2008–09 Canberra United FC (W-League) season
Introduction The '''2008–09 season''' is Canberra United's first season of football (soccer) in Australia, and competed in the 2008–09 W-League season.
Season The first announcement of the club came in July 2008, coinciding with the establishment of the new W-League. The formation of the new club presented a unique situation in the league, that it was not associated with an established A-League side. In August, Canberra appointed Matildas assistant coach Robbie Hooker as coach for the inaugural season, and ACT Senator Kate Lundy as club chair. United also announced its first key signing in local Canberran and Matildas goalkeeper Lydia Williams. Hooker made a number of key signings in the first registration window, also securing Caitlin Munoz, Amy Chapman, Grace Gill-McGrath, Hayley Crawford, Rhian Davies, Thea Slatyer for the inaugural season. The squad was further expanded in the lead up to the first round, signing on a number of players from the ACT and Southern NSW, and also signing Sasha McDonnell and Kara Mowbray from Queensland. The final squad presented significant strength on paper, boasting eight full internationals and a further four Young Matildas.United started the season steadily, alternating losses and wins in the opening rounds - including a win over eventual Premiers Queensland Roar. Scoring came with some difficulty for the side, with four goals in their opening first five matches. Influencing this record was an injury to striker Caitlin Munoz in Round 1, keeping her sidelined for a number of weeks. Munoz's return to the side in Round 6 immediately lifted the scoring rate, contributing four goals in the last five rounds. Despite early losses, Canberra were unbeaten in the last seven rounds of the competition, achieving a third placed finish with a record of four wins, four draws and two losses. Canberra's strength throughout the season has been in defence, drawn from a number of experienced players. In front of a dependable Williams in goal, a defensive backline led by Thea Slatyer and captain Ellie Brush frustrated opposition and ensured the second-best defensive record in the competition, bettered only by Premiers Queensland.United won their away semi-final against Newcastle Jets, and progressed to the inaugural final, where they were defeated by Queensland Roar.===Fixtures=== Round  Date  Opponent  H/A  Score  CU Scorers  Stadium  Crowd 1 26 October 2008  Newcastle Jets W-League  A  L 1-2  McDonnell   Wanderers Oval  1069 2 1 November 2008  Queensland Roar W-League  A  W 1-0  Mowbray McDonnell   Perry Park  610 3 9 November 2008  Central Coast Mariners W-League  H  L 1-2  Brush , Mowbray Maciejewski   Belconnen Soccer Centre  1637 4 15 November 2008  Melbourne Victory W-League  A  W 1-0  McDonnell Maciejewski   Bob Jane Stadium  700 5 22 November 2008  Adelaide United W-League  H  D 0-0  Slatyer Studman McDonnell Maciejewski   Belconnen Soccer Centre  804 6 29 November 2008  Perth Glory W-League  A  D 2-2  N.Sykes Kara Mowbray Munoz , A.Sykes   Members Equity Stadium  479 7 6 December 2008  Sydney FC W-League  H  D 1-1  Munoz Maciejewski Slatyer   Belconnen Soccer Centre  840 8 13 December 2008  Central Coast Mariners W-League  A  W 3-0  Brush Maciejewski Crawford Munoz   Parramatta Stadium  300 9 20 December 2008  Melbourne Victory W-League  H  W 3-2   Brush Davies  Mowbray   Chapman ,    Belconnen Soccer Centre  1152 10 27 December 2008  Queensland Roar W-League  H  D 1-1  Crawford Munoz    Belconnen Soccer Centre  712 SF 10 January 2009  Newcastle Jets W-League  A  W 1-0  Mowbray   EnergyAustralia Stadium  2289 F 17 January 2009  Queensland Roar W-League  A  L 0-2  -  Ballymore Stadium  4554===Standings===
Players Name and positionNoJoined inFormer teamBirth dateCitizenship '''Goalkeepers'''Lydia Williams  1  2008   ACT Academy of Sport    Maja Blasch  20  2008   Canberra City SC     '''Defenders'''Ellie Brush (c)  7  2008   ACT Academy of Sport    Rhian Davies  2  2008   NSW Institute of Sport    Grace Gill-McGrath  9  2008   ACT Academy of Sport    Rebecca Kiting  8  2008   ACT Academy of Sport    Thea Slatyer (vc)  13  2008   NSW Institute of Sport    Bronwyn Studman  4  2008   ACT Academy of Sport    Snez Veljanovska  16  2008   ACT Academy of Sport (age 20)   Christine Walters  17  2008   ACT Academy of Sport     '''Midfielders''' Lucy Allan  18  2008   ACT Academy of Sport    Jennifer Bisset  19  2008   ACT Academy of Sport    Cian Maciejewski  11  2008   Belwest Foxes     Kara Mowbray  12  2008   Queensland Lions    Nicole Sykes  15  2008   Western NSW Panthers FC      '''Forwards'''Amy Chapman  3  2008   ACT Academy of Sport    Hayley Crawford  10  2008   NSW Institute of Sport    Sasha McDonnell  5  2008   Queensland Lions    Caitlin Munoz  6  2008   Pali Blues    Ashleigh Sykes  14  2008   Western NSW Panthers FC     ===Short-term signings===PlayerTeamStart DateEnd DateReason Ellie RaymondACTAS 29 October 2008 6 November 2008Cover for Ashleigh Sykes while on international duty Sophie KochinosACTAS 29 October 2008 6 November 2008Cover for Christine Walters while on international duty Michaela DayBelwest Foxes 29 October 2008 6 November 2008Cover for Bronwyn Studman while on international duty
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