Watford Football Club are an association football club from Watford, Hertfordshire, England. Home matches were played at the club's stadium, Vicarage Road, which had a capacity of 17,504 for the 2009–10 season. Watford's season officially began on 1 July 2009 and concluded on 30 June 2010, although competitive matches were only played between August and May. They competed in the Football League Championship, the second highest division in English football, following their relegation from the Premier League in 2007.
After guiding the club to a 13th-placed finish in 2008–09, Brendan Rodgers resigned as manager of Watford in June 2009 to take up the same role at Reading, with three members of his coaching staff doing likewise. He was replaced as manager by ex-Watford player and coach Malky Mackay. Early in the season, first-team players including Player of the Season 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 FA Cup by eventual winners Chelsea, and eliminated from the League Cup in the second round by Leeds United.
Background
The 2008–09 Championship season took place between 1 July 2008 and 30 June 2009, and Watford finished the season in 13th place in the league table. Previous manager Aidy Boothroyd left the club by "mutual consent" in November 2008 and was replaced by former Reading and Chelsea academy boss Brendan Rodgers. New arrivals Jack Cork, Don Cowie and Mike Williamson contributed to Watford's improved form between February and May 2009, lifting Watford away from the relegation zone in the closing weeks of the season. The club's financial problems had been well documented and several changes to the playing staff were anticipated over the summer. In addition to anticipated player sales, another person linked with a move away from Vicarage Road was manager Rodgers, who had been linked with a move to former club Reading. He was not happy with the suggestion that he was in talks with Reading and suggested that his integrity was being questioned. When he subsequently joined Reading in June, Watford received an initial £500,000 in compensation. First-team coach and former Watford and Scotland player Malky Mackay was appointed as his successor. The only player to leave the club prior to the start of pre-season training was Lee Williamson, who had spent the second half of the 2008–09 season on loan at Preston.
Pre-season Watford started pre-season training at their training ground in London Colney on 1 July 2009. The first team began with friendly matches at local sides Boreham Wood, Hampton & Richmond and Wealdstone, before a pre-season tour to Spain where they faced CF Balaguer and UE Lleida. Meanwhile, a development side including several first-team squad members faced Tring Athletic and St Albans City. The club's final pre-season fixture was a 3–2 home victory against Italian side Parma.
Watford sold striker Tamás Priskin to Ipswich Town days before the start of the season and started the Championship campaign with the future of several players unresolved, including those of top scorer and player of the season Tommy Smith, highest earner Jobi McAnuff, and the club's most expensive ever player Nathan Ellington.
Legend
All matches played in England unless otherwise stated.
Football League Championship
A total of 24 teams competed in the Football League Championship in the 2009–10 season. Each team played 46 matches; two against every other team, one match at each club's stadium. Three points were awarded for each win, one point per draw, and none for defeats. At the end of the season the top two teams would gain promotion to the Premier League. The bottom three would be relegated to Football League One. The teams that finished 3rd–6th 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. Watford's home games against Sheffield Wednesday and QPR were played on a Friday and Monday respectively, as a result of live television coverage. 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.
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 Doncaster Rovers, a team who finished the 2008–09 season level on points with Watford. Mackay was banned from the match, due to a suspension from an incident in the previous season. Watford lined up in a 4–4–2 formation, with Tommy Smith playing as a striker, and Don Cowie and Jobi McAnuff as 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. 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.
Despite the transfer speculation, Smith played for Watford at Nottingham Forest, scoring one goal and assisting two more. Also involved were Lee Hodson, who made his first competitive starting appearance, and loan players Henri Lansbury and Tom Cleverley. Forest scored twice, but Cleverley scored Watford's fourth goal to secure the club's first league win of the season. The home game against Blackpool at Vicarage Road proved to be Smith's final game for the club. His and Cleverley's goals were equalised by Alex Baptiste and Gary Taylor-Fletcher respectively, giving Blackpool their fourth consecutive draw. The final match before the closure of the transfer window was a trip to Welsh side Swansea City, where Watford continued with their 4–4–2 formation. The departures of Smith, Williamson and McAnuff meant that Lansbury and Marvin Sordell made their first starts, and helped Hodson retain his place in the team. Graham nutmegged goalkeeper Dorus de Vries to put Watford ahead, but Swansea defender Alan Tate scored a late header to salvage a 1–1 draw.
Watford did not play another game for two weeks, due to international fixtures. On the resumption of club football, they faced Barnsley and Plymouth Argyle, who were both near the bottom of the Championship at the time. Watford changed to a 4–5–1 formation for the home match against Barnsley, with Jon Harley replacing Sordell. Their other change to the starting lineup was an enforced one. Captain Jay DeMerit suffered an injury whilst on international duty with the US, and was replaced by Dale Bennett, who made his Football League debut. Graham scored the only goal of the game with a close-range finish in the 54th minute. Watford's clean sheet was their first in the league since March. 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.
Former Watford player Heiðar Helguson rejoined Watford on loan from QPR on 15 September 2009, and his first game was as a substitute against Leicester City. With Watford trailing 2–0 at half time, Mackay changed from a 4–5–1 formation to a 4–4–2, with striker Helguson replacing attacking midfielder Henri Lansbury. Helguson's impact was immediate. He set up Graham for Watford's opening goal, before scoring twice to put Watford into a 3–2 lead. However, Helguson suffered an injury shortly before the end of the match, and Ellington replaced him for the final ten minutes. Leicester subsequently equalised, and the match ended 3–3. A total of 3,389 Watford fans attended the away match against Reading, who were managed by ex-Watford manager Brendan Rodgers. Former Watford player Grzegorz Rasiak scored Reading's goal, in a match that also saw Jobi McAnuff and Brynjar Gunnarsson facing their former club. Graham equalised for Watford, and despite a red card for Ellington, the match finished as a draw. Preparation for Watford's game against Coventry City was affected by a virus affecting six first-team players. Will Hoskins scored his first goal of the season, but Coventry scored three goals to inflict Watford's first home defeat of the season. Four days later Cardiff City defeated Watford 4–0; Watford's heaviest home league defeat since January 2004.
Don Cowie made his debut for Scotland during the October international break. Upon the resumption of club football, Watford recorded an away win at Middlesbrough, who had just been relegated from the Premier League. Three days later, Ipswich led Watford 1–0 at the end of standard time at Portman Road, but Nathan Ellington equalised in the last minute to deny Ipswich their first league win of 2009–10. Watford's game against Sheffield Wednesday was their third in seven days, and first goals of the season for Lansbury, Adrian Mariappa and Jon Harley ensured Watford's second win in that time. Eight days later Watford travelled to fourth-placed West Bromwich Albion. Watford were defeated 5–0—their heaviest defeat of the season and biggest ever defeat against West Brom. 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 Scunthorpe United. Helguson scored two goals, meaning that at that point he was averaging more than a goal per game in 2009–10. Watford suffered consecutive defeats away to Crystal Palace and Newcastle, failing to score in either match. The Newcastle match was followed by a home game against Queens Park Rangers two days later, due to television coverage. Lloyd Doyley scored his first ever goal in professional football to equalise before half-time, and Watford eventually won 3–1. This marked Watford's fourth consecutive home win, and took them into a playoff position. Such was the surprise at Doyley's goal, that the club released a commemorative T-shirt, with the slogan "I was there when Lloyd scored!" However, Watford's sequence of home wins ended with a 1–0 loss to Derby County, and was followed by a defeat at the league's then bottom side, Peterborough United—their first win since sacking manager Darren Ferguson. The team finished 2009 with consecutive draws against Nottingham Forest and Bristol City.
2010