2004–05 Dundee United F.C. season

The 2004–05 season was the 96th year of football played by Dundee United, and covers the period from 1 July 2004 to 30 June 2005. United finished in ninth place which meant the previous season's top-six finish was the only one in the five seasons since the split was introduced.

Dundee United
2004–05 season
ChairmanEddie Thompson
ManagerIan McCall (until 14 March)
Gordon Chisholm (interim caretaker)
Gordon Chisholm (from 24 May)
Bank of Scotland Premierleague9th
W:8 D:12 L:18 F:41 A:59 P:36
Tennent's Scottish CupRunners-up
CIS Insurance CupSemi-final
Top goalscorerLeague: Jim McIntyre (10)
All: Jim McIntyre (15)
Highest home attendance12,703 (vs Dundee, 29 January)
Lowest home attendance5,097 (vs Kilmarnock, 11 December)

United finished the 2004–05 SPL season in 9th place with 36 points, in which an eventful final day could have relegated themselves, Livingston or Dunfermline, before eventually consigning Dundee to the drop. United managed only eight wins, with twelve draws and eighteen defeats. Between March and early-April, United lost five consecutive games, although most were to teams who would finish in the top half of the league.

The cup campaigns brought contrasting fortunes. a 7–1 defeat to Rangers in the League Cup semi-final was remedied by a fighting display against Celtic in the Scottish Cup final, where United lost 1–0. Despite having fewer chances, United had more possession and it took a deflected free-kick to give Celtic the win. Defender Alan Archibald struck the bar in the final minute as United pushed for an equaliser.

A strong league finish secured United's top-flight status, with four wins from the final seven games, including victories against Rangers, Hearts and rivals Dundee.

Season review

United began pre-season with James Grady as the only pre-season signing, the striker arriving on a Bosman transfer from relegated Partick Thistle. First-team regulars Paul Gallacher and Charlie Miller left by the same method during the summer, with Scotland keeper Gallacher heading for Norwich City and Miller joining Norwegian side SK Brann. Veteran Owen Coyle also cut short his second Tannadice stay to return to Airdrie Utd. During August, Paul Ritchie and goalkeeper Lars Hirschfeld arrived on six-month deals following releases from Walsall and Tottenham respectively. Surprisingly, Grant Brebner was also allowed to sign for free from fellow SPL side Hibernian.

A home defeat to derby rivals Dundee just two games in was not the ideal way to start the season and United managed only one win in August, with a 2–1 home victory over Inverness CT. During August, youngsters Aaron Conway and Karim Kerkar arrived from Clyde in early-September but the month brought little to cheer about, with a CIS Insurance Cup win over Clyde providing the only win.

Into October and the winless streak continued, although a last-minute draw at Rangers brought some optimism. Another derby defeat in early November was tempered firstly by a CIS Cup quarter-final win over Hibs, then a home league success over Livingston but more defeats followed and only one more win arrived before Christmas, courtesy of a 3–0 triumph at home to Kilmarnock.

United entered New Year with no away wins but finally won on the road, thanks to a 4–3 thriller at Gretna in the Scottish Cup. The third derby match was drawn 2–2 with Steve Lovell's late leveller denying United three points, in a game where Nick Colgan - signed 24 hours previously - was given a debut. February started in dismal fashion, with Colgan's second (and final) match resulting in a 7–1 defeat against Rangers in the CIS Cup semi-final. In a match screened live on BBC Scotland, United rallied from 2–0 down with Jason Scotland scoring, and had Jim McIntyre's long-range strike not hit both posts and ran along the line at 2–1 down, the game might have been different. United did recover by winning three of the remaining four matches that month, albeit two in the Scottish Cup. Queen of the South were beaten first, followed by a first away league win at Livingston and then a 4–1 home rout of Aberdeen in the quarter-final. With the match shown live on Sky Sports, it was a chance for United to gain television revenge for the Hampden horror show just three weeks previously.

Aberdeen were back at Tannadice three days later for a league match and won 2–1, starting a run of four straight defeats in March. After Kilmarnock's 3–0 victory, United lay bottom and Ian McCall was sacked, with Assistant Gordon Chisholm handed temporary control. Chisholm's first match was a live television affair at home to Celtic and only a Craig Bellamy hat-trick denied United a point, who equalised twice only to lose 3–2.

United went into April with a league/cup double-header against Hibs and lost the league match 3–2 at Easter Road to another late goal. The cup semi-final brought cheer, as Jason Scotland's winner ensured a final appearance in May, along with European football. The buzz from the win carried on, with successive impressive league victories at Rangers and at home to Hearts. A home draw to Livingston brought a blip but a 2–1 derby win at Dens Park closed the month in style, with caretaker-manager Gordon Chisholm winning the Manager of the Month award in his first full month in charge.

Into May and a lack of wins scared United fans, with only a home draw against Kilmarnock and a last-minute defeat to Dunfermline. This left United going into final game at Inverness as one of four clubs who could be relegated, along with Livingston, Dunfermline and Dundee. Dundee's early goal against Livingston moved them out of bottom spot, only for ex-United player Craig Easton to equalise. With no further goals and Barry Robson's penalty winner in Inverness, United survived, finishing in 9th place.

The Cup Final was a tense occasion, with Martin O'Neill's last match in charge bringing an edge to the 50,635 crowd. Alan Thompson's 9th-minute deflected free-kick ultimately won it for Celtic, with Chris Sutton missing a late penalty before Alan Archibald's injury-time drive nearly securing extra-time.

Match results

Dundee United played a total of 47 competitive matches during the 2004–05 season,[1] as well as six pre-season friendlies, making a total of over fifty games played. The team finished ninth in the Scottish Premier League.

In the cup competitions, United were runners-up in the Tennent's Scottish Cup, losing 1–0 to Celtic, qualifying for the UEFA Cup in the process. The club lost heavily in the CIS Insurance Cup semi-finals, losing 7–1 to Rangers as Nick Colgan - playing only his second match in his loan spell - played his last game for the club.

Legend

Win Draw Loss

All results are written with Dundee United's score first.

Bank of Scotland Premierleague

DateOpponentVenueResultAttendanceScorers
7 AugustDunfermlineA1-16,512McIntyre
15 AugustDundeeH1-211,118Archibald
21 AugustLivingstonA1-13,659Dodds
28 AugustInverness CTH2-16,017Innes, McIntyre
11 SeptemberAberdeenH1-110,995Wilson
18 SeptemberMotherwellA2-45,091Grady, McIntyre
25 SeptemberKilmarnockA2-54,711Archibald, Dodds
3 OctoberCelticH0-310,329
10 OctoberHibernianA0-29,927
24 OctoberRangersA1-146,796Robson
27 OctoberHeartsH1-15,723Wilson
30 OctoberDunfermlineH1-26,297Wilson
6 NovemberDundeeH0-19,845
13 NovemberLivingstonH1-05,507McCracken
23 NovemberInverness CTA1-11,125McIntyre
27 NovemberAberdeenA0-112,038
4 DecemberMotherwellH0-15,252
11 DecemberKilmarnockH3-05,097Brebner, Robson, McIntyre
18 DecemberCelticA0-156,318
27 DecemberHibernianH1-410,152Scotland
1 JanuaryRangersH1-110,461McCracken
15 JanuaryHeartsA2-310,305Robson, Archibald
22 JanuaryDunfermlineA1-16,589Crawford
29 JanuaryDundeeH2-212,703Duff, McIntyre
12 FebruaryLivingstonA2-05,158Crawford, Grady
19 FebruaryInverness CTH1-16,110Own goal
2 MarchAberdeenH1-26,688Scotland
5 MarchMotherwellA0-25,110
12 MarchKilmarnockA0-34,353
19 MarchCelticH2-310,828McIntyre, Robson
2 AprilHibernianA2-311,058McIntyre, Scotland
12 AprilRangersA1-049,302Duff
16 AprilHeartsH2-17,704Robson, Brebner
23 AprilLivingstonH1-17,687Crawford
30 AprilDundeeA2-111,263Wilson, McIntyre
7 MayKilmarnockH1-16,576McIntyre
15 MayDunfermlineH0-110,763
21 MayInverness CTA1-05,479Robson

Tennent's Scottish Cup

DateOpponentVenueResultAttendanceScorers
17 JanuaryGretnaA4-33,000Robson, Kerr, Wilson, Crawford
5 FebruaryQueen of the SouthA3-05,532McIntyre, Wilson, Duff
27 FebruaryAberdeenH4-18,661Archibald, Grady (2), Crawford
9 AprilHibernianN2-127,271McIntyre, Scotland
28 MayCelticN0-150,635

CIS Insurance Cup

DateOpponentVenueResultAttendanceScorers
25 AugustStranraerH3-12,511Kerr, Grady, Innes
21 SeptemberClydeH4-02,336McIntyre, Robson, Brebner, Wilson
9 NovemberHibernianH2-14,865McIntyre (2)
2 FebruaryRangersN1-725,622Scotland

Player details

During the 2004–05 season, United used 26 different players comprising five nationalities, with a further six named as unused substitutes. The table below shows the number of appearances and goals scored by each player.[2]

No. Pos Nat Player TotalBank of Scotland PremierleagueTennent's Scottish CupCIS Insurance Cup
AppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
1 GK Tony Bullock 3202605010
17 GK Lars Hirschfeld 30200010
24 GK Paul Jarvie 1101000010
47 GK Nick Colgan 20100010
2 DF Mark Wilson 4673745241
3 DF David McCracken 2922520040
5 DF Alan Archibald 4743835140
15 DF Lee Mair 70402010
23 DF Paul Ritchie 3102405020
39 DF Garry Kenneth 1401103000
4 MF Derek McInnes 3302703030
7 MF Mark Kerr 3723005121
8 MF Grant Brebner 4033424021
11 MF Barry Robson 4583665141
12 MF Stuart Duff 3232524130
14 MF Billy Dodds 2522120040
18 MF Andy McLaren 80600020
21 MF Karim Kerkar 1001000000
29 MF Barry Callaghan 10100000
36 MF Greg Cameron 30201000
9 ST Collin Samuel 2401803030
10 ST Jim McIntyre 421535103243
16 ST James Grady 3452923221
19 ST Stevie Crawford 2351735210
20 ST Jason Scotland 3752934141

Team statistics

League table

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification or relegation[lower-alpha 1]
7 Kilmarnock 38 15 4 19 49 55 6 49
8 Inverness Caledonian Thistle 38 11 11 16 41 47 6 44
9 Dundee United 38 8 12 18 41 59 18 36 Qualification for the UEFA Cup second qualifying round[lower-alpha 2]
10 Livingston 38 9 8 21 34 61 27 35
11 Dunfermline Athletic 38 8 10 20 34 60 26 34
Source: Scottish Professional Football League
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Goals scored
Notes:
  1. Teams played each other three times (33 matches), before the league split into two groups (the top six and the bottom six) for the last five matches.
  2. As Celtic, the 2004–05 Scottish Cup winners, qualified for the UEFA Champions League via their league position, the place in the UEFA Cup was passed onto Dundee United, the cup runners-up.

Transfers

Playing kit

Home
colours
Away
colours
Cup Final colours

The jerseys were sponsored by Morning, Noon and Night for a second season.

Awards

April 2005

Trivia

References

  1. "2004/2005 - First Team Fixtures & Results". Dundee United F.C. Archived from the original on 11 November 2007. Retrieved 28 November 2007.
  2. "Dundee Utd 2004/2005 player appearances". Soccerbase. Archived from the original on 3 January 2005. Retrieved 29 November 2007.
  3. "United sign Hirschfeld". BBC Sport website. 19 August 2004. Retrieved 3 January 2010.
  4. "Dundee United sign Brebner". BBC Sport website. 27 August 2004. Retrieved 3 January 2010.
  5. "Dundee United seal Crawford transfer". BBC Sport website. 4 January 2005. Retrieved 3 January 2010.
  6. "Defender Mair moves to Tannadice". BBC Sport website. 7 January 2005. Retrieved 3 January 2010.
  7. "Colgan seals move to Dundee Utd". BBC Sport website. 28 January 2005. Retrieved 3 January 2010.
  8. "Paterson agrees Well deal". BBC Sport website. 14 July 2005. Retrieved 3 January 2010.
  9. "Coyle is a Diamond again". BBC Sport website. 21 July 2004. Retrieved 3 January 2010.
  10. "Striker Conway leaves Tannadice". BBC Sport website. 31 August 2005. Retrieved 3 January 2010.
  11. "The Internet Soccer Database: Lars Hirschfeld". Racing Post. 16 January 2006. Archived from the original on 19 April 2013. Retrieved 2 October 2007.
  12. "Gretna complete a double signing". BBC Sport website. 28 January 2006. Retrieved 3 January 2010.
  13. "Jarvie completes Plainmoor move". BBC Sport website. 7 February 2005. Retrieved 3 January 2010.
  14. "Boston United Football Club News". Boston United FC - The Original Website. 31 January 2005. Retrieved 2 October 2007.
  15. "United youngsters on loan". BBC Sport website. 27 August 2005. Retrieved 3 January 2010.
  16. "McLaren joins Thistle on loan". BBC Sport website. 2 November 2004. Retrieved 3 January 2010.
  17. "Thistle capture Paterson on loan". BBC Sport website. 1 February 2005. Retrieved 3 January 2010.
  18. "Morton land loan deal for McLaren". BBC Sport website. 26 February 2005. Retrieved 3 January 2010.
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