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2008–09 A-League
32nd season of top-tier soccer league in Australia
32nd season of top-tier soccer league in Australia
| Field | Value | |
|---|---|---|
| competition | A-League | |
| season | 2008–09 | |
| dates | 15 August 2008 – 28 February 2009 | |
| winners | Melbourne Victory (2nd title) | |
| premiers | Melbourne Victory (2nd title) | |
| continentalcup1 | [AFC Champions League](2010-afc-champions-league) | |
| continentalcup1 qualifiers | Melbourne Victory, Adelaide United | |
| league topscorer | Shane Smeltz | |
| (12 goals) | ||
| best goalkeeper | Eugene Galekovic | |
| matches | 84 | |
| total goals | 249 | |
| highest attendance | 31,564 | |
| lowest attendance | 4,433 | |
| average attendance | 12,180 ([[Image:Red Arrow Down.svg | 12px]] 2430) |
| prevseason | [2007–08](2007-08-a-league) | |
| nextseason | [2009–10](2009-10-a-league) |
(12 goals) The 2008–09 A-League was the 32nd season of top-flight soccer in Australia, and the fourth season of the A-League competition since its establishment in 2004. Two new clubs, North Queensland Thunder and Gold Coast Galaxy had received tentative licences from the FFA but these were revoked for the 2008–09 season on 12 March 2008. Expansion plans are on hold until the 2009–10 season. Based on their 2007–08 performances, the Central Coast Mariners and the Newcastle Jets competed in the 2009 AFC Champions League for the first time.
Changes to the league included:
- The introduction of both a youth league and women's league aligned with A-League clubs.
- An increase in the salary cap to A$1.9 million.
- The addition of a Junior Marquee player. (A player under the age of 23 who has up to A$150,000 of his salary outside of the cap.
- Injury replacement players can only match the injured players' salary, or have any excess included within the total Salary Cap.
Clubs
| Team | Location | Stadium | Capacity |
|---|---|---|---|
| Adelaide United | Adelaide | Hindmarsh Stadium | 17,000 |
| Central Coast Mariners | Gosford | Bluetongue Stadium | 20,119 |
| Melbourne Victory | Melbourne | Telstra Dome | 56,347 |
| Newcastle Jets | Newcastle | Energy Australia Stadium | 26,164 |
| Perth Glory | Perth | Members Equity Stadium | 18,156 |
| Queensland Roar | Brisbane | Suncorp Stadium | 52,500 |
| Sydney FC | Sydney | Aussie Stadium | 42,500 |
| Wellington Phoenix | Wellington | Westpac Stadium | 34,500 |
Foreign players
| Club | Visa 1 | Visa 2 | Visa 3 | Visa 4 | Non-Visa foreigner(s) | Former player(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Adelaide United | BRA Alemão | BRA Cássio | BRA Cristiano | BRA Diego Walsh | CIV Jonas Salley1 | |
| Central Coast Mariners | GER André Gumprecht | ITA Andrea Merenda3 | ||||
| MLT John Hutchinson2 | ||||||
| Melbourne Victory | BRA Ney Fabiano | CRC Carlos Hernández | CRC José Luis López | SCO Grant Brebner1 | ||
| Newcastle Jets | DEN Jesper Håkansson | KOR Song Jin-hyung | ECU Edmundo Zura | |||
| Perth Glory | ARG Adrian Trinidad | BRA Amaral | ENG James Robinson | CIV Eugène Dadi | NED Victor Sikora3 | |
| Queensland Roar | BRA Reinaldo | IDN Sergio van Dijk | SCO Charlie Miller | BRA Henrique3 | ||
| KOR Seo Hyuk-su1 | ||||||
| Sydney FC | NED Bobby Petta | NIR Terry McFlynn | USA Michael Enfield | |||
| Wellington Phoenix | BRA Daniel | CHN Gao Leilei | ENG Chris Greenacre | MLT Manny Muscat2 | BRA Fred4 |
The following do not fill a Visa position:
1Those players who were born and started their professional career abroad but have since gained Australian Residency (and New Zealand Residency, in the case of Wellington Phoenix);
2Australian residents (and New Zealand residents, in the case of Wellington Phoenix) who have chosen to represent another national team;
3Injury Replacement Players, or National Team Replacement Players;
4Guest Players (eligible to play a maximum of ten games)
Salary cap exemptions and captains
| Club | Marquee | Junior Marquee | Captain | Vice-Captain |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| **Adelaide United** | AUS Paul Agostino | *None* | AUS Travis Dodd | AUS Lucas Pantelis |
| **Central Coast Mariners** | *None* | *None* | AUS Alex Wilkinson | *None* |
| **Melbourne Victory** | AUS Archie Thompson | AUS Nick Ward | AUS Kevin Muscat | *None* |
| **Newcastle Jets** | ECU Edmundo Zura | AUS Adam D'Apuzzo | AUS Jade North | |
| AUS Matt Thompson | AUS Ante Covic | |||
| AUS Adam Griffiths | ||||
| **Perth Glory** | *None* | AUS Nikita Rukavytsya | AUS Jamie Coyne | *None* |
| **Queensland Roar** | AUS Craig Moore | *None* | AUS Craig Moore | *None* |
| **Sydney FC** | AUS John Aloisi | AUS Mark Bridge | AUS Steve Corica | *None* |
| **Wellington Phoenix** | *None* | *None* | NZL Andrew Durante | NZL Tim Brown |
| AUS Jon McKain | ||||
| AUS Richard Johnson |
Pre-season Challenge Cup
Main article: 2008 A-League Pre-Season Challenge Cup
All A-League clubs played the pre-season cup competition held in July and August, and were drawn into two groups. Group A consisted of Adelaide United, Melbourne Victory, Newcastle Jets and Perth Glory. Group B was Central Coast Mariners, Queensland Roar, Sydney FC and Wellington Phoenix.
The winner of each group, Melbourne Victory and Wellington Phoenix, met in Wellington on 6 August 2008 for the Pre-Season Cup Final. With the score at 0–0 after 90 minutes, the game went to penalties, Melbourne Victory eventually prevailing 8–7, thus becoming the first team in A-League history to claim all three available trophies, after winning the Premiership and Championship in the 2006–07 season.
Regular season
The 2008–09 A-League season was played over 21 rounds, followed by a finals series.
League table
Results
Round 1
Round 2
Summary Dadi Rukavytsya Coyne North
Summary Cole
Summary
Ney Fabiano
K. Muscat
Round 3
Summary A. Thompson Allsopp Brebner
Summary Cristiano
Summary Corica Bridge Cole Topor-Stanley
Summary van Dijk Jedinak Macallister
Round 4
Summary
McKay
Miller
Round 5
Summary Brosque Santalab
Round 6
Summary
Jedinak
Caceres
Osman
Summary Brown
Summary Zullo
Round 7
Summary Cornthwaite Cristiano Simon
Summary
Allsopp
Vargas
Summary Patafta
Round 8
Round 9
Summary Aloisi
Summary T. Dodd
Round 10
Summary Cássio Celeski
Summary Casey McFlynn Mrdja
Summary Miller
Round 11
Summary Smeltz
Summary Dadi T. Elrich
Summary Petrovski Caceres
Round 12
Summary A. Thompson
Summary T. Dodd
Summary Hearfield
Summary
Minniecon
Miller
Nichols
Round 13
Summary Smeltz
Summary Petrovski
Round 14
Summary Cristiano Cassio T. Dodd
Summary Pellegrino
Summary Gan
Round 15
Summary Jedinak
Summary van Dijk
Round 16
Summary Song Ney Fabiano
Summary Golec Srhoj Middleby
Round 17
Summary Simon
Summary Ward Ney Fabiano Gan
Summary van Dijk Oar Hearfield
Round 18
Summary Vargas
Summary Alemão
Summary Smeltz
Round 19
Summary Pantelis
Summary Simon Minniecon Porter
Summary Rukavytsya Ney Fabiano
Round 20
Summary Hernández A. Thompson
Summary Milligan
Round 21
Summary A. Thompson
Summary Tiatto van Dijk McCloughan Skorich
Summary Milligan Bridge
Finals series
Bracket
|RD1-legs=2 |RD1-date1= |RD1-team2=Melbourne Victory |RD1-seed2=1 |RD1-score2-1=2 |RD1-score2-2=4 |RD1-score2-agg=6 |RD1-team1=Adelaide United |RD1-seed1=2 |RD1-score1-1=0 |RD1-score1-2=0 |RD1-score1-agg=0 |RD1-date2= |RD1-team4=Queensland Roar |RD1-seed4=3 |RD1-score4-1=2 |RD1-score4-2=2 |RD1-score4-agg=4 |RD1-team3=Central Coast Mariners |RD1-seed3=4 |RD1-score3-1=0 |RD1-score3-2=1 |RD1-score3-agg=1 |RD2-date= |RD2-seed1=2 |RD2-seed2=3 |RD2-team1=Adelaide United |RD2-team2=Queensland Roar |RD2-score1=1 |RD2-score2=0 |RD3-date= |RD3-seed1=1 |RD3-seed2=2 |RD3-team1=Melbourne Victory |RD3-team2=Adelaide United |RD3-score1=1 |RD3-score2=0
Semi-finals
- Nichols
- van Dijk Summary McKay Queensland Roar won 4–1 on aggregate.
- Thompson
- Hernández
- Allsopp
- Pondeljak Melbourne Victory won 6–0 on aggregate.
Preliminary final
Grand Final
Statistics
Leading scorers
| Total | Player | Team | Goals per Round |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 |
| 12 | NZ | Shane Smeltz | Wellington Phoenix |
| 11 | AUS | Matt Simon | Central Coast Mariners |
| 11 | AUS | Daniel Allsopp | Melbourne Victory |
| 11 | IDN | Sergio van Dijk | Queensland Roar |
| 10 | CIV | Eugène Dadi | Perth Glory |
| 10 | AUS | Nikita Rukavytsya | Perth Glory |
| 8 | AUS | Archie Thompson | Melbourne Victory |
| 8 | BRA | Cristiano | Adelaide United |
| 8 | SCO | Charlie Miller | Queensland Roar |
| 7 | AUS | Travis Dodd | Adelaide United |
| 7 | AUS | Joel Griffiths | Newcastle Jets |
| 6 | AUS | Mile Jedinak | Central Coast Mariners |
| 6 | AUS | Sasho Petrovski | Central Coast Mariners |
| 5 | BRA | Ney Fabiano de Oliveira | Melbourne Victory |
| 5 | AUS | Kevin Muscat | Melbourne Victory |
| 5 | AUS | Alex Brosque | Sydney FC |
| 4 | AUS | Steve Corica | Sydney FC |
| 4 | AUS | Dylan Macallister | Central Coast Mariners |
| 4 | AUS | Matt Thompson | Newcastle Jets |
| 4 | AUS | Matt McKay | Queensland Roar |
| 3 | NZ | Tim Brown | Wellington Phoenix |
| 3 | AUS | Jamie Harnwell | Perth Glory |
| 3 | AUS | Saša Ognenovski | Adelaide United |
| 3 | BRA | Cássio | Adelaide United |
| 3 | AUS | Shannon Cole | Sydney FC |
| 3 | AUS | Tahj Minniecon | Queensland Roar |
| 3 | AUS | Mitch Nichols | Queensland Roar |
| 3 | AUS | Mark Bridge | Sydney FC |
| 2 | AUS | Grant Brebner | Melbourne Victory |
| 2 | AUS | Robert Cornthwaite | Adelaide United |
| 2 | NIR | Terry McFlynn | Sydney FC |
| 2 | ARG | Adrian Caceres | Central Coast Mariners |
| 2 | AUS | John Aloisi | Sydney FC |
| 2 | AUS | Adriano Pellegrino | Perth Glory |
| 2 | AUS | Stuart Musialik | Sydney FC |
| 2 | AUS | Brendan Gan | Sydney FC |
| 2 | NZ | Troy Hearfield | Wellington Phoenix |
| 2 | AUS | Tarek Elrich | Newcastle Jets |
| 2 | AUS | John Hutchinson | Central Coast Mariners |
| 2 | AUS | Rodrigo Vargas | Melbourne Victory |
| 2 | AUS | Craig Moore | Queensland Roar |
| 2 | NZ | Leo Bertos | Wellington Phoenix |
| 2 | AUS | Nick Ward | Melbourne Victory |
| 2 | AUS | Lucas Pantelis | Adelaide United |
| 2 | AUS | Nik Mrdja | Central Coast Mariners |
| 2 | CRI | Hernández | Melbourne Victory |
| 2 | AUS | Kofi Danning | Sydney FC |
| 2 | AUS | Josh McCloughan | Queensland Roar |
| 1 | ARG | Adrian Trinidad | Perth Glory |
| 1 | AUS | Jade North | Newcastle Jets |
| 1 | AUS | Matthew Osman | Central Coast Mariners |
| 1 | AUS | Michael Zullo | Queensland Roar |
| 1 | AUS | Brendon Santalab | Sydney FC |
| 1 | AUS | Marko Jesic | Newcastle Jets |
| 1 | AUS | Karl Dodd | Wellington Phoenix |
| 1 | BRA | Alemão | Adelaide United |
| 1 | AUS | Billy Celeski | Melbourne Victory |
| 1 | AUS | Adam Casey | Sydney FC |
| 1 | AUS | Tom Pondeljak | Melbourne Victory |
| 1 | BRA | Fred | Wellington Phoenix |
| 1 | GER | André Gumprecht | Central Coast Mariners |
| 1 | AUS | Jobe Wheelhouse | Newcastle Jets |
| 1 | AUS | Iain Fyfe | Sydney FC |
| 1 | KOR | Song Jin-Hyung | Newcastle Jets |
| 1 | AUS | Wayne Srhoj | Perth Glory |
| 1 | AUS | Kristian Sarkies | Adelaide United |
| 1 | AUS | Thomas Oar | Queensland Roar |
| 1 | AUS | Fabian Barbiero | Adelaide United |
| 1 | AUS | Mark Milligan | Newcastle Jets |
| 1 | AUS | Antun Kovacic | Newcastle Jets |
| 1 | AUS | Scott Bulloch | Perth Glory |
| 1 | AUS | Paul Reid | Adelaide United |
| 1 | NZ | Costa Barbarouses | Wellington Phoenix |
| 1 | AUS | Danny Tiatto | Queensland Roar |
| 1 | AUS | Anthony Skorich | Perth Glory |
| *As of the end of the home and away season* |
| Two goals were scored from penalty kicks |
|---|
Attendance
These are the attendance records of each of the teams at the end of the home and away season. The table does not include finals series attendances.
- Adelaide United played a one-off match at the Adelaide Oval against Sydney FC in their Round 18 match. This is why Adelaide United's highest single attendance exceeds the capacity of Hindmarsh Stadium.
Top 10 Attendances
| Attendance | Round | Date | Home | Score | Away | Venue | Weekday | Time of Day |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 53,273 | Grand Final | 28 February 2009 | Melbourne Victory | 1–0 | Adelaide United | Telstra Dome | Saturday | Night |
| 34,736 | Major SF (L2) | 14 February 2009 | Melbourne Victory | 4–0 | Adelaide United | Telstra Dome | Saturday | Night |
| 31,654 | Round 9 | 25 October 2008 | Melbourne Victory | 0–2 | Sydney FC | Telstra Dome | Saturday | Night |
| 28,905 | Round 21 | 23 January 2009 | Melbourne Victory | 2–0 | Wellington Phoenix | Telstra Dome | Friday | Night |
| 27,196 | Round 15 | 6 January 2009 | Melbourne Victory | 1–0 | Adelaide United | Telstra Dome | Tuesday | Night |
| 25,398 | Round 17 | 27 December 2008 | Melbourne Victory | 3–2 | Sydney FC | Telstra Dome | Saturday | Night |
| 24,812 | Round 4 | 12 September 2008 | Melbourne Victory | 1–0 | Adelaide United | Telstra Dome | Friday | Night |
| 24,003 | Round 20 | 16 January 2009 | Melbourne Victory | 3–0 | Central Coast Mariners | Telstra Dome | Friday | Night |
| 23,705 | Minor SF (L2) | 13 February 2009 | Queensland Roar | 2–1 | Central Coast Mariners | Suncorp Stadium | Friday | Night |
| 23,447 | Round 18 | 2 January 2009 | Melbourne Victory | 2–1 | Queensland Roar | Telstra Dome | Friday | Night |
Awards
- The Premiers' Plate was awarded to the Melbourne Victory, who finished on top of the ladder after the regular season.
- The Johnny Warren Medal was awarded to Shane Smeltz from the Wellington Phoenix.
- The Coach of the Year was awarded to Aurelio Vidmar of Adelaide United.
- The Reebok Golden Boot was awarded to Shane Smeltz of the Wellington Phoenix (12 goals - regular season).
- The Rising Star award was awarded to Scott Jamieson of Adelaide United.
- The Fair Play Award was awarded to the Queensland Roar.
- Goalkeeper of the Year was awarded to Eugene Galekovic of Adelaide United.
- Referee of the Year was awarded to Matthew Breeze.
- Foreign Player of the Year was awarded to Charlie Miller of the Queensland Roar.
Notes
References
References
- (12 February 2008). "Galaxy, Thunder to join A-League". [[Fox Sports (Australia).
- (21 February 2008). "Thunder, Galaxy get go-ahead". [[FourFourTwo (Australia).
- (12 March 2008). "A-League expansion plans postponed". [[Special Broadcasting Service.
- (19 January 2007). "FFA: A-League WILL Get Bigger". [[FourFourTwo (Australia).
- (2 May 2008). "New season to start with a bang sea". AU FourFourTwo.
- (14 August 2008). "Agostino fit for season kick-off". [[ABC News (Australia).
- Brettig, Daniel. (30 July 2008). "Cool Dodd new Adelaide United skipper". [[The Advertiser (Adelaide).
- (8 February 2011). "Captain Wilkinson promoted to Centurion". [[Football Federation Australia]].
- Lynch, Michael. (30 April 2016). "Archie Thompson should play on after leaving Melbourne Victory". [[The Sydney Morning Herald]].
- (2 May 2014). "Archie Thompson, Adrian Leijer sign new deals with Melbourne Victory". [[The Guardian]].
- Ritson, Jon. (15 May 2008). "Marquee Glee For Victory's Ward". FTBL.
- Ritson, Jon. (8 August 2008). "Slow Start For Marquee Scheme". FTBL.
- Lynch, Michael. (7 January 2009). "Victory take top spot". [[Brisbane Times]].
- (29 August 2007). "Muscat Takes on Coaching Role". FTBL.
- (31 October 2013). "Kevin Muscat appointed as new Melbourne Victory coach". [[The Guardian]].
- Gardiner, James. (31 July 2008). "Newcastle Jets unveil Edmundo Zura as marquee signing". [[The Newcastle Herald]].
- Dillon, Robert. (2 November 2008). "Exit Edmundo: Zura bids Jets farewell". [[The Newcastle Herald]].
- (13 December 2008). "North heading to Korea". [[Newcastle Jets FC.
- (23 January 2009). "Matt Thompson tipping Kaz Patafta to kick on". [[The Newcastle Herald]].
- (17 November 2008). "Nikita Fills Marquee Role". FTBL.
- (15 August 2008). "Coyne leads the way for Glory".
- Ritson, Jon. (24 July 2007). "Moore Signs With Roar". [[FourFourTwo]].
- Lomax, Andrew. (22 December 2008). "Former Rangers captain Craig Moore given all-clear after cancer". [[The Daily Telegraph]].
- (3 March 2008). "Sydney FC put players on notice".
- (12 January 2009). "Teenage sensation Danning lifts Sydney FC". [[The Sydney Morning Herald]].
- (17 July 2008). "Durante named Wellington Phoenix skipper". [[Nine MSN]].
- (11 August 2008). "You Can't Beat McKain: Herbert". FTBL.
- [http://www.a-league.com.au/site/_content/document/00000680-source.pdf 2008 Pre-Season Cup Draw] {{Webarchive. link. (18 May 2011 , Football Federation Australia, 2 May 2008)
- [http://www.a-league.com.au/site/_content/document/00000678-source.pdf Hyundai A-League 2008/09 Season Draw] {{Webarchive. link. (18 May 2011 , Football Federation Australia, 2 May 2008)
- Match rescheduled due to Adelaide's participation in FIFA Club World Cup
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