# 2008–09 Plymouth Argyle F.C. season

The 2008–09 football season was Plymouth Argyle Football Club's 40th season in the Football League Championship, the second division of English football, and their 104th as a professional club. It officially began on 1 July 2008, and concluded on 30 June 2009, although competitive matches were only played between August and May.
The team's shirt supplier was Puma. The shirt sponsor was Ginsters.

## Season summary

The club began the 2008–09 season in the Football League Championship for the fourth successive year, following a highly creditable 10th-place finish the previous year. However, this season they finished 21st in the league table, one position and five points above the relegation zone with a record of 13 wins, 12 draws, and 21 defeats from 46 games. Their leading goalscorer was Paul Gallagher with 13 goals in all competitions.
The club entered the FA Cup in the third round, where they lost 3–1 away to Premier League club Arsenal. They entered the League Cup in the first round and were eliminated away to Luton Town of League Two, losing 2–0.
Notable players to begin their careers with the Pilgrims this season included Carl Fletcher, Alan Judge, Paul Gallagher, Karl Duguid and Chris Barker. The club captain was Romain Larrieu and the team captain was Karl Duguid.
Legend
Win  Draw  Loss

### Championship
#### League table

| Pos | Club | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
| 19 | Nottingham Forest | 46 | 13 | 14 | 19 | 50 | 65 | −15 | 53 |
| 20 | Barnsley | 46 | 13 | 13 | 20 | 45 | 58 | −13 | 52 |
| 21 | Plymouth Argyle | 46 | 13 | 12 | 21 | 44 | 57 | -13 | 51 |
| 22 | Norwich City | 46 | 12 | 10 | 24 | 57 | 70 | −13 | 46 |
| 23 | Southampton | 46 | 10 | 15 | 21 | 46 | 69 | −23 | 45 |
Pld = Matches played; W = Matches won; D = Matches drawn; L = Matches lost; GF = Goals for; GA = Goals against; GD = Goal difference; Pts = Points

#### Results summary

| Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Home | Home | Home | Home | Home | Home | Away | Away | Away | Away | Away | Away |
As of games played 3 May 2009

#### Results by round

| Round | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 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 | H | A | H | A | A | H | A | H | A | H | H | A | A | H | A | H | A | H | A | H | H | A | H | A | A | H | A | A | H | A | H | H | A | H | H | A | A | H | A | H | A | H | A | H |
| Result | D | L | L | D | L | W | W | W | D | W | L | W | L | W | L | D | W | W | D | L | L | L | D | L | W | L | L | L | D | D | L | L | L | D | W | W | D | L | L | L | W | W | D | L | D | L |
| Position | 10 | 18 | 22 | 21 | 24 | 20 | 18 | 12 | 12 | 5 | 12 | 8 | 10 | 9 | 11 | 10 | 9 | 7 | 7 | 8 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 13 | 12 | 15 | 15 | 16 | 16 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 19 | 17 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 21 | 19 | 19 | 19 | 19 | 19 | 21 |

### FA Cup

Third round

### Football League Cup

First round

## Squad details
### Player statistics

Key
# = Squad number; Pos = Playing position; P = Number of games played; G = Number of goals scored; = Yellow cards; = Red cards; GK = Goalkeeper; DF = Defender; MF = Midfielder; FW = Forward
Statistics do not include minor competitions or games played for other clubs. All players who were provided a squad number during the 2008–09 season are included.
| No. | Pos. | Name | League | League | FA Cup | FA Cup | League Cup | League Cup | Total | Total | Discipline | Discipline |
| No. | Pos. | Name | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | | |
| 1 | GK | Romain Larrieu | 41 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 42 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 2 | MF | Karl Duguid | 39 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 41* | 2 | 4 | 0 |
| 3 | MF | Jim Paterson | 7+10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 8+10 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 4 | MF | Simon Walton ¤ | 12+1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 13+1 | 0 | 3 | 1 |
| 5 | DF | Krisztian Timar | 13+8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 14+8 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 6 | MF | Chris Clark | 30+6 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 31+6 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| 7 | MF | Jason Puncheon ¤ | 5+1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 6+1* | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 8 | MF | Yoann Folly | 6+5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 7+5 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 9 | FW | Steve MacLean | 11+10 | 2 | 0+1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 12+11 | 2 | 4 | 0 |
| 10 | FW | Jermaine Easter ¤ | 2+2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3+2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 11 | FW | Paul Gallagher ‡ | 36+4 | 13 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 37+4* | 13 | 6 | 0 |
| 13 | DF | Mathias Doumbe | 21+3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 21+3 | 1 | 5 | 0 |
| 14 | FW | Rory Fallon | 26+18 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0+1 | 0 | 27+19 | 5 | 6 | 0 |
| 15 | DF | Chris Barker | 38+2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 40+2* | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 16 | DF | David McNamee | 5+5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5+5* | 0 | 3 | 1 |
| 17 | MF | Craig Noone | 3+18 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4+18* | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| 18 | DF | Gary Sawyer | 13 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 13 | 3 | 2 | 0 |
| 19 | DF | Marcel Seip | 41 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 42 | 3 | 4 | 0 |
| 20 | MF | Luke Summerfield | 28+1 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0+1 | 0 | 29+2 | 2 | 3 | 0 |
| 21 | GK | Graham Stack ¤ | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 6* | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 22 | DF | Craig Cathcart ‡ | 29+1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 31+1* | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| 23 | MF | Alan Judge ‡ | 15+2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 15+2* | 2 | 2 | 0 |
| 23 | MF | Nicolas Marin ‡ | 1+5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1+5* | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 24 | FW | Ashley Barnes | 12+3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 12+3 | 1 | 2 | 0 |
| 25 | MF | Jamie Mackie | 35+8 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0+1 | 0 | 36+9 | 5 | 3 | 0 |
| 26 | MF | Yannick Bolasie ¤ | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 27 | GK | Lloyd Saxton | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 28 | MF | Carl Fletcher ‡ | 13 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 13* | 1 | 3 | 0 |
| 28 | DF | Shane White † | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 29 | DF | Damien McCrory ¤ | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 30 | MF | Dan Smith † | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 31 | FW | Emile Mpenza | 3+6 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3+6* | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| 33 | DF | David Gray ‡ | 14 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 15* | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| 35 | FW | George Donnelly | 0+2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0+2* | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 37 | MF | Roudolphe Douala † | 1+1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1+1* | 0 | 0 | 0 |

### Goal scorers

| Scorer | Goals |
| Paul Gallagher | 13 |
| Rory Fallon | 5 |
| Jamie Mackie | 5 |
| Gary Sawyer | 3 |
| Marcel Seip | 3 |
| Karl Duguid | 2 |
| Alan Judge | 2 |
| Steve MacLean | 2 |
| Emile Mpenza | 2 |
| Luke Summerfield | 2 |
| Ashley Barnes | 1 |
| Craig Cathcart | 1 |
| Mathias Doumbe | 1 |
| Carl Fletcher | 1 |
| Craig Noone | 1 |

### Starting 11

The following players have been named in the most starting line-ups. This line-up may differ from the list of players with most appearances.
| No. | Position | Name | Starts |
| 1 | GK | Romain Larrieu | 42 |
| 13 | DF | Mathias Doumbe | 21 |
| 22 | DF | Craig Cathcart | 31 |
| 37 | DF | Marcel Seip | 42 |
| 15 | DF | Chris Barker | 40 |
| 25 | MF | Jamie Mackie | 36 |
| 2 | MF | Karl Duguid | 41 |
| 20 | MF | Luke Summerfield | 29 |
| 6 | MF | Chris Clark | 31 |
| 14 | FW | Rory Fallon | 27 |
| 11 | FW | Paul Gallagher | 37 |

### Awards

| 2008–09 Awards | Pos. | Player |
| Player of the Year | GK | Romain Larrieu |
| Young Player of the Year | DF | Craig Cathcart |

## Transfers
### Permanent

In
| Date | Pos. | Name | From | Fee |
| 1 July 2008 | FW | George Donnelly | Skelmersdale United | Undisclosed |
| 15 July 2008 | DF | David McNamee | Coventry City | Free |
| 18 July 2008 | GK | Graham Stack | Reading | Free |
| 1 August 2008 | MF | Yannick Bolasie | Floriana | Undisclosed |
| 6 August 2008 | MF | Simon Walton | Queens Park Rangers | Undisclosed |
| 9 August 2008 | DF | Chris Barker | Queens Park Rangers | Undisclosed |
| 30 August 2008 | MF | Craig Noone | Southport | Undisclosed |
| 1 September 2008 | FW | Emile Mpenza | Manchester City | Free |
| 21 March 2009 | MF | Roudolphe Douala | Asteras Tripolis | Free |
Out
| Date | Pos. | Name | From | Fee |
| 3 July 2008 | MF | Jimmy Abdou | Millwall | Free |
| 16 July 2008 | MF | Péter Halmosi | Hull City | £2,500,000 |
| 22 July 2008 | GK | Luke McCormick | Free agent | Released |
| 31 July 2008 | MF | Lilian Nalis | Swindon Town | Free |
| 4 February 2009 | DF | Shane White | Free agent | Released |
| 31 May 2009 | MF | Dan Smith | Free agent | Released |
| 1 June 2009 | MF | Roudolphe Douala | Free agent | Released |

### Loans

In
| Start date | Pos. | Player | To | End date |
| 8 August 2008 | DF | Craig Cathcart | Manchester United | 25 May 2009 |
| 29 August 2008 | FW | Paul Gallagher | Blackburn Rovers | 25 May 2009 |
| 1 September 2008 | MF | Nicolas Marin | Lorient | 1 January 2009 |
| 1 January 2009 | DF | David Gray | Manchester United | 25 May 2009 |
| 29 January 2009 | MF | Alan Judge | Blackburn Rovers | 31 May 2009 |
| 19 February 2009 | MF | Carl Fletcher | Crystal Palace | 1 June 2009 |
Out
| Start date | Pos. | Player | To | End date |
| 9 September 2008 | MF | Dan Smith | Morecambe | 9 October 2008 |
| 25 September 2008 | FW | Jermaine Easter | Millwall | 9 November 2008 |
| 8 October 2008 | DF | Damien McCrory | Port Vale | 29 December 2008 |
| 24 October 2008 | MF | Jason Puncheon | Milton Keynes Dons | 21 December 2008 |
| 20 November 2008 | FW | Jermaine Easter | Colchester United | 20 December 2008 |
| 22 November 2008 | MF | Yannick Bolasie | Rushden & Diamonds | 2 January 2009 |
| 27 November 2008 | GK | Graham Stack | Blackpool | 1 January 2009 |
| 27 November 2008 | FW | Ashley Barnes | Eastbourne Borough | 26 January 2009 |
| 27 November 2008 | MF | Dan Smith | Eastbourne Borough | 1 June 2009 |
| 28 November 2008 | DF | Shane White | Truro City | 28 December 2008 |
| 9 January 2009 | MF | Jason Puncheon | Milton Keynes Dons | 1 June 2009 |
| 22 January 2009 | MF | Yannick Bolasie | Barnet | 1 June 2009 |
| 26 March 2009 | GK | Graham Stack | Wolverhampton Wanderers | 1 June 2009 |
| 26 March 2009 | MF | Simon Walton | Blackpool | 1 June 2009 |