# 2006–07 Cardiff City F.C. season

During the 2006–07 season Cardiff City played in the Football League Championship. It was the team's fourth year in the Championship since being promoted from League One. The season also saw a change of chairman at the club when Sam Hammam handed over control to Peter Ridsdale.

## Season review
### Kit

The kits were designed by Spanish company Joma. It was the first season they were sponsored by Communications Direct.

### Events

* 31 May 2006 – Cardiff break their record for highest fee received for a player with the sale of Cameron Jerome to Birmingham City for £3 million.
* 22 December 2006 – Sam Hammam sells the club to Peter Ridsdale for £27 million.

### League

The opening game saw Cardiff win 2–1 over Barnsley on 5 August 2006 before Cardiff fans saw Michael Chopra score his first competitive goal for Cardiff in a 1–0 win over Coventry City. City were undefeated through August four wins and one draw against West Bromwich Albion. Their first loss came at Deepdale in a 2–1 defeat against Preston North End where Chopra scored his second league goal. The side's next win did not come until two games later in a 4–1 win over Luton Town at Ninian Park, going on to win their next four games when Norwich City ended the winning streak. After a 1–0 win over Burnley, Cardiff went four games without scoring, drawing two of these and losing the other two.
On 9 December 2006 Darren Purse scored their first goal since the win over Burnley against Ipswich Town which ended in a 2–2 draw. On 20 January 2007 Cardiff broke their poor run of form after going eleven games without a win with a 2–1 win over Wolverhampton Wanderers. They then went undefeated until a month later on 20 February 2007 this time West Bromwich Albion ended Cardiff's run but the side were still mid-table. Even though they hit straight back with a win over Preston North End, another loss to Birmingham City then a 1–0 win over Norwich City was followed by a winless streak which lasted until the end of the season, finishing in 13th place.

### FA Cup

Cardiff entered in the 3rd Round in a home game against Premier League side Tottenham Hotspur on 7 January 2007. A 0–0 draw at Ninian Park took the tie to a replay at White Hart Lane on 17 January which saw Cardiff lose 4–0.

### League Cup

In the first round of the League Cup, Cardiff were drawn against League Two side Barnet but a team made up of reserve and youth players were beaten 2–0.

### FAW Cup

Cardiff beat Carmarthen Town in the quarter-finals before being eliminated by The New Saints in the semi-finals.

## First-team squad

| No. | Name | Pos. | Place of birth | Age | Apps | Goals | Signed from | Date signed | Fee | Ends |
| Goalkeepers ||||||||||||
| 1 | Neil Alexander | GK | Edinburgh | 29 | 234 | 0 | Livingston | 28 May 2001 | £200,000 | 2007 |
| 13 | Mark Howard | GK | Southwark | 20 | 2 | 0 | Arsenal | 1 June 2006 | Free | 2007 |
| 15 | David Forde | GK | Galway | 27 | 8 | 0 | Derry City | 5 December 2006 | Free | 2009 |
| 23 | Martyn Margetson | GK | Neath | 35 | 41 | 0 | Huddersfield Town | 3 August 2002 | Free | 2007 |
| Defenders ||||||||||||
| 2 | Kerrea Gilbert | RB | Brent | 20 | 27 | 0 | Arsenal | 21 July 2006 | Loan | 2007 |
| 3 | Kevin McNaughton | RB | Dundee | 24 | 44 | 0 | Aberdeen | 26 May 2006 | Free | 2009 |
| 5 | Darren Purse | CB | Tower Hamlets | 30 | 76 | 8 | West Bromwich Albion | 28 July 2005 | £1,000,000 | 2009 |
| 6 | Glenn Loovens | CB | Doetinchem | 23 | 68 | 4 | Feyenoord | 9 May 2006 | £250,000 | 2009 |
| 12 | Roger Johnson | CB | Ashford | 20 | 33 | 2 | Wycombe Wanderers | 4 July 2006 | £275,000 | 2009 |
| 21 | Chris Barker | LB | Sheffield | 27 | 180 | 0 | Barnsley | 12 July 2002 | £500,000 | 2007 |
| 44 | Chris Gunter | RB | Newport | 17 | 18 | 0 | Academy | 1 August 2006 | Trainee | 2008 |
| Defenders ||||||||||||
| 4 | Jeff Whitley | CM | Ndola | 28 | 39 | 1 | Sunderland | 1 July 2005 | Free | 2007 |
| 7 | Peter Whittingham | LM | Nuneaton | 22 | 19 | 4 | Aston Villa | 11 January 2007 | £350,000 | 2009 |
| 10 | Stephen McPhail | CM | Westminster | 27 | 45 | 0 | Barnsley | 13 June 2006 | Free | 2008 |
| 11 | Paul Parry | LM | Chepstow | 26 | 118 | 12 | Hereford United | 9 January 2004 | £75,000 | 2008 |
| 14 | Willo Flood | CM | Dublin | 22 | 30 | 1 | Manchester City | 2 August 2006 | £200,000 | 2009 |
| 16 | Joe Ledley | LM | Cardiff | 20 | 126 | 10 | Academy | 1 September 2004 | Trainee | 2009 |
| 17 | Kevin Cooper | LM | Derby | 32 | 44 | 2 | Wolverhampton Wanderers | 26 July 2005 | Free | 2007 |
| 19 | Riccardo Scimeca | CM | Leamington Spa | 32 | 55 | 6 | West Bromwich Albion | 13 January 2006 | Free | 2008 |
| 26 | Aaron Ramsey | LM | Caerphilly | 16 | 1 | 0 | Academy | 1 June 2006 | Trainee | 2007 |
| 30 | Curtis McDonald | LM | Cardiff | 19 | 2 | 2 | Academy | 1 June 2006 | Trainee | 2007 |
| 35 | Simon Walton | CM | Leeds | 19 | 7 | 0 | Charlton Athletic | January 2007 | Loan | 2007 |
| 40 | Darcy Blake | DM | New Tredegar | 18 | 13 | 0 | Academy | 1 July 2005 | Trainee | 2009 |
| Forwards ||||||||||||
| 8 | Michael Chopra | CF | Newcastle upon Tyne | 23 | 44 | 22 | Newcastle United | 14 June 2006 | £500,000 | 2009 |
| 9 | Steve Thompson | CF | Paisley | 28 | 59 | 10 | Rangers | 10 January 2006 | £250,000 | 2008 |
| 18 | Luigi Glombard | CF | Montreuil-sous-Bois | 22 | 7 | 0 | Nantes | July 2006 | Free | 2007 |
| 20 | Kevin Campbell | CF | Lambeth | 37 | 21 | 1 | West Bromwich Albion | 2 August 2006 | Free | 2007 |
| 25 | Iwan Redan | CF | Rotterdam | 26 | 3 | 0 | Willem II | January 2007 | Loan | 2007 |
| 26 | Andrea Ferretti | CF | Parma | 20 | 9 | 0 | Parma | 25 July 2005 | Free | 2007 |
| 27 | Jason Byrne | CF | Dublin | 29 | 11 | 1 | Shelbuourne | 17 January 2007 | £75,000 | 2009 |
| 29 | Jamal Easter | CF | Cardiff | 19 | 0 | 0 | Academy | 1 June 2006 | Free | 2007 |
| 36 | Matt Green | CF | Bath | 20 | 6 | 0 | Newport County | 31 January 2007 | £10,000 | 2009 |
| 37 | Warren Feeney | CF | Belfast | 26 | 6 | 0 | Luton Town | March 2007 | Loan | 2007 |

## Squad statistics

| No. | Pos | Nat | Player | Total | Total | Championship | Championship | FA Cup | FA Cup | League Cup | League Cup | FAW Premier Cup | FAW Premier Cup |
| No. | Pos | Nat | Player | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals |
| 1 | GK | SCO | Neil Alexander | 41 | 0 | 39 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2 | DF | ENG | Kerrea Gilbert | 27 | 0 | 21+3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 3 | DF | SCO | Kevin McNaughton | 44 | 0 | 39+3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 4 | MF | NIR | Jeff Whitley | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 5 | DF | ENG | Darren Purse | 33 | 4 | 31 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 6 | DF | NED | Glenn Loovens | 32 | 2 | 30 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 7 | MF | ENG | Peter Whittingham | 19 | 4 | 18+1 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 8 | FW | ENG | Michael Chopra | 44 | 22 | 42 | 22 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 9 | FW | SCO | Steve Thompson | 45 | 6 | 39+4 | 6 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 10 | MF | EIR | Stephen McPhail | 45 | 0 | 43 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 11 | MF | WAL | Paul Parry | 43 | 6 | 41+1 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0+1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 12 | DF | ENG | Roger Johnson | 33 | 2 | 26+6 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 13 | GK | ENG | Mark Howard | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 14 | MF | EIR | Willo Flood | 30 | 1 | 5+20 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| 15 | GK | EIR | David Forde | 8 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 16 | MF | WAL | Joe Ledley | 49 | 3 | 46 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0+1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 17 | MF | ENG | Kevin Cooper | 7 | 0 | 0+4 | 0 | 0+1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 18 | FW | FRA | Luigi Glombard | 7 | 0 | 1+5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 19 | MF | ENG | Riccardo Scimeca | 37 | 5 | 35 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 20 | FW | ENG | Kevin Campbell | 21 | 1 | 4+15 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| 22 | DF | ENG | James Chambers | 7 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 22 | MF | EIR | James Simmonds | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 22 | DF | WAL | Rhys Weston | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 22 | DF | ENG | Alan Wright | 7 | 0 | 6+1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 25 | MF | ENG | Malvin Kamara | 16 | 1 | 3+12 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 25 | FW | NED | Iwan Redan | 3 | 0 | 0+2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 26 | FW | ITA | Andrea Ferretti | 4 | 0 | 0+1 | 0 | 0+1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| 26 | MF | WAL | Aaron Ramsey | 1 | 0 | 0+1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 27 | FW | EIR | Jason Byrne | 11 | 1 | 2+8 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 28 | DF | WAL | Joe Jacobson | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 30 | MF | WAL | Curtis McDonald | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| 35 | MF | ENG | Simon Walton | 7 | 0 | 5+1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 36 | FW | ENG | Matt Green | 6 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 37 | FW | NIR | Warren Feeney | 6 | 0 | 0+6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 40 | MF | WAL | Darcy Blake | 12 | 0 | 3+7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0+1 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 44 | DF | WAL | Chris Gunter | 18 | 0 | 9+6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 |

## Transfers
### Summer transfer window ins

| Date | # | Player | Club | Fee |
| 27 April 2006 | 6 | Glenn Loovens | Feyenoord | £250,000 |
| 26 May 2006 | 3 | Kevin McNaughton | Aberdeen | Free |
| 1 June 2006 | 13 | Mark Howard | Arsenal | Free |
| 14 June 2006 | 8 | Michael Chopra | Newcastle United | £500,000 |
| 4 July 2006 | 12 | Roger Johnson | Wycombe Wanderers | £275,000 |
| 5 July 2006 | 25 | Malvin Kamara | Milton Keynes Dons | Free |
| 5 July 2006 | 24 | Nick McKoy | Milton Keynes Dons | Free |
| 21 July 2006 | 18 | Luigi Glombard | Nantes | Free |
| 2 August 2006 | 20 | Kevin Campbell | West Bromwich Albion | Free |
| 2 August 2006 | 14 | Willo Flood | Manchester City | Undisclosed |

### January transfer window ins

| Player | Club | Fee |
| Jason Byrne | Shelbourne | £75,000 |
| David Forde | Derry City | Free |
| Matt Green | Newport County | £10,000 |
| Peter Whittingham | Aston Villa | £350,000 |

### Loans in

| Player | Club | Arrival date | Return date |
| Kerrea Gilbert | Arsenal | 21 July | End of season |
| James Chambers | Watford | 13 October | 13 November |
| Alan Wright | Sheffield United | 23 November | 1 January |
| James Simmonds | Chelsea | 16 January | End of season |
| Iwan Redan | Willem II | 30 January | End of season |
| Simon Walton | Charlton Athletic | 31 January | End of season |
| Warren Feeney | Luton Town | 22 March | End of season |

### Summer transfer window outs

| Player | Club | Fee |
| Neal Ardley | Millwall | Free |
| Willie Boland | Hartlepool United* | Free |
| Andy Campbell | Dunfermline Athletic | Undisclosed |
| Neil Cox | Crewe Alexandra* | Free |
| Jermaine Darlington | AFC Wimbledon* | Free |
| Nicky Fish | Released | – |
| Cameron Jerome | Birmingham City | £3m |
| Guylain Ndumbu-Nsungu | Gillingham* | Free |
| Daniel Parslow | York City* | Free |
| Lee Worgan | Eastbourne Borough* | Free |
| Rhys Weston | Released | – |

### January transfer window outs

| Player | Club | Fee |
| Malvin Kamara | Port Vale | Free |
| Philip Mulryne | Leyton Orient | Free |

### Loans out

| Player | Club | Departure date | End date |
| Jeff Whitley | Stoke City | 18 August | December |
| Joe Jacobson | Accrington Stanley | 23 November | 16 January |
| Mark Howard | Swansea City | January 2007 | End of Season |
| Jamal Easter | Torquay United | 5 January | 5 February |
| Nick McKoy | Torquay United | 5 January | End of season |
| Michael Corcoran | Oxford United | 30 January | 29 April |
| Luigi Glombard | Leicester City | 31 January | 11 February |
| Joe Jacobson | Bristol Rovers | 15 February | End of season |
| Jeff Whitley | Wrexham | 16 February | End of season |
| Luigi Glombard | Oldham Athletic | 22 March | 20 May |
| Gregg Coombes | Oxford United | March 2007 | End of Season |

## Standings

| Pos | Teamvte | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
| 11 | Plymouth Argyle | 46 | 17 | 16 | 13 | 63 | 62 | +1 | 67 |
| 12 | Crystal Palace | 46 | 18 | 11 | 17 | 58 | 50 | +8 | 65 |
| 13 | Cardiff City | 46 | 17 | 13 | 16 | 57 | 53 | +4 | 64 |
| 14 | Ipswich Town | 46 | 18 | 8 | 20 | 64 | 59 | +5 | 62 |
| 15 | Burnley | 46 | 15 | 12 | 19 | 52 | 49 | +3 | 57 |

### 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 | A | H | H | A | H | A | A | H | A | H | A | H | A | H | A | A | H | H | A | A | H | H | A | A | H | H | A | H | A | H | H | A | H | A | H | A | H | A | A | H | H | A | H | A | H | A |
| Result | W | D | W | W | W | L | D | W | W | W | W | W | L | D | W | L | W | L | D | L | D | D | L | D | D | D | D | L | W | W | W | D | W | L | W | L | W | D | L | L | L | L | D | L | L | L |
| Position | | | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | | 1 | 1 | | 1 | 1 | | 1 | | 3 | 3 | 5 | 6 | 5 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 6 | | | 6 | 7 | | | 7 | 6 | | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 11 | 11 | 13 |

## Fixtures and results
### Championship

| Date | Opponent | Venue | Result | Attendance | Scorers |
| 5 August | Barnsley | A | W 2 – 1 | 12,082 | Ledley, Thompson |
| 8 August | West Bromwich Albion | H | D 1 – 1 | 18,506 | Scimeca |
| 12 August | Coventry City | H | W 1 – 0 | 13,965 | Chopra |
| 19 August | Leeds United | A | W 1 – 0 | 18,246 | Flood |
| 26 August | Birmingham City | H | W 2 – 0 | 20,109 | Ledley, Parry |
| 9 September | Preston North End | A | L 1 – 2 | 12,435 | Chopra |
| 12 September | Plymouth Argyle | A | D 3 – 3 | 11,655 | Thompson, Chopra (2) |
| 16 September | Luton Town | H | W 4 – 1 | 14,108 | Purse, Parry, Chopra (2) |
| 24 September | Southend United | A | W 3 – 0 | 7,901 | Purse, Scimeca, Ledley |
| 30 September | Wolverhampton Wanderers | H | W 4 – 0 | 19,915 | Scimeca, Craddock (OG), Kamara, Parry |
| 14 October | Crystal Palace | A | W 2 – 1 | 18,876 | Chopra, Scimeca |
| 17 October | Southampton | H | W 1 – 0 | 19,345 | Thompson |
| 21 October | Norwich City | A | L 0 – 1 | 25,014 | |
| 28 October | Derby County | H | D 2 – 2 | 17,371 | Loovens, Chopra |
| 31 October | Sunderland | A | W 2 – 1 | 26,528 | Chopra (2) |
| 4 November | Colchester United | A | L 1 – 3 | 5,393 | Chopra |
| 11 November | Burnley | H | W 1 – 0 | 15,744 | Scimeca |
| 17 November | Queens Park Rangers | H | L 0 – 1 | 13,250 | |
| 25 November | Sheffield Wednesday | A | D 0 – 0 | 23,935 | |
| 28 November | Stoke City | A | L 0 – 3 | 15,039 | |
| 2 December | Colchester United | H | D 0 – 0 | 13,512 | |
| 9 December | Ipswich Town | H | D 2 – 2 | 16,015 | Purse (2) |
| 16 December | Hull City | A | L 1 – 4 | 23,089 | Chopra |
| 23 December | Leicester City | A | D 0 – 0 | 22,274 | |
| 26 December | Plymouth Argyle | H | D 2 – 2 | 17,299 | Thompson (2) |
| 30 December | Crystal Palace | H | D 0 – 0 | 13,704 | |
| 1 January | Luton Town | A | D 0 – 0 | 8,004 | |
| 13 January | Southend United | H | L 0 – 1 | 13,822 | |
| 20 January | Wolverhampton Wanderers | A | W 2 – 1 | 16,772 | Chopra, Byrne |
| 27 January | Leicester City | H | W 3 – 2 | 12,057 | Chopra (3) |
| 2 February | Barnsley | H | W 2 – 0 | 11,549 | Whittingham, Chopra |
| 10 February | Coventry City | A | D 2 – 2 | 17,107 | Chopra, Whittingham |
| 17 February | Leeds United | H | W 1 – 0 | 13,276 | Chopra |
| 20 February | West Bromwich Albion | A | L 0 – 1 | 18,802 | |
| 23 February | Preston North End | H | W 4 – 1 | 12,889 | Whittingham, Chopra (2), Johnson |
| 4 March | Birmingham City | A | L 0 – 1 | 28,223 | |
| 10 March | Norwich City | H | W 1 – 0 | 13,276 | Parry |
| 13 March | Southampton | A | D 2 – 2 | 20,383 | Thompson, Whittingham |
| 17 March | Derby County | A | L 1 – 3 | 27,689 | Parry |
| 31 March | Sunderland | H | L 0 – 1 | 19,353 | |
| 7 April | Sheffield Wednesday | H | L 1 – 2 | 13,621 | Johnson |
| 9 April | Burnley | A | L 0 – 2 | 11,347 | |
| 14 April | Stoke City | H | D 1 – 1 | 11,664 | Chopra |
| 21 April | Queens Park Rangers | A | L 0 – 1 | 12,710 | |
| 28 April | Hull City | H | L 0 – 1 | 12,421 | |
| 6 May | Ipswich Town | A | L 1 – 3 | 26,488 | Parry |

### FA Cup

| Date | Round | Opponent | Venue | Result | Attendance | Scorers |
| 7 January | Three | Tottenham Hotspur | H | D 0 – 0 | 20,376 | |
| 17 January | Replay | Tottenham Hotspur | A | L 0 – 4 | 27,641 | |

### League Cup

| Date | Round | Opponent | Venue | Result | Attendance | Scorers |
| 22 August | One | Barnet | H | L 0 – 2 | 3,305 | |

### FAW Premier Cup

| Date | Round | Opponent | Venue | Result | Attendance | Scorers |
| 13 February | Quarter-final | Carmarthen Town | A | W 3 – 2 | 550 | Campbell, McDonald (2) |
| 27 February | Semi-final | The New Saints | H | L 0 – 1 | | |

## Awards

* Football League Championship Apprentice of the Year: Chris Gunter