2008–09 Arsenal L.F.C. season

Arsenal Ladies

2008-09 season
Chairman	Peter Hill-Wood
Manager	Vic Akers
Stadium	Meadow Park
Premier League	Champions
FA Cup	Winners
Premier League Cup	Winners
UEFA Cup	Quarter-finals
Community Shield	Winners
London County Cup	Winners
Home colours Away colours

The 2008–09 season was Arsenal Ladies Football Club's 22nd season since forming in 1987. The club participated in the National Division of the FA Women's Premier League, winning the title for a 6th consecutive season, this time on goal difference, defeating second-placed Everton on the final day at Widnes.^[1] However, they saw their five-year, 108-match unbeaten league run come to an end, after losing 3-0 at home to Everton.^[2] They completed a domestic treble by winning Premier League Cup and FA Women's Cup, defeating Doncaster Rovers Belles and Sunderland in the Finals respectively.^[3][4] They also competed in the UEFA Women's Cup, but lost at the Quarter-final stage to Umeå, the side they had defeated in the Final two seasons ago.^[5]

This was Arsenal's final season under the management of Vic Akers, who stood down at the end of the season to take up the position of general manager at the club. He ended his time the club having won 32 major honours, including the UEFA Cup, making him the most successful Arsenal Manager of all time.^[6]

Squad Statistics

First team squad

Squad statistics correct as of May 2018^[7]

Squad No.	Name	Date of Birth (Age)	Since	Signed From
Goalkeepers
1	Emma Byrne	(1979-06-14) 14 June 1979 (age 45)	2000	Fortuna Hjørring
13	Rebecca Spencer	(1991-02-22) 22 February 1991 (age 33)	2006	Homegrown
24	Sarah Quantrill	(1990-07-21) 21 July 1990 (age 34)		Homegrown
Defenders
2	Alex Scott	(1984-10-14) 14 October 1984 (age 40)	2005	Birmingham City
3	Yvonne Tracy	(1981-02-27) 27 February 1981 (age 43)	2000	St Patrick's Athletic
6	Faye White (captain)	(1978-02-02) 2 February 1978 (age 46)	1996	Horsham Ladies
5	Gilly Flaherty	(1991-08-24) 24 August 1991 (age 33)	2003	Millwall Lionesses
15	Laura Bassett	(1983-08-02) 2 August 1983 (age 41)	2008	Birmingham City
19	Niamh Fahey	(1987-10-13) 13 October 1987 (age 37)	2008	Salthill Devon
21	Eartha Pond	(1983-09-04) 4 September 1983 (age 41)	2008	Leeds United
27	Seana Cooke	(1989-07-06) 6 July 1989 (age 35)		Homegrown
Midfielders
4	Jayne Ludlow	(1979-01-07) 7 January 1979 (age 45)	2000	Southampton Saints
7	Ciara Grant	(1978-05-17) 17 May 1978 (age 46)	1998	St Patrick's Athletic
8	Kelly Smith	(1978-10-29) 29 October 1978 (age 46)	2005	New Jersey Wildcats
16	Kim Little	(1990-09-26) 26 September 1990 (age 34)	2008	Hibernian
17	Katie Chapman	(1982-06-15) 15 June 1982 (age 42)	2006	Charlton Athletic
18	Natalie Ross	(1989-09-14) 14 September 1989 (age 35)	2008	Hibernian
22	Laura Coombs	(1991-01-29) 29 January 1991 (age 33)	2007	Homegrown
23	Abbie Prosser	(1991-09-04) 4 September 1991 (age 33)		Homegrown
Forwards
9	Suzanne Grant	(1984-04-17) 17 April 1984 (age 40)	2009	Hibernian
10	Julie Fleeting	(1980-12-18) 18 December 1980 (age 44)	2004	Ross County
11	Rachel Yankey	(1979-11-01) 1 November 1979 (age 45)	2005	New Jersey Wildcats
12	Gemma Davison	(1987-04-17) 17 April 1987 (age 37)	2001	Watford
14	Karen Carney	(1987-08-01) 1 August 1987 (age 37)	2006	Birmingham City
20	Helen Lander	(1986-04-26) 26 April 1986 (age 38)	2009	Watford
25	Lauren Bruton	(1992-11-22) 22 November 1992 (age 32)	2008	Homegrown

Appearances and goals

No.	Name	Premier League		FA Cup		PL Cup		UEFA Cup		Total
		Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Goalkeepers
1	Emma Byrne	19	0	5	0	4	0	5	0	33+3	0
13	Rebecca Spencer	3+1	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	4+1	0
24	Sarah Quantrill	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Defenders
2	Alex Scott	12+1	2	1	0	4+1	1	5	0	22+2	3
3	Yvonne Tracy	8	1	0	0	0	0	4	1	12	2
6	Faye White (captain)	5	1	2+1	0	2	0	3+1	0	12+2	1
5	Gilly Flaherty	16	0	3+1	1	1+1	1	0+1	0	20+3	2
15	Laura Bassett	19+1	0	4+1	1	4+1	0	0	0	27+3	1
19	Niamh Fahey	15+3	2	5	0	4	0	5	0	29+3	2
21	Eartha Pond	2+5	0	0+1	0	1	0	0	0	3+6	0
27	Seana Cooke	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Midfielders
4	Jayne Ludlow	20+1	7	5	2	4+1	1	4+1	3	33+3	13
7	Ciara Grant	17	1	5	0	3	1	3+1	0	28+1	2
8	Kelly Smith	12	25	1	0	4	4	4	1	21	30
16	Kim Little	20+1	10	5	5	4+1	4	5	5	34+2	24
17	Katie Chapman	16+4	6	5	3	5	0	5	0	31+5	9
18	Natalie Ross	2+3	0	0+2	0	1	0	0+1	0	3+6	0
22	Laura Coombs	0	0	0	0	0+1	0	0	0	0+1	0
23	Abbie Prosser	0+2	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0+2	0
Forwards
9	Suzanne Grant	3+5	3	1+1	0	0+1	1	0	0	4+7	4
10	Julie Fleeting	5+2	7	0	0	3	5	2+2	2	10+4	14
11	Rachel Yankey	10+7	4	5	1	3+1	4	0+4	0	18+12	9
12	Gemma Davison	19+3	7	5	1	4+1	0	5	2	33+4	10
14	Karen Carney	13	8	0+1	1	2	1	5	2	20+1	12
20	Helen Lander	6+4	1	3+1	3	0	0	0	0	9+5	4
25	Lauren Bruton	0+1	0	0	0	0+1	0	0	0	0+2	0

Goalscorers

Rank	No.	Position	Name	Premier League	FA Cup	PL Cup	LC Cup	Total
1	8	MF	Kelly Smith	25	0	4	1	30
2	16	MF	Kim Little	10	5	4	5	24
3	10	FW	Julie Fleeting	7	0	5	2	14
4	4	MF	Jayne Ludlow	7	2	1	3	13
5	14	FW	Karen Carney	8	1	1	2	12
6	12	FW	Gemma Davison	7	1	0	2	10
7	17	MF	Katie Chapman	6	3	0	0	9
	11	FW	Rachel Yankey	4	1	4	0	9
8	9	FW	Suzanne Grant	3	0	1	0	4
	20	FW	Helen Lander	1	3	0	0	4
9	2	DF	Alex Scott	2	0	1	0	3
10	3	DF	Yvonne Tracy	1	0	0	1	2
	5	DF	Gilly Flaherty	0	1	1	0	2
	19	DF	Niamh Fahey	2	0	0	0	2
	7	MF	Ciara Grant	1	0	1	0	2
11	6	DF	Faye White (captain)	1	0	0	0	1
	15	DF	Laura Bassett	0	1	0	0	1
Total				85	18	23	16	142

Transfers, loans and other signings

Transfers in

Announcement date	No.	Position	Player	From club
6 August 2008[8]	15	DF	Laura Bassett	Birmingham City
28 July 2008[9]	19	DF	Niamh Fahey	Salthill Devon
28 July 2008[10]	18	MF	Natalie Ross	Hibernian
1 August 2008[11]	21	DF	Eartha Pond	Leeds United
3 January 2009[12]	20	FW	Helen Lander	Watford
20 February 2009[13]	9	FW	Suzanne Grant	Hibernian

Transfers out

Announcement date	No.	Position	Player	To club
3 July 2008[14]	18	DF	Anita Asante	Chelsea
3 July 2008[14]	9	FW	Lianne Sanderson	Chelsea
2008	23	DF	Mary Phillip	Chelsea
2008		FW	Sarah Wiltshire	Watford
2008		DF	Felicienne Minaar	FC Twente
6 February 2009[15]	2	DF	Alex Scott	Boston Breakers
18 February 2009[16][17]	8	MF	Kelly Smith	Boston Breakers
28 January 2009[18]	14	FW	Karen Carney	Chicago Red Stars

Club

Kit

Supplier: Nike / Sponsor: Fly Emirates

Home

Away

Competitions

FA Women's Community Shield

Everton v Arsenal

7 August 2009 Final	Everton	0–1	Arsenal	Macclesfield
		Report	Smith 72'	Stadium: Moss Rose Attendance: 1,494

FA Women's Premier League

Main article: 2008–09 FA Women's Premier League

Arsenal v Blackburn Rovers

17 August 2008 1	Arsenal	4–0	Blackburn Rovers	Borehamwood
13:00 BST	Smith 7', 17', 56' Ludlow 44'	Report		Stadium: Meadow Park Attendance: 276

Liverpool v Arsenal

24 August 2008 2	Liverpool	2–11	Arsenal	Skelmersdale
14:00 BST	Foster 45', 37'	Report	Smith 12', 14', 16', 32', 87' Carney 25', 80' Ludlow 42', 49' Bird 75', 82'	Stadium: Skelmersdale Ormskirk Stadium

Arsenal v Watford

28 August 2008 3	Arsenal	6–1	Watford	Borehamwood
19:45 BST	Little 13', 45' Ludlow 47' Smith 77', 79' Daniels 31' (o.g.)	Report	Lander 83'	Stadium: Meadow Park Attendance: 334

Leeds Carnegie v Arsenal

31 August 2008 4	Leeds Carnegie	1–6	Arsenal	Tadcaster
14:00 BST	Moore 7'	Report	Smith 2', 5' Carney 18', 57' (pen.) Davison 40' Chapman 75'	Stadium: Ings Lane

Arsenal v Doncaster Rovers Belles

7 September 2008 5	Arsenal	6–1	Doncaster Rovers Belles	Borehamwood
14:00 BST	Little 2' Carney 17', 21' Smith 43', 81' Ludlow 79'	Report	Hansen 74'	Stadium: Meadow Park

Nottingham Forest v Arsenal

18 September 2008 6	Nottingham Forest	1–5	Arsenal	Gedling
19:45 BST	Penny 40'	Report	Smith 10', 46' Davison 30' Chapman 68' Bird 80'	Stadium: Bill Stokeld Stadium Attendance: 677

Arsenal v Birmingham City

21 September 2008 7	Arsenal	6–2	Birmingham City	Borehamwood
14:00 BST	Ludlow 15' Davison 48', 90' Fleeting 61', 90' Little 90'	Report	Hall 46' Amy McCann 59'	Stadium: Meadow Park

Arsenal v Leeds Carnegie

19 October 2008 8	Arsenal	4–0	Leeds Carnegie	Borehamwood
14:00 BST	Chapman 5' Fahey 19' Fleeting 65' Tracy 88'	Report		Stadium: Meadow Park

Arsenal v Nottingham Forest

16 November 2008 9	Arsenal	5–0	Nottingham Forest	Borehamwood
14:00 GMT	Yankley 8' Smith 33', 41' Chapman 57' Fleeting 87'	Report		Stadium: Meadow Park

Arsenal v Liverpool

23 November 2008 10	Arsenal	2–0	Liverpool	Borehamwood
14:00 GMT	Smith 52' Yankey 68'	Report		Stadium: Meadow Park

Bristol Academy v Arsenal

30 November 2008 11	Bristol Academy	1–4	Arsenal	Almondsbury
14:00 GMT	McCatty 30'	Report	F. White 56' Fleeting 42', 69', 77'	Stadium: Oaklands Park

Arsenal v Fulham

18 December 2008 12	Arsenal	7–0	Fulham	Borehamwood
19:45 GMT	Chapman 9' Little 34', 75' Smith 57', 60', 89' Davison 65'	Report		Stadium: Meadow Park

Arsenal v Chelsea

18 January 2009 13	Arsenal	4–1	Chelsea	Borehamwood
14:00 GMT	Smith 27' Carney 30' Chamberlain 52' (o.g.) A. Scott 84'	Report	Susi 61'	Stadium: Meadow Park

Blackburn Rovers v Arsenal

15 February 2009 14	Blackburn Rovers	0–4	Arsenal	Clitheroe
13:00 GMT		Report	Fahey 30' Smith 38', 68' Carney 56'	Stadium: Shawbride

Fulham v Arsenal

19 March 2009 15	Fulham	0–5	Arsenal
19:45 GMT		Report	Lander 10' Ludlow 47' Yankey 67' Grant 75' (pen.) Davison 80'

Watford v Arsenal

26 March 2009 16	Watford	0–1	Arsenal	Northwood
19:30 GMT		Report	Yankey 27'	Stadium: The Skyline Stadium

Arsenal v Everton

29 March 2009 17	Arsenal	0–3	Everton	Borehamwood
14:00 GMT		Report	Williams 10' Hinnigan 13' J. Scott 53'	Stadium: Meadow Park

Birmingham City v Arsenal

2 April 2009 18	Birmingham City	1–3	Arsenal	Redditch
19:45 BST	Hall 48'	Report	Little 18', 29' Grant 73'	Stadium: Valley Stadium

Arsenal v Bristol Academy

5 April 2009 19	Arsenal	3–0	Bristol Academy	Borehamwood
14:00 BST	Little 10' (pen.) Chapman 45' Grant 85' (pen.)	Report		Stadium: Meadow Park

Doncaster Rovers Belles v Arsenal

12 April 2009 20	Doncaster Rovers Belles	0–0	Arsenal	Doncaster
14:00 BST		Report		Stadium: Keepmoat Stadium

Chelsea v Arsenal

30 April 2009 21	Chelsea	0–2	Arsenal	East Molesey
19:30 BST		Report	Davison 70' Little 80'	Stadium: Imber Court

Everton v Arsenal

10 May 2009 22	Everton	0–1	Arsenal	Widnes
14:00 BST		Report	Grant 13'	Stadium: Halton Stadium Attendance: 2,135

Partial league table

Pos	Team v t e	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification or relegation
1	Arsenal	22	20	1	1	89	14	+75	61	2009–10 UEFA Women's Champions League Round of 32
2	Everton	22	20	1	1	68	10	+58	61	2009–10 UEFA Women's Champions League Qualifying round
3	Chelsea	22	16	2	4	55	23	+32	50
4	Doncaster Rovers	22	9	6	7	43	36	+7	33
5	Birmingham City	22	10	3	9	39	43	−4	33

Source: Soccerway table

Results Summary

Overall								Home						Away
Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD
22	20	1	1	89	14	+75	61	10	0	1	42	6	+36	10	1	0	47	8	+39

Results by matchday

Matchday	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22
Ground	H	A	H	A	H	A	H	H	H	H	A	H	H	A	A	A	H	A	H	A	A	A
Result	W	W	W	W	W	W	W	W	W	W	W	W	W	W	W	W	L	W	W	D	W	W
Position	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1

Updated to match(es) played on 20 May 2018. Source: FA WSL
W = Win; D = Draw; L = Loss

FA Women's Cup

Main article: 2008–09 FA Women's Cup

Arsenal v Colchester United

11 January 2009 Fourth Round	Arsenal	7–0	Colchester United	Borehamwood
14:00 GMT	Chapman 38', 42' Little 49', 55', 78' Lander 63' Bassett 83'	Report		Stadium: Meadow Park

Middlesbrough v Arsenal

25 January 2009 Fifth Round	Middlesbrough	0–4	Arsenal	Stokesley
12:00 GMT		Report	Lander 54', 66' Little 57' Carney 84'	Stadium: Bishopton Road West

Arsenal v Leeds Carnegie

22 February 2009 Quarter Final	Arsenal	3–1	Leeds Carnegie	Borehamwood
14:00 GMT	Telford 15' (o.g.) Ludlow 21' Davison 77'	Report	Moore 26'	Stadium: Meadow Park

Arsenal v Everton

22 March 2009 Semi Final	Arsenal	3–1	Everton	Bishop's Stortford
14:00 GMT	Yankey 21' Ludlow 31' Flaherty 45'	Report	Dowie 54'	Stadium: Woodside Park

Arsenal v Sunderland

4 May 2009 Final	Arsenal	2–1	Sunderland	Derby
14:00 BST	Chapman 32' Little 90+2'	Report	McDougall 90+7'	Stadium: Pride Park Stadium Attendance: 23,291 Referee: Saša Ihringová

FA Women's Premier League Cup

Main article: 2008–09 FA Women's Premier League Cup

Leicester City v Arsenal

2 November 2008 Quarter Final	Leicester City	0–7	Arsenal	Leicester
14:00 GMT		Report	Yankey 15' Smith 37' (pen.) Fleeting 40', 62', 74' Impey 50' (o.g.) Grant 83'	Stadium: Leicestershire Scouts HQ

Chelsea v Arsenal

7 December 2008 Semi Final	Chelsea	0–4	Arsenal	East Molesey
14:00 GMT		Report	Perry 19' (o.g.) Fleeting 56', 88' Ludlow 79'	Stadium: Imber Court

Arsenal v Doncaster Rovers Belles

25 February 2009 Final	Arsenal	5–0	Doncaster Rovers Belles	Scunthorpe
14:00 GMT	Smith 6', 31', 58' A. Scott 66' Grant 88'	Report		Stadium: Glanford Park Attendance: 2,753 Referee: Steve Rowntree

London County Cup

Arsenal v West Ham United

04 March 2009 Quarter Final	Arsenal	3–0	West Ham United	Colney Heath
19:45 GMT	Prosser 44' Davison 62' Flaherty 87' (pen.)	Report		Stadium: Recreation Ground

Arsenal v Crystal Palace

15 March 2009 Semi Final	Arsenal	7–0	Crystal Palace	Potters Bar
14:00 GMT	Flaherty 30' Lander 31', 52', 60' Grant 51', 71' Little 56'	Report		Stadium: The Lantern Stadium

Arsenal v Millwall Lionesses

28 April 2009 Final	Arsenal	3–2	Millwall Lionesses	Finchley
19:30 BST	Grant 15', 90' Ross 40'	Report	Heatherson	Stadium: Harry Abrahams Stadium

UEFA Women's Cup

Main article: 2008–09 UEFA Women's Cup

Group Stage

Arsenal v FC Zürich

9 October 2008 1	Arsenal	7–2	FC Zürich	Limonest
	Davison 9' Chapman  20' Smith 37' Little 39', 57', 90+1' (pen.) Ludlow 52', 56'	Report	Lendenmann 19' Fahey 66' (o.g.) Kehl  75'	Stadium: Stade Honneur Referee: Natalia Avdonchenko

Arsenal v SV Neulengbach

11 October 2008 2	Arsenal	6–0	SV Neulengbach	Limonest
	Fleeting 21' Little 33' Carney 55', 74' Fahey  60' Tracy 85' Davison 88'	Report	Brancao-Ribeiro  40' Gumpenberger  67' Mônica  68'	Stadium: Stade Honneur Referee: Kirsi Heikkinen

Lyon v Arsenal

14 October 2008 3	Lyon	3–0	Arsenal	Lyon
	Schelin 27', 80' Abily 76'	Report	Fleeting  19' Grant  83' A.Scott  86'	Stadium: Stade de Gerland Referee: Natalia Avdonchenko

Table

Pos	Team v t e	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts
1	Lyon	3	3	0	0	18	1	+17	9
2	Arsenal Ladies	3	2	0	1	13	5	+8	6
3	Neulengbach	3	1	0	2	5	17	−12	3
4	Zürich	3	0	0	3	6	19	−13	0

Source: ^{[citation needed]}

Quarter Final

Arsenal Ladies v Umeå

6 November 2008 First Leg	Arsenal Ladies	3–2	Umeå	Borehamwood
20:00 GMT	Ludlow 2'  90+1' Fleeting 77' Little 79' Smith  84'	Report	Yamaguchi 13' Östberg  53' Bachmann  56' Östberg 71'	Stadium: Meadow Park Attendance: 454 Referee: Floarea Cristina Ionescu

Umeå v Arsenal Ladies

12 November 2008 Second Leg	Umeå	6–0	Arsenal Ladies	Umeå
19:00 (CET)	Marta 1', 44', 46', 59'  80' Ljungberg 48' Rönnlund 73' (pen.)	Report	Yankey  62' White  72'	Stadium: Gammliavallen Attendance: 2,493 Referee: Christine Beck

References

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2. "Everton end Arsenal unbeaten run". 2009-03-29. Retrieved 2024-11-26.
3. "League Cup Final: Doncaster 0-5 Arsenal". League Cup Final: Doncaster 0-5 Arsenal. 2009-02-26. Archived from the original on 2013-12-11. Retrieved 2024-11-26.
4. "Arsenal win FA Women's Cup". 2009-05-04. Retrieved 2024-11-26.
5. "Umea IK 6-0 Arsenal Ladies - Match report". Umea IK 6-0 Arsenal Ladies - Match report. 2008-11-12. Retrieved 2024-11-26.
6. "Akers honoured at FA Women's Awards | Ladies News | News | Arsenal.com". 2009-05-25. Archived from the original on 2009-05-25. Retrieved 2024-11-26.
7. "ARSENAL WFC". Retrieved August 15, 2018.
8. "15. Laura Bassett | Ladies Players | Ladies | Arsenal.com". 2009-07-03. Archived from the original on 3 July 2009. Retrieved 2024-12-01.
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10. "18. Natalie Ross | Ladies Players | Ladies | Arsenal.com". 2009-07-02. Archived from the original on 2 July 2009. Retrieved 2024-12-01.
11. "21. Eartha Pond | Ladies Players | Ladies | Arsenal.com". 2009-07-03. Archived from the original on 3 July 2009. Retrieved 2024-12-01.
12. "20. Helen Lander | Ladies Players | Ladies | Arsenal.com". 2009-07-02. Archived from the original on 2 July 2009. Retrieved 2024-12-01.
13. "Three is the magic number for Grant | Ladies News | News | Arsenal.com". 2009-05-17. Archived from the original on 17 May 2009. Retrieved 2024-12-01.
14. "Chelsea Ladies sign Arsenal pair". 2008-07-03. Archived from the original on 2023-04-18. Retrieved 2024-12-01.
15. "Alex Scott set to join the Boston Breakers | Ladies News | News | Arsenal.com". 2012-09-10. Archived from the original on 10 September 2012. Retrieved 2024-12-01.
16. "Smith joins US soccer's Boston Breakers | Ladies News | News | Arsenal.com". 2009-04-23. Archived from the original on 23 April 2009. Retrieved 2024-12-01.
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