goal should their keeper get sent off or injured. However, this never occurred and Daly never made an appearance in goal. In October 2004 he went on loan to Grimsby, and scored on his debut against Chester City. However, in his third and final appearance for Grimsby he was sent off against Scunthorpe United. Hartlepool United In February 2005, Daly signed for Hartlepool United, where he would stay for the next two years. Daly scored his first goal against AFC Bournemouth, which helped seal a play-off spot. In the League One Play-off Final against Sheffield Wednesday, he scored with his first touch after coming on as a substitute to put Hartlepool in the lead. Daly struggled to feature for the club the following season and was sent on loan to Bury. In the 2006–07 season, he again struggled to hold down a first team spot, although he scored seven goals over three games within a week, including the first hat-trick of his professional career against Wrexham on 30 September 2006. After this, he struggled to maintain his form and was surplus to requirements after Danny Wilson signed Richie Barker. Dundee United Daly was allowed to join Dundee United in January 2007 for an undisclosed fee. He made his debut for the club, on 13 January 2007, in a 5–0 loss against Rangers. He scored his first goal for the club in a 1–1 draw against League champions Celtic. After the match, his performance was praised by Craig Levein, who described him as "tireless up front and a lot of people don't see all the work he does." He scored again, the last game of the season, in a 4–2 win over Aberdeen. In May 2007, Daly suffered a posterior cruciate ligament injury, ruling him out for around six months, which affected the start of the season. Having appeared four times on the bench, Daly made his return, on 10 November 2007, in a 2–0 win over Kilmarnock. However, on his next appearance, he suffered another injury, to his ankle, ruling him out for another two months. On 12 March 2008, Daly returned as a substitute for Craig Conway, in a 0–0 draw against Celtic. On 23 December 2008, Daly signed a new three-year contract extension. On 11 January 2009, he provided an assist for Prince Buaben before scoring a goal for himself, in a 4–0 win over East Stirlingshire, in