 SPL home win against St. Mirren

League positions

United began the season with a televised match away to promoted Hamilton Academical, which – despite taking the lead – they lost 3–1. Subsequent 1–1 draws at home to Celtic – another televised match in which Francisco Sandaza scored his first goal – and away to Motherwell produced the first points of the season but a home defeat to Kilmarnock and narrow defeat away to Hibernian left United bottom of the league after five matches. United's third televised match of the season saw them pick up their first league win at Aberdeen and was the first of four successive league victories, preceding home triumphs against Hearts, Inverness CT and St. Mirren. The run of victories saw first league goals for summer signings Scott Robertson and Roy O'Donovan, with three clean sheets for goalkeeper Lukasz Zaluska. The St. Mirren match was played three weeks after the Inverness match following the death of chairman Eddie Thompson, which led to the match against Rangers being postponed. As the St. Mirren match was the first match following the death of the chairman, prices were reduced to just £5, prompting over 11,000 fans to attend and pay their respects with a minute's silence. United failed to make it five league wins in a row when they drew 0–0 at Falkirk but kept their unbeaten run going with an exciting 3–3 draw against Rangers at Ibrox and got back to winning ways with home wins over Aberdeen and Hibernian. A second successive 2–0 defeat to Kilmarnock – this time away from home – preceded a 1–1 draw at home to Hamilton, before wins at St Mirren and Inverness brought United back-to-back away victories for the first time since April 2007. United were involved in another high scoring match against Rangers in a 2-2 draw at Tannadice and followed it up by holding Hearts to a 0-0 draw at Tynecastle, closing 2008 with a home win against Falkirk.

2009 began with a draw at Celtic Park, despite being two goals behind but United's next match saw a 4-0 home collapse against Motherwell, only the club's second defeat in the previous 17 league matches. An exciting 3-2 win at home to St Mirren preceded a 2-0 defeat against Rangers at Ibrox, before draws at home to Inverness and away to Aberdeen. Rivals for third place Hearts won at Tannadice before United won away at Falkirk, with a defeat at Motherwell tempered by a home draw against Celtic. After conceding first at home for the seventh time in eight matches, United came from two goals down to draw with Hibernian, before beating Hamilton for the first time this season, securing a top six league finish. In the final match before the league split, United failed to gain further ground on Hearts for third place, being held at home by Kilmarnock to a goalless draw, ensuring United failed to score against the Ayrshire side all season. In the first match after the split, United's dominance of the entire match earned a win against Hibernian at Easter Road, before missing the chance to go third after a home draw against Aberdeen. United's final trip to Glasgow resulted in a narrow 2-1 loss against Celtic, with defeats against Heart of Midlothian and Rangers to close the season.

SPL 1	Hamilton Academical		3 – 1		Dundee United	New Douglas Park	11 August 2008
Stevenson  29' McArthur  39' Graham  63'					McLaughlin  23' (o.g.)	Attendance: 4,385 Referee: S Dougal

SPL 2	Dundee United		1 – 1		Celtic	Tannadice Park	17 August 2008
Sandaza  80'					Hartley  51'	Attendance: 11,648 Referee: C Richmond

SPL 3	Motherwell		1 – 1		Dundee United	Fir Park	23 August 2008
Sutton  34'					Wilkie  40'	Attendance: 5,149 Referee: D McDonald

SPL 4	Dundee United		0 – 2		Kilmarnock	Tannadice Park	30 August 2008
					Skelton  40' Invincible  59'	Attendance: 6,823 Referee: M Tumilty

SPL 5	Hibernian		2 – 1		Dundee United	Easter Road	13 September 2008
Fletcher  22', 63' Bamba  68'					Wilkie  45'	Attendance: 13,390 Referee: D Somers

SPL 6	Aberdeen		0 – 1		Dundee United	Pittodrie Stadium	20 September 2008
					Sandaza  47' (pen.)	Attendance: 11,041 Referee: C Murray

SPL 7	Dundee United		3 – 0		Hearts	Tannadice Park	27 September 2008
Conway  39' Daly  50' S Robertson  60'					Jónsson  74'	Attendance: 8,004 Referee: D McDonald

SPL 8	Dundee United		2 – 1		Inverness CT	Tannadice Park	4 October 2008
Daly  40' Wilkie  65'					Wilkie  89' (o.g.)	Attendance: 6,279 Referee: I Brines

SPL 9	Dundee United		2 – 0		St. Mirren	Tannadice Park	25 October 2008
O'Donovan  85' Conway  90'						Attendance: 11,378 Referee: B Winter

SPL 10	Falkirk		0 – 0		Dundee United	Falkirk Stadium	1 November 2008
					O'Donovan  57'	Attendance: 5,608 Referee: I Brines

SPL 11	Rangers		3 – 3		Dundee United	Ibrox Stadium	4 November 2008
Davis  11' Papac  37' Thomson  90'					Sandaza  17', 28' Robertson  59'	Attendance: 48,686 Referee: C Thomson

SPL 12	Dundee United		2 – 1		Aberdeen	Tannadice Park	8 November 2008
Sandaza  8' Feeney  14'					Mackie  66'	Attendance: 9,490 Referee: W Collum

SPL 13	Dundee United		2 – 0		Hibernian	Tannadice Park	12 November 2008
Dods  54' Sandaza  60'						Attendance: 7,390 Referee: E Smith

SPL 14	Kilmarnock		2 – 0		Dundee United	Rugby Park	15 November 2008
Hamill  45' (pen.) David Fernandez  61'						Attendance: 4,652 Referee: E Norris

SPL 15	Dundee United		1 – 1		Hamilton	Tannadice Park	22 November 2008
Easton  90' (o.g.)					Offiong  8' Mensing  84'	Attendance: 6,108 Referee: C Allan

SPL 16	St. Mirren		0 – 2		Dundee United	St. Mirren Park	29 November 2008
					Daly  37', 88' (pen.)	Attendance: 4,013 Referee: C Murray

SPL 17	Inverness CT		1 – 3		Dundee United	Caledonian Stadium	6 December 2008
Rooney  73'					Daly  51', Conway  64', D Robertson  71'	Attendance: 3,560 Referee: B Winter

SPL 18	Dundee United		2 – 2		Rangers	Tannadice Park	13 December 2008
Wilkie  50' Feeney  54'					Boyd  11' Lafferty  76'	Attendance: 11,362 Referee: I Brines

SPL 19	Hearts		0 – 0		Dundee United	Tynecastle Stadium	20 December 2008
						Attendance: 16,442 Referee: W Collum

SPL 20	Dundee United		1 – 0		Falkirk	Tannadice Park	27 December 2008
S Robertson  21'					Barr  82'	Attendance: 7,972 Referee: C Boyle

SPL 21	Celtic		2 – 2		Dundee United	Celtic Park	3 January 2009
Samaras  12', 57'					Dixon  59' Feeney  77'	Attendance: 59,558 Referee: S Conroy

SPL 22	Dundee United		0 – 4		Motherwell	Tannadice Park	18 January 2009
					Fitzpatrick  23' Klimpl  27' Clarkson  33' Porter  63'	Attendance: 7,090 Referee: E Smith

SPL 23	Dundee United		3 – 2		St Mirren	Tannadice Park	24 January 2009
Feeney  71' (pen.), 84' Buaben  82'					Ross  17' Mehmet  73' (pen)	Attendance: 6,556 Referee: S O'Reilly

SPL 24	Rangers		2 – 0		Dundee United	Ibrox Stadium	31 January 2009
Fleck  78' (pen.) Lafferty  90'						Attendance: 49,918 Referee: I Brines

SPL 25	Dundee United		1 – 1		Inverness CT	Tannadice Park	14 February 2009
Wilkie  79'					Odhiambo  16' Duncan  71'	Attendance: 5,926 Referee: C Thomson

SPL 26	Aberdeen		2 – 2		Dundee United	Pittodrie Stadium	21 February 2009
Severin  46' Diamond  72'					Sandaza  10' (pen.) D Robertson  56'	Attendance: 14,673 Referee: W Collum

SPL 27	Dundee United		0 – 1		Hearts	Tannadice Park	28 February 2009
Sandaza					Stewart  62'	Attendance: 8,529 Referee: E Smith

SPL 28	Falkirk		0 – 1		Dundee United	Falkirk Stadium	3 March 2009
					Conway  27' (pen.)	Attendance: 4,385 Referee: D McDonald

SPL 29	Motherwell		2 – 1		Dundee United	Fir Park	14 March 2009
Sutton  25' Clarkson  75'					Sandaza  51'	Attendance: 4,798 Referee: D McDonald

SPL 30	Dundee United		2 – 2		Celtic	Tannadice Park	22 March 2009
Sandaza  47', 58'					McDonald  23' Naylor  81'	Attendance: 12,043 Referee: S Conroy

SPL 31	Dundee United		2 – 2		Hibernian	Tannadice Park	4 April 2009
Conway Kenneth  53' Goodwillie  90'					Nish  6',  10'	Attendance: 6,623 Referee: E Smith

SPL 32	Hamilton Academical		0 – 1		Dundee United	New Douglas Park	11 April 2009
					Conway  4'	Attendance: 3,025 Referee: C Murray

SPL 33	Dundee United		0 – 0		Kilmarnock	Tannadice Park	18 April 2009
Dixon  85'						Attendance: 6,627 Referee: W Collum

Post-split (Top six)

SPL 34	Hibernian		1 – 2		Dundee United	Easter Road	2 May 2009
Fletcher  40' Hogg  85'					Feeney  28' Goodwillie  89'	Attendance: 10,591 Referee: S O'Reilly

SPL 35	Dundee United		1 – 1		Aberdeen	Tannadice Park	7 May 2009
Goodwillie  38'					Miller  33' Kerr  75'	Attendance: 10,407 Referee: C Boyle

SPL 36	Celtic		2 – 1		Dundee United	Celtic Park	12 May 2009
Loovens  22' Samaras  52'					D Robertson  57'	Attendance: 57,407 Referee: S Dougal

SPL 37	Hearts		3 – 0		Dundee United	Tynecastle Stadium	16 May 2009
Wallace  11' Aguiar  26' Jónsson  79' (pen.)						Attendance: 15,664 Referee: B Winter

SPL 38	Dundee United		0 – 3		Rangers	Tannadice Park	24 May 2009
					Lafferty  6' Mendes  45' Boyd  52'	Attendance: 14,077 Referee: D McDonald

Upcoming Scottish Premier League fixtures are the intellectual property of the Scottish Premier League. For upcoming Premier League fixtures, see the official Dundee United FC website

Scottish Cup

Main article: Scottish Cup 2008-09

United players warming up before the cup match against East Stirling

United beat East Stirlingshire 4-0 at Ochilview Park in the Scottish Cup fourth round, with goals from Prince Buaben, Darren Dods, Jon Daly and Johnny Russell. Shortly before the match, United were drawn away to Hamilton Academical in the fifth round, where they were narrowly beaten 2-1, despite leading at half-time.

Scottish Cup R4	East Stirlingshire		0 – 4		Dundee United	Ochilview Park	11 January 2009
					Buaben  15' Dods  40' Daly  43' Russell  55' (pen.)	Attendance: 2,153 Referee: M Tumilty

Scottish Cup R5	Hamilton Academical		2 – 1		Dundee United	New Douglas Park	7 February 2009
Swailes  47', 55'					Grainger  35'	Attendance: 3,058 Referee: C Richmond

League Cup

Main article: Scottish League Cup 2008-09

Last season's runners-up United began their League Cup campaign away to Cowdenbeath, where a hat-trick from Jon Daly helped them to a 5–1 win. In the third round, Airdrie United – who United faced in the second round of last year's competition – were beaten 2–0, before a quarter-final win at home to Dunfermline Athletic. United faced Celtic in the semi-finals in late January where they lost11-10 on penalties, a record for a Scottish cup match.

League Cup R2	Cowdenbeath		1 – 5		Dundee United	Central Park	26 August 2008
J Dempster  74'					Daly  30', 47' Goodwillie  41', 60' (80)	Attendance: 1,423 Referee: E Norris

League Cup R3	Dundee United		2 – 0		Airdrie United	Tannadice Park	23 September 2008
Goodwillie  33' S Robertson  42'						Attendance: 3,444 Referee: M Tumilty

League Cup QF	Dundee United		1 – 0		Dunfermline Athletic	Tannadice Park	28 October 2008
S Robertson  16'						Attendance: 5,350 Referee: D McDonald

League Cup SF	Celtic		p0 – 0p		Dundee United	Hampden Park	28 January 2009
						Attendance: 19,228 Referee: C Murray

Player stats

During the 2008-09 season so far, United have used 26 different players on the pitch. Łukasz Załuska is the only player to have played every minute this season. The table below shows the number of appearances and goals scored by each player.^[29]

No.	Nat	Pos	Player	Total		Clydesdale Bank Premier League		Scottish Cup		Co-operative Insurance Cup
				Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
1		GK	Łukasz Załuska	44	0	38	0	2	0	4	0
13		GK	Michael McGovern	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
2		DF	Sean Dillon	24	0	19	0	2	0	3	0
3		DF	Danny Grainger	12	1	10	0	1	1	1	0
4		DF	Lee Wilkie	39	5	35	5	1	0	3	0
5		DF	Darren Dods	23	2	19	1	1	1	3	0
18		DF	Garry Kenneth	29	1	25	1	2	0	2	0
23		DF	Paul Dixon	33	1	29	1	1	0	3	0
24		DF	Mihael Kovačević	19	0	17	0	1	0	1	0
6		MF	Willo Flood	23	0	19	0	1	0	3	0
6		MF	Paul Caddis	11	0	11	0	0	0	0	0
8		MF	Scott Robertson	25	5	22	3	0	0	3	2
10		MF	James Wesolowski	8	0	8	0	0	0	0	0
12		MF	David Robertson	23	3	19	3	2	0	2	0
14		MF	Danny Swanson	33	0	29	0	2	0	2	0
15		MF	Craig Conway	41	4	35	4	2	0	4	0
16		MF	Morgaro Gomis	43	0	37	0	2	0	4	0
25		MF	Prince Buaben	25	2	22	1	2	1	1	0
29		MF	Ryan McCord	1	0	0	0	0	0	1	0
7		ST	Warren Feeney	26	6	23	6	1	0	2	0
10		ST	Roy O'Donovan	13	1	11	1	0	0	2	0
9		ST	Jon Daly	26	9	22	5	2	1	2	3
11		ST	Francisco Sandaza	35	10	31	10	1	0	3	0
20		ST	Andis Shala	9	0	8	0	0	0	1	0
26		ST	David Goodwillie	17	6	15	3	0	0	2	3
30		ST	Johnny Russell	1	1	0	0	1	1	0	0

Stats

Francisco Sandaza ws the top scorer with ten goals, with the team totalling 58 goals.^[29] During the 2008–09 season, fifteen United players received at least one caution. In total, the team received 60 yellow cards.^[29]

Name	Goals	Bookings	Dismissals
Buaben, PrincePrince Buaben	2	4
Caddis, PaulPaul Caddis		1
Conway, CraigCraig Conway	4	5
Daly, JonJon Daly	9	2
Dillon, SeanSean Dillon		1
Dixon, PaulPaul Dixon	1	1	1
Dods, DarrenDarren Dods	2	4
Feeney, WarrenWarren Feeney	6	5
Flood, WilloWillo Flood		7
Gomis, MorgaroMorgaro Gomis		4
Goodwillie, DavidDavid Goodwillie	6	2
Grainger, DannyDanny Grainger	1	4
Kenneth, GarryGarry Kenneth	1	2
Kovacevic, MihaelMihael Kovacevic		3
O'Donovan, RoyRoy O'Donovan	1	2	1
Robertson, DavidDavid Robertson	3	2
Robertson, ScottScott Robertson	5	2
Russell, JohnnyJohnny Russell	1
Sandaza, FranciscoFrancisco Sandaza	10	6
Shala, AndisAndis Shala		1
Wesolowski, JamesJames Wesolowski		3
Wilkie, LeeLee Wilkie	5	8
Own goals	2

Transfers

In

United signed eleven players during the season. Midfielder Scott Robertson agreed a pre-contract move from rivals Dundee on 3 June^[30] and two players agreed similar moves on 17 June, with Northern Irish goalkeeper Michael McGovern agreeing to move from Celtic^[31] and German striker Andis Shala arriving from VfR Mannheim.^[31] Less than a week later, United signed a second player from Dundee when Scotland under-21 defender Paul Dixon arrived for around £25,000.^[32] Willo Flood returned for a second successive season-long loan when terms were agreed with Cardiff City again on 1 July^[33] and Cardiff colleague Warren Feeney followed in a similar deal a week later.^[34] Shortly afterwards, Spanish striker Francisco Sandaza arrived on a three-year contract from Valencia Mestalla.^[35] In August, Craig Levein's pursuit of Roy O'Donovan ended with a season-long deal for the Sunderland striker,^[36] although he was recalled in January, as was Willo Flood, ahead of his transfer to Celtic. On transfer deadline day, Paul Caddis moved from Celtic Park until the end of the season, with Australian midfielder James Wesolowski joining on a similar deal from Leicester City although his spell was cut short by injury. Youngster Jennison Myrie-Williams joined in June following his release from Bristol City.

Date	Player	From	Fee (£)
1 July 2008	Dixon, PaulPaul Dixon	Dundee	£25,000
1 July 2008	Flood, WilloWillo Flood	Cardiff City	Loan
1 July 2008	McGovern, MichaelMichael McGovern	Celtic	Bosman
1 July 2008	Robertson, ScottScott Robertson	Dundee	Bosman
1 July 2008	Shala, AndisAndis Shala	VfR Mannheim	Bosman
8 July 2008	Feeney, WarrenWarren Feeney	Cardiff City	Loan
11 July 2008	Sandaza, FranciscoFrancisco Sandaza	Valencia Mestalla	Bosman
8 August 2008	O'Donovan, RoyRoy O'Donovan	Sunderland	Loan
2 February 2009	Caddis, PaulPaul Caddis	Celtic	Loan
2 February 2009	Wesolowski, JamesJames Wesolowski	Leicester City	Loan
12 June 2009	Myrie-Williams, JennisonJennison Myrie-Williams	Bristol City	Free

Out

The club sold only one player during the season, with Noel Hunt joining his brother Stephen at English side Reading for around £600,000.^[37] Young striker Kevin Smith moved on loan to Raith Rovers until January,^[38] with fellow youngsters Johnny Russell and John Gibson moving to Forfar Athletic on similar temporary deals.^[39][40] Young left back Sean Fleming followed suit shortly afterwards when he joined Peterhead for four months.^[41] Gibson's loan was subsequently extended until the end of the season, with young first team squad member Keith Watson joining him on a short-term loan, shortly afterwards Marco Andreoni undertook a similar deal with Albion Rovers. Sean Fleming moved back out on loan, joining Andreoni at Albion while young midfielder Ryan McCord moved short-term to Stirling Albion and Gordon Pope headed to Montrose. Kevin Smith went back to Raith after returning to Tannadice for a few weeks, with Johnny Russell returning to Forfar in similar fashion. Towards the end of February, midfielder Greg Cameron moved on loan to Irish outfit Shamrock Rovers, managed by former United player Michael O'Neill and Fraser Milligan departed to Montrose on a similar deal shortly afterwards. Youth goalkeeper Gibson signed a one-year deal with Dundee on his return to Tannadice. Similarly, Fleming, Pope and Milligan all penned two-year deals with Montrose at the end of May.

Date	Player	To	Fee (£)
02008-07-23 23 July 2008	Hunt, NoelNoel Hunt	Reading	£600,000
02008-07-25 25 July 2008	Smith, KevinKevin Smith	Raith Rovers	Loan
02008-08-20 20 August 2008	Russell, JohnnyJohnny Russell	Forfar Athletic	Loan
02008-08-28 28 August 2008	Gibson, JohnJohn Gibson	Forfar Athletic	Loan
02008-08-30 30 August 2008	Fleming, SeanSean Fleming	Peterhead	Loan
02008-12-10 10 December 2008	Andreoni, MarcoMarco Andreoni	Albion Rovers	Loan
02009-01-02 2 January 2009	Watson, KeithKeith Watson	Forfar Athletic	Loan
02009-01-06 6 January 2009	McCord, RyanRyan McCord	Stirling Albion	Loan
02009-01-06 6 January 2009	Fleming, SeanSean Fleming	Albion Rovers	Loan
02009-01-23 23 January 2009	Pope, GordonGordon Pope	Montrose	Loan
02009-01-23 23 January 2009	Smith, KevinKevin Smith	Raith Rovers	Loan
02009-02-23 23 February 2009	Cameron, GregGreg Cameron	Shamrock Rovers	Loan
02009-03-06 6 March 2009	Milligan, FraserFraser Milligan	Montrose	Loan
02009-05-15 15 May 2009	Gibson, JohnJohn Gibson	Dundee	Free
02009-05-29 29 May 2009	Fleming, SeanSean Fleming	Montrose	Free
02009-05-29 29 May 2009	Pope, GordonGordon Pope	Montrose	Free
02009-05-29 29 May 2009	Milligan, FraserFraser Milligan	Montrose	Free

Awards

Rising Star

• Ryan Dow: 1

September 2008

Playing kit

Home colours

Away colours

The jerseys were sponsored for the first time by JD Sports' Carbrini Sportswear label,^[42][43] with the firm also sponsoring the shorts. Kitmaker Hummel supplied their last strip after the club announced in March 2009 that Nike would begin a four-year deal for the 2009-10 season.

The club has no third strip, with the last third strip used in the 2002–03 season.

See also

• Scottish Premier League 2008–09
• Scottish Cup 2008-09
• Scottish League Cup 2008-09
• 2008–09 in Scottish football

References

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39. ^ "JOHNNY RUSSELL ON LOAN TO FORFAR ATHLETIC". Dundee United F.C.. 2008-08-20. http://www.dundeeunitedfc.co.uk/index.asp?tm=2&nid=2978&cd=2008. Retrieved 2008-08-20. 
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43. ^ Wood, Zoe (2008-04-13). "JD Sports scores Scots shirt deal". The Observer. http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2008/apr/13/retail. Retrieved 2008-04-14. 

External links

• Official site: 2008/09 Fixtures
• BBC - Club stats
• Soccerbase - Results | Squad stats | Transfers