2009–10 Watford F.C. season

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friendlies
)

relegation from the Premier League
in 2007.

After guiding the club to a 13th-placed finish in 2008–09,

Tommy Smith and Hungary international striker Tamás Priskin left the club. New arrivals included striker Danny Graham and former Scotland international midfielder Scott Severin. Among Watford's five loan signings were former Watford player Heiðar Helguson, and Tom Cleverley, who went on to become the club's Player of the Season
.

Although Watford twice occupied a playoff position in late 2009, they gradually slipped down the table over the course of the season. With five games to go, they were in 21st position in the Championship, separated from the relegation zone only on goal difference. A 3–0 win over Reading secured Watford's Championship survival in their penultimate match of 2009–10. They eventually finished in 16th position out of 24 teams. In other competitions, Watford were defeated in the third round of the

Leeds United
.

Background

Main articles: 2008–09 Watford F.C. season and History of Watford F.C.

"When I am asked about other clubs, people are questioning my integrity and one thing I have mentioned is I always have integrity. I am loyal and find it disloyal when I am asked about other clubs when I am the Watford manager. There is nothing that has changed in that respect. "

Brendan Rodgers, 22 May 2009[1]

The

Preston.[4]

Pre-season

Watford started pre-season training at their training ground in

Parma.[6]

Watford sold striker

Tommy Smith, highest earner Jobi McAnuff, and the club's most expensive ever player Nathan Ellington.[7][8][9]

Legend

  Win (W)   Draw (D)   Loss (L)   Postponed (P–P)

All matches played in England unless otherwise stated.

Boreham Wood v Watford
11 July 2009
Boreham Wood
Okojee 66' [10] Bryan 3'
Graham 9' 13'
Harley 90 + 1'
18 July 2009
Beveree Stadium, Hampton, London
Collins 30' [11] Young 80'
18 July 2009 Wealdstone 0–3 Watford Grosvenor Vale, Ruislip
[12]
pen 36'
Ellington
87'
24 July 2009 CF Balaguer 1–1 Watford Municipal, Balaguer, Spain
Soldevila 80' [13] Eustace 36'
27 July 2009 UE Lleida 1–1 Watford Camp d'Esports, Lleida, Spain
Sellarés [14] Graham
1 August 2009
Parma
Vicarage Road, Watford
Priskin
52'		 [15] Paci 28'
Mariga 64'

Football League Championship

Main article: 2009–10 Football League Championship

A total of 24 teams competed in the

play-offs
, with the winner earning the third and final promotion place.

The provisional fixture list was released on 17 June 2009, but was subject to change in the event of clashes with other competitions, inclement weather, or matches being selected for television coverage.

QPR were played on a Friday and Monday respectively, as a result of live television coverage.[17] The home game against Sheffield United was postponed and rescheduled due to adverse weather conditions, while the away fixture at Blackpool was brought forward from a Tuesday to the preceding Saturday, as both clubs were eliminated from the FA Cup in the third round.[18][19]

2009

Watford's team for the first game of the season, a 1–1 draw at home against
Doncaster Rovers
.

Watford's first league match was at home to

wingers. Scott Severin was playing his first competitive match for Watford, and fellow debutant Danny Graham scored the opening goal after 27 minutes, a close range finish from a Tommy Smith cross. This was followed by a headed equaliser from Doncaster's James Hayter ten minutes later. In the second half, Doncaster striker Dean Shiels had a shot which his manager felt had crossed the line. However, the referee deemed that it had not, and the match finished as a draw.[21][22] Watford were defeated 2–0 at Sheffield United in their next league fixture, with Jamie Ward and Ched Evans scoring for the opposition. The result caused Watford to slip into the relegation places for the only time of the season. Mackay expressed disappointment at his side for the goals they had conceded, and revealed that club was considering a transfer offer for Smith.[23]

Despite the transfer speculation, Smith played for Watford at

Alan Tate scored a late header to salvage a 1–1 draw.[25][26]

Watford did not play another game for two weeks, due to international fixtures. On the resumption of club football, they faced

clean sheet was their first in the league since March.[n 1] Playing the same formation, they recorded an identical result at Plymouth, with Tom Cleverley's early goal proving decisive. For both of these wins, Watford's defence consisted entirely of players who had progressed from their youth system.[28][29]

Former Watford player

Cardiff City defeated Watford 4–0; Watford's heaviest home league defeat since January 2004.[34]

Don Cowie made his debut for

West Bromwich Albion. Watford were defeated 5–0—their heaviest defeat of the season and biggest ever defeat against West Brom.[37]
They responded with a home win over Preston in their next match, with Cleverley scoring to join Danny Graham as the club's leading goalscorer of the season.

After a break for the last international fixtures of 2009, Watford resumed the season with a 3–0 home win over

Nottingham Forest and Bristol City
.

2010

Watford's lineup for the final match of 2009–10, a 4–0 win against Coventry at their stadium, the
Ricoh Arena
.

Watford's start to 2010 was impacted by the

Scunthorpe United on 20 February left Watford 13th in the Championship on 39 points, having played the fewest matches of any club in the division.[40]

Mackay later remarked that fixture congestion in March and April caught up on his relatively small squad. Between 20 February and 20 April, Watford played fifteen matches, winning two (against

Ipswich Town), drawing four and losing nine. Although they never entered the relegation zone, with five games remaining they were separated from it only on goal difference.[41] However, wins against Plymouth, Reading and Coventry City ensured that Watford remained in the Championship for the 2010–11 season
.

Results

8 August 2009 Match 1
Doncaster Rovers
Vicarage Road, Watford
Graham 27' [21] Hayter 38' Attendance: 15,636
Referee: Swarbrick
Sheffield United v Watford
15 August 2009 Match 2 Sheffield United 2–0 Watford Bramall Lane, Sheffield
Ward 12'
Evans 63'		 [23] Attendance: 24,638
Referee: Oliver
18 August 2009 Match 3
Nottingham Forest
2–4 Watford City Ground, Nottingham
Blackstock 45 + 2'
Adebola 87'		 [24]
Smith 80'
Cleverley
90 + 2'		 Attendance: 19,232
Referee: Bates
Watford v Blackpool
22 August 2009 Match 4 Watford 2–2 Blackpool Vicarage Road, Watford
Smith 24'
Cleverley
63'		 [25] Baptiste 56'
Taylor-Fletcher 72'		 Attendance: 12,745
Referee: Deadman
29 August 2009 Match 5
Liberty Stadium, Swansea, Wales
Tate
90 + 3'		 [26] Graham 66' Attendance: 14,172
Referee: Taylor
12 September 2009 Match 6 Watford 1–0 Barnsley Vicarage Road, Watford
Graham 36' [28] Attendance: 12,613
Referee: Phillips
15 September 2009 Match 7
Plymouth Argyle
0–1 Watford Home Park, Plymouth
[29] Cleverley 4' Attendance: 8,703
Referee: Scott
19 September 2009 Match 8
Leicester City
Vicarage Road, Watford
Graham 58'
Helguson 60', 77'		 [42]
pen 20', 40'
N'Guessan
90 + 1'		 Attendance: 14,647
Referee: Pawson
Reading v Watford
26 September 2009 Match 9 Reading 1–1 Watford Madejski Stadium, Reading
Rasiak 7' [43] Graham 66'
Ellington Yellow card 85' Red card		 Attendance: 18,147
Referee: Haywood
29 September 2009 Match 10
Coventry City
Vicarage Road, Watford
Cleverley 21'
Hoskins 37'		 [44] Clingan 14'
Best 67', 84'		 Attendance: 13,034
Referee: Marriner
3 October 2009 Match 11 Watford 0–4 Cardiff City Vicarage Road, Watford
[45]
pen 24', 66'
Matthews 41'
Bothroyd
67'		 Attendance: 13,895
Referee: Woolmer
17 October 2009 Match 12 Middlesbrough 0–1 Watford Riverside Stadium, Middlesbrough
[46] Cleverley 26' Attendance: 18,957
Referee: Mathieson
20 October 2009 Match 13
Ipswich Town
1–1 Watford Portman Road, Ipswich
McAuley 5' [47] Ellington 90 + 4' Attendance: 19,289
Referee: Kettle
23 October 2009 Match 14
Sheffield Wednesday
Vicarage Road, Watford
Mariappa 21'
Lansbury 26', 61'
Harley 54'		 [48] Tudgay 45' Attendance: 14,591
Referee: Crossley
West Bromwich Albion v Watford
31 October 2009 Match 15
West Bromwich Albion
5–0 Watford The Hawthorns, West Bromwich
Cox
68'		 [49] Attendance: 21,421
Referee: Miller
7 November 2009 Match 16
Preston
Vicarage Road, Watford
Helguson 9'
Cleverley 33'		 [50] Attendance: 13,524
Referee: Wright
21 November 2009 Match 17
Scunthorpe United
Vicarage Road, Watford
Helguson 19', 22'
Graham 48'		 [51] Attendance: 13,241
Referee: Sarginson
Crystal Palace v Watford
28 November 2009 Match 18 Crystal Palace 3–0 Watford Selhurst Park, London
Moses 2'
A Lee 6'
Ambrose 54'		 [52] Attendance: 14,085
Referee: Langford
5 December 2009 Match 19
Newcastle United
2–0 Watford St James' Park, Newcastle upon Tyne
Løvenkrands 20'
Pancrate 83'
Nolan Yellow card 49' Red card		 [53] Attendance: 43,050
Referee: Moss
7 December 2009 Match 20
QPR
Vicarage Road, Watford
Doyley 43'
Cowie 56'
Cleverley 90 + 4'		 [54] Agyemang 33' Attendance: 15,058
Referee: Penn
Watford v Derby County
12 December 2009 Match 21 Watford 0–1 Derby County Vicarage Road, Watford
[55] Porter 77' Attendance: 14,063
Referee: Stroud
19 December 2009 Match 22
Peterborough United
2–1 Watford London Road, Peterborough
Frecklington 9'
Geohaghon 78'		 [56] Eustace 49' Attendance: 7,723
Referee: Evans
26 December 2009 Match 23
Nottingham Forest
Vicarage Road, Watford
[57] Attendance: 17,086
Referee: D'Urso
Bristol City v Watford
28 December 2009 Match 24
Ashton Gate, Bristol
Haynes 38'
Hartley 45 + 2'
Nyatanga Yellow card 69' Red card		 [58] Cleverley 43'
Eustace 90 + 3'		 Attendance: 16,035
Referee: Linington
Watford v Sheffield United
9 January 2010 Watford P–P Sheffield United Vicarage Road, Watford
[18]
16 January 2010 Match 25
Keepmoat Stadium, Doncaster
Shiels 50'
Roberts 80'		 [59]
pen
90 + 3'		 Attendance: 10,504
Referee: Hall
Blackpool v Watford
23 January 2010 Match 26 Blackpool 3–2 Watford Bloomfield Road, Blackpool
Adam 17'
Southern 89'
Ormerod
90 + 1'		 [60] Lansbury 27'
Cleverley 79'		 Attendance: 6,855
Referee: Boyeson
30 January 2010 Watford P–P Swansea City Vicarage Road, Watford
[61]
2 February 2010 Match 27 Watford 3–0 Sheffield United Vicarage Road, Watford
Cleverley 39'
Helguson 55'
Cowie 74'		 [62] Attendance: 13,076
Referee: Hill
6 February 2010 Match 28 Barnsley 1–0 Watford Oakwell, Barnsley
Hallfredsson 66'
Shotton
Red card 76'		 [63] Attendance: 11,739
Referee: Graham
9 February 2010 Match 29 Watford 2–0 Bristol City Vicarage Road, Watford
Taylor
34'		 [64] Attendance: 12,179
Referee: McDermid
16 February 2010
QPR
P–P Watford Loftus Road, London
[65]
Scunthorpe United v Watford
20 February 2010 Match 30
Scunthorpe United
2–2 Watford Glanford Park, Scunthorpe
pen
90 + 5'		 [66] Graham 64'
Eustace 90 + 1'
Cleverley Red card 82'		 Attendance: 5,411
Referee: Webb
27 February 2010 Match 31
Newcastle United
Vicarage Road, Watford
Hoskins 90 + 1' [67]
Coloccini 4'
Carroll
50'		 Attendance: 17,120
Referee: Bates
Derby County v Watford
6 March 2010 Match 32 Derby County 2–0 Watford Pride Park Stadium, Derby
Tonge 12'
Porter 77'		 [68] Attendance: 29,492
Referee: Horwood
9 March 2010 Match 33 Watford 0–1 Swansea City Vicarage Road, Watford
[69] Kuqi 18' Attendance: 12,907
Referee: Kettle
13 March 2010 Match 34 Watford 0–1 Peterborough United Vicarage Road, Watford
[70] Dickinson 51' Attendance: 16,591
Referee: Taylor
16 March 2010 Match 35 Watford 2–1 Ipswich Town Vicarage Road, Watford
Lansbury 7'
Hoskins 77'		 [71] Colback 68' Attendance: 13,996
Referee: Salisbury
21 March 2010 Match 36 Cardiff City 3–1 Watford Cardiff City Stadium, Cardiff
McCormack 7'
Whittingham 63'
Burke 78'		 [72] Helguson 90 + 3' Attendance: 20,130
Referee: Crossley
24 March 2010 Match 37
Sheffield Wednesday
2–1 Watford Hillsborough Stadium, Sheffield
Nolan 56'
Varney 89'		 [73] Cleverley 67' Attendance: 18,449
Referee: Deadman
Watford v Middlesbrough
27 March 2010 Match 38 Watford 1–1 Middlesbrough Vicarage Road, Watford
Eustace 21' [74] Lita 55' Attendance: 14,038
Referee: East
30 March 2010 Match 39 Watford 1–3 Crystal Palace Vicarage Road, Watford
Graham 83' [75] John 31'
Scannell 51'
Danns 66'
Hills Yellow card 87' Red card		 Attendance: 15,134
Referee: Taylor
3 April 2010 Match 40
Preston North End
1–1 Watford Deepdale, Preston
Davidson 53' [76] Buckley 35' Attendance: 12,534
Referee: Shoebridge
5 April 2010 Match 41
West Bromwich Albion
Vicarage Road, Watford
Graham 85' [77] Brunt 90+5' Attendance: 14,555
Referee: Tanner
10 April 2010 Match 42
Plymouth Argyle
Vicarage Road, Watford
Helguson 50' [citation needed] Attendance: 14,246
Referee: Atkins
Leicester City v Watford
17 April 2010 Match 43
Walkers Stadium, Leicester
[78] Attendance: 24,765
Referee: Miller
20 April 2010 Match 44
QPR
1–0 Watford Loftus Road, London
Buzsaky
38' (pen)		 [79] Attendance: 13,171
Referee: Miller
Watford v Reading
24 April 2010 Match 45 Watford 3–0 Reading Vicarage Road, Watford
[80] Attendance: 15,949
Referee: Friend
2 May 2010 Match 46
Ricoh Arena, Coventry
[81] Attendance: 19,103
Referee: Halsey

Summary

For the full league table, see 2009–10 Football League Championship § League table.

From their 3rd game until their 31st, Watford found themselves in a mid-table position; seldom in the top six, but several points clear of the relegation zone. A series of fixture postponements meant that, as of their 30th fixture, Watford had played fewer matches than any other Championship team.

Sheffield Wednesday only on goal difference.[82] Survival was sealed in the penultimate match with a 3–0 win against Reading. A subsequent victory at Coventry elevated Watford to a final position of 16th, their highest place in the table for two months. The team finished with 54 points – 16 fewer than Blackpool in the final playoff position, and 7 more than Sheffield Wednesday, the highest placed of the three relegated teams.[83]

Key
  • W: Win
  • D: Draw
  • L: Loss
  • GF: Goals for
  • GA: Goals against
  • GD: Goal difference
  • H: Home fixture
  • A: Away fixture
  • Pld: Games played
  • Pts: Points scored
  •   Playoff position (3–6)
  •   Relegation position (22–24)
Game 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46
Ground H A A H A H A H A H H A A H A H H A A H H A H A A A H A H A H A H H H A A H H A H H A A H A
Result D L W D D W W D D L L W D W L W W L L W L L D D L L W L W D L L L L W L L D L D D W L L W W
Points 1 1 4 5 6 9 12 13 14 14 14 17 18 21 21 24 27 27 27 30 30 30 31 32 32 32 35 35 38 39 39 39 39 39 42 42 42 43 43 44 45 48 48 48 51 54
Position 8 22 11 12 13 10 6 8 7 11 15 12 12 10 12 12 8 9 12 6 10 13 13 13 14 14 12 12 11 13 15 17 18 19 19 19 21 21 21 21 21 19 20 20 19 16
Overall Home Away
Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts W D L GF GA GD W D L GF GA GD
46 14 12 20 61 68  −7 54 10 6 7 36 26  +10 4 6 13 25 42  −17

League Cup

Main article: 2009–10 Football League Cup

First round

The first round draw for the 2009–10

Football League Two. In the match, Malky Mackay gave a first competitive start to 17-year-old academy right back Lee Hodson and a first game of the season to goalkeeper Richard Lee. The match was goalless after 90 minutes, before Scott Severin and Mike Williamson scored for Watford in extra time.[85]

Barnet v Watford
11 August 2009 First round
a.e.t.)
 Watford Underhill Stadium, Barnet
[85] Williamson 105'
Severin 120 + 3'		 Attendance: 3,139
Referee: Cook

Second round

The second round draw, held on 12 August 2009, included the 35 winners from the first round, as well as Newcastle, Middlesbrough, and the 13

League One side.[87]

Leeds United v Watford
25 August 2009 Second round
a.e.t.)
 Watford Elland Road, Leeds
Snodgrass 38', 98' [87] Sordell 87' Attendance: 14,681
Referee: Hall

FA Cup

Main article: 2009–10 FA Cup

Championship clubs enter the FA Cup at the third round stage, where they are joined by the 20 winners from the second round for a total of 64 teams. The draw took place on 8 December 2009. For the third consecutive cup draw of the season, Watford were the away side, this time against 2008–09 FA Cup winners Chelsea.[88] Watford's first match of the year was an FA Cup third round match away to holders Chelsea. Despite the absence of Chelsea's top scorers Didier Drogba and Nicolas Anelka, Watford conceded five goals without reply, and were eliminated from the competition.[89]

Chelsea v Watford
3 January 2010 Third round Chelsea 5–0 Watford Stamford Bridge, London
Sturridge 6', 69'
Eustace 15' o.g.
Malouda 23'
Lampard 65'		 [89] Attendance: 40,912
Referee: Friend

Players

Statistics

Over the course of the season, 31 players made at least one first team appearance for Watford. Of these, Adrian Mariappa was the only one to start all 49 matches. Goalkeeper Scott Loach started every league match, while Danny Graham also played some part in every Watford fixture. Graham also finished as the club's top scorer with 14 goals, all of them coming in the Football League. Tied for second place were Heiðar Helguson and Tom Cleverley, both of whom scored 11 goals. Three Watford players were sent off in 2009–10: Cleverley, Jon Harley and Nathan Ellington received one red card each.

Correct as of the final game of the season. Starting appearances are listed first, followed by substitute appearances in parentheses where applicable.

2010–11 Watford playing statistics
No. Pos Name P G P G P G P G Notes
Championship
 FA Cup
League Cup
 Total Discipline
1 GK Scott Loach 46 0 1 0 0 0 47 0 2 0 —
2 DF Adrian Mariappa 46 1 1 0 2 0 49 1 6 0 —
3 DF Jure Travner 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 —
4 MF Scott Severin 4(5) 0 1 0 1 1 6(5) 1 0 0 —
5 MF Henri Lansbury 34(3) 5 1 0 0(1) 0 35(4) 5 10 0 Joined club on 21 August 2009
6 DF Jay DeMerit 25(2) 0 1 0 0 0 26(3) 0 2 0 —
7 MF Don Cowie 40(1) 2 1 0 2 0 43(1) 2 1 0 —
8 MF Stephen McGinn 2(7) 0 0 0 0 0 2(7) 0 1 0 Joined club on 15 January 2010
8 MF
Tommy Smith
 		4 2 0 0 1 0 5 2 0 0 Left club on 27 August 2009
10 FW Danny Graham 37(9) 14 1 0 2 0 40(9) 14 2 0 —
11 FW Heiðar Helguson 26(3) 11 0 0 0 0 26(3) 11 3 0 Joined club on 15 September 2009[n 2]
11 MF Jobi McAnuff 3 0 0 0 1 0 4 0 0 0 Left club on 27 August 2009
12 DF Lloyd Doyley 43(1) 1 1 0 2 0 46(1) 1 2 0 —
13 GK Jonathan North 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 —
14 MF
Ross Jenkins
 		21(3) 0 0(1) 0 1 0 22(4) 0 1 0 —
15 MF Jon Harley 20(18) 1 0(1) 0 0(1) 0 20(20) 1 4 1 —
16 GK Richard Lee 0 0 0 0 2 0 2 0 0 0 —
17 DF Dale Bennett 8(2) 0 0 0 0 0 8(2) 0 1 0 —
18 FW Will Hoskins 5(13) 3 0 0 1 0 6(13) 3 0 0 —
19 FW
Liam Henderson
 		0(13) 0 0(1) 0 0(1) 0 0(15) 0 1 0 —
20 MF Tom Cleverley 33 11 1 0 1 0 35 11 5 1 Joined club on 17 August 2009.
22 DF Craig Cathcart 12 0 0 0 0 0 12 0 0 0 Joined club on 14 September 2009, and left on 5 January 2010
22 MF Will Buckley 4(2) 1 0 0 0 0 4(2) 1 1 0 Joined club on 26 January 2010.
24 DF
Martin Taylor
 		17(2) 2 0 0 0 0 17(2) 2 1 0
24 DF Mike Williamson 4 1 0 0 2 1 6 2 0 0 Left club on 1 September 2009.
25 FW Nathan Ellington 2(15) 1 0 0 0(1) 0 2(16) 1 2 1 Left club on 1 January 2010
26 MF John-Joe O'Toole 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Left club on 1 September 2009.[n 3]
26 FW Ryan Noble 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 —
27 DF Mat Sadler 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 —
28 MF John Eustace 39(3) 4 1 0 2 0 42(3) 4 11 0 —
29 MF Michael Bryan 1(6) 0 0 0 0 0 1(6) 0 0 0 —
30 MF Rob Kiernan 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 —
31 FW Marvin Sordell 1(4) 1 0 0 0(1) 1 1(5) 2 2 0 —
33 DF Lee Hodson 29(2) 0 1 0 2 0 32(2) 0 2 0 —
34 DF Eddie Oshodi 0(1) 0 0 0 0 0 0(1) 0 0 0 —
36 FW Kurtney Brooks 0 0 0 0 0(1) 0 0(1) 0 0 0 —
37 GK Jonathan Bond 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 —
38 MF Piero Mingoia 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 —
39 FW Gavin Massey 0(1) 0 0 0 0 0 0(1) 0 0 0 —

Awards

Transfers

In

Birmingham City
in January 2010.

Watford signed three permanent players before the first game of the season: former Scotland international

Martin Taylor
.

Unless a country is specified, all clubs play in the English football league system.

Date Player From Fee
1 July 2009 Scott Severin Aberdeen (Scotland) Free[91]
2 July 2009 Danny Graham
Carlisle United
 £200,000[n 4]
18 July 2009 Jure Travner
Celje (Slovenia
)		 Undisclosed[93]
15 January 2010 Stephen McGinn St Mirren (Scotland) Undisclosed[94]
26 January 2010 Will Buckley Rochdale Undisclosed[95]
29 January 2010
Martin Taylor
 Birmingham City Free[96]

Out

Ipswich Town in the first week of August, just before the start of the Championship season. Despite being able to transfer players at any stage between 1 July and 1 September, Watford conducted much of their business in the last week of the transfer window. Portsmouth submitted transfer bids for Smith and Williamson. Negotiations with Reading for Smith were ongoing,[98] while their bid for McAnuff was accepted. Smith's transfer to Portsmouth and McAnuff's move to Reading were confirmed before Watford's match against Swansea City,[99] with Williamson's transfer following a few days after.[100] Mackay later expressed frustration at the latter transfer, revealing that after Watford rejected Williamson's transfer request, he declared himself unfit to train, play, or travel to Swansea.[101]

Watford's final sale of the season came when the January transfer window opened on 1 January 2010.

Colchester United, was signed on a permanent transfer by former Watford manager Aidy Boothroyd
.

All clubs play in the English football league system.

Man wearing white T-shirt, black shorts and yellow socks, standing on a pitch
Jobi McAnuff was sold to Reading in August.
Date[n 5] Player To Fee
3 July 2009 Theo Robinson
Huddersfield Town
 Undisclosed[102]
23 July 2009 Al Bangura Released[n 6] Mutual termination[104]
7 August 2009 Tamás Priskin
Ipswich Town
 Undisclosed[105]
27 August 2009 Jobi McAnuff Reading Undisclosed[106]
27 August 2009
Tommy Smith
 Portsmouth Undisclosed[107]
1 September 2009 Mike Williamson Portsmouth £2 million[n 7]
1 January 2010 John-Joe O'Toole
Colchester United
 Undisclosed[n 3]
21 June 2010 Jordan Parkes Released[n 8] Mutual termination
30 June 2010 Richard Lee Released[n 9] Free (end of contract)
End of season Jay DeMerit Released Free (end of contract)
End of season Will Hoskins Released[n 10] Free (end of contract)
End of season Jon Harley Released[n 11] Free (end of contract)

Loans

In

Manchester United teammate Craig Cathcart, and Arsenal midfielder Henri Lansbury. Watford's other significant loan acquisition was former player Heiðar Helguson. The Iceland international made an instant impact on his return to Vicarage Road, scoring two goals as a substitute in a 3–3 draw against Leicester City
.

Start Player From End
17 August 2009 Tom Cleverley
Manchester United
 End of season[113]
21 August 2009 Henri Lansbury Arsenal End of season[114]
14 September 2009 Craig Cathcart Manchester United 4 January 2010[115]
15 September 2009 Heiðar Helguson QPR End of season[n 2]
25 March 2010 Ryan Noble Sunderland 20 April 2010[117][118]

Out

For similar reasons to their young acquisitions, Watford loaned players such as O'Toole,

Stockport County, and Nathan Ellington
to Greek side Skoda Xanthi. In both cases, the loans were made with the option of a possible permanent move.

Start Player To End
1 September 2009 John-Joe O'Toole
Colchester United
 1 January 2010[n 3]
16 December 2009
Billy Gibson
 Wealdstone 11 February 2010[119]
1 January 2010 Nathan Ellington
Skoda Xanthi (Greece
)		 31 December 2010[120]
22 January 2010 Jonathan North Oxford City February 2010[121]
29 January 2010 Mat Sadler Stockport County End of Season[122]
1 February 2010 Scott Severin Kilmarnock (Scotland) End of Season[123]
1 February 2010 Rob Kiernan Kilmarnock (Scotland) End of Season[124]
1 February 2010 Marvin Sordell Tranmere Rovers April 2010[125]
19 March 2010 Lewis Young
Hereford United
 April 2010[126]

International

Four Watford players represented their country at senior international level in 2009–10. Club captain

2010 World Cup, where he played against England and Slovenia. Heiðar Helguson played five matches for Iceland, scoring two international goals in a 4–0 win over Andorra. Don Cowie made his debut for Scotland against Japan, and was selected again by manager George Burley to play against Wales. Another debutant was Michael Bryan. He toured the United States with Northern Ireland, making his international debut as a substitute against Turkey and four days later starting for his country against World Cup qualifiers Chile
.

Several further players participated in youth international matches. Loan duo

Ross Jenkins also played for the team in a friendly against Montenegro. Other professional players to represent their countries at youth level included Lee Hodson and Craig Cathcart for Northern Ireland under-21, Stephen McGinn for Scotland under-21, Rob Kiernan for Ireland under 19s, and Eddie Oshodi for England under-17s.[127]

Management and coaching staff

Watford's managerial and coaching setup changed considerably between May and July 2009. Manager

Nottingham Forest coach David Kerslake as a first team coach.[129]

Position Staff
Manager Malky Mackay[130]
Assistant manager Sean Dyche[131]
First team coach David Kerslake[129]
Goalkeeping Coach Alec Chamberlain[132]
Head of Football Business and Development John Stephenson[132]
Head of Conditioning/coach Martyn Pert[132]
Head of Medical Richard Collinge[132]
Strength and Conditioning coach Mathew Monte-Colombo[132]
Chief Performance Analyst Neil McIlhargey[132]
Kit Manager Bob Oteng (until 12 December 2009)[133]
Will Jones (from 13 December 2009)[133]

Reserves and academy

Liam Henderson was the team's top scorer with 11 goals, which included 4 in a 9–3 home win against Stevenage.[135] A total of 14 players appeared for both the senior and reserve teams in 2009–10, including Henderson, Lee Hodson, Dale Bennett and Michael Bryan.[136]

Watford's youth system operates in partnership with the Harefield Academy in Hillingdon. First and second year scholars (aged 16–18) are officially attached to Watford, but also undergo a programme of academic and vocational study at the academy. Players aged 16 and below compete for the school team in their respective age groups under the name Harefield Academy, but wear Watford shirts. On occasion, Harefield schoolboys competed for Watford's under-18 side.

"On the last day of the season, 11 of the squad were from the Academy which says a lot about our youth set up."

Malky Mackay[137]

The club's under-18 side competed in Group B of the

Shenley. Three players featured for both the under-18 and senior teams in 2009–10: defender Eddie Oshodi, midfielder Kurtney Brooks, and striker Gavin Massey. Professional footballer Rob Kiernan also played for the academy; he spent part of the season playing first team football on loan at Scottish Premier League club Kilmarnock.[139] Harefield Academy's under-15 and under-16 sides both won the Schools' Cup; the first time in the history of the competition that a school won the trophy in multiple age groups.[140]

Supporters

Watford's stadium, Vicarage Road, has a capacity of 17,504. The precise number of season ticket holders has not been stated, but Jimmy Russo revealed in the company's accounts that they numbered approximately 10,000.[141] Visiting clubs received an allocation of 2,300 tickets for their supporters.[142]

The club played 23 competitive home matches in 2009–10, all of them in the Championship, as well as a pre-season

friendly match
against Parma. Their highest home attendance was 17,120 against Newcastle on Saturday 27 February 2010. The lowest competitive attendance was 12,179 against Bristol City on Tuesday 9 February 2010, while the lowest home attendance overall was 3,598 in the Parma match on Saturday 1 August 2009. Watford's average attendance in competitive matches was 14,344.

Watford played 26 competitive away matches in 2009–10. The match against Newcastle at St James' Park on Saturday 5 December 2009 attracted 43,050 spectators. This was the largest crowd at any Watford match that season, although this was aided in part by the fact that they did not play at another stadium with the capacity to beat it. Another notable away fixture was the match at Madejski Stadium against Reading. Brendan Rodgers, Watford's manager for the second half of 2008–09, left Watford for Reading under controversial circumstances in June, having previously stated that his integrity was being questioned when linked with the managerial vacancy. Reading's matchday squad also featured three former Hornets, two of whom had played for Watford under Rodgers. The match attracted 3,389 Watford fans, and ended in a 1–1 draw, with ex-Watford player Grzegorz Rasiak scoring Reading's goal, and Jobi McAnuff and Brynjar Gunnarsson also playing a part.

Ownership and finance

Watford Football Club is owned by the holding company Watford Leisure Plc (LSE: WFC). Its 2008–09 financial year ran from 1 July 2008 until 30 June 2009. The company released its audited accounts and annual report on 6 November 2009. It included details of the club's major shareholders, showing that Fordwat Limited—the investment company of Michael Ashcroft—owned 37.16% of Watford Leisure, Valley Grown Salads (VGS)—owned by Watford Leisure directors Jimmy and Vince Russo—held a 29.98% stake, and that previous Watford chairman Graham Simpson had a 16.79% share.[141]

"Is this the worst situation I have ever faced in 30 years involvement at Watford? Of course it is. We could go into administration but it doesn't have to happen."

Graham Taylor, 18 December 2009[143]

The accounts showed an operating loss of £1.465 million, and a net loss of £1.987 million.[141] Throughout 2009, Watford Leisure found themselves in need of finance on several occasions, and were loaned the money by VGS. On 30 November, VGS lent the club a further £1m, taking the total loan to the club to £4.88 million, secured against the club's stadium Vicarage Road. Upon announcing the loan, Watford revealed that this finance would only be sufficient to cover the club's costs until 22 December, and that a further £5.5 million would be needed to keep the business afloat until 30 June 2010.[144]

Watford Leisure's

Graham Taylor was appointed interim chairman. VGS requested immediate repayment of the outstanding loan balance. The club received an offer from Fordwat to underwrite a rights issue worth £7.5m, but revealed that for this plan to work VGS would have to agree to suspend the loan repayment, indicating that they would be placed into administration unless agreement were reached.[146] VGS refused to do so, and Jimmy Russo stated that unless something changed, VGS were left with no option but to begin the process of placing the club in administration.[147] However, administration was avoided when Fordwat paid VGS the money on 21 December 2009, and the club announced two days later that it would borrow money from Elton John's "Playing for Players" concert to fund its running costs until it received the money from the rights issue.[148]

Footnotes

  1. clean sheet
    refers to the achievement of playing an entire match without conceding a goal.
  2. ^ a b Helguson's loan originally ended on 31 December 2009. He rejoined QPR for the first part of January, playing for them in an FA Cup third round tie against Sheffield United. He signed a loan extension with Watford on 11 January 2010.[116]
  3. ^
    Colchester United, and later transferred there permanently.[90]
  4. ^ Watford must also pay £30,000 per 15 appearances, up to a maximum of 75 appearances, plus a one-off fee of £200,000 if they achieve promotion to the Premier League in 2009–10, 2010–11 or 2011–12.[92]
  5. ^ "End of season" denotes players who were available for the final game of the season, and subsequently left upon the expiry of their contracts.
  6. ^ Bangura later joined Blackpool.[103]
  7. ^ Possibly rising to £3 million. Deal also includes a sell-on clause.[108]
  8. ^ Parkes later signed for Barnet.[109]
  9. ^ Lee subsequently signed for Brentford.[110]
  10. Bristol Rovers.[111]
  11. Notts County.[112]

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