2009 Scottish Cup Final
Encyclopedia
The 2009 Scottish Cup Final was the final of the 124th season of the main domestic football cup competition in Scotland, the Scottish Cup
. The final was played at Hampden Park
in Glasgow on 30 May 2009. The match was contested by Rangers
, who were defending the trophy having won the 2008 Final
, and Falkirk
who last won the Cup in 1957.
Scottish Premier League
side Falkirk were contesting a Scottish Cup final for the fourth time in their history. While it is Rangers' 51st appearance in a final, winning 32 times and losing 17, with one final (1909) resulting in the cup being withheld. It was Rangers' second cup final of the season, having lost to Celtic
in the League Cup Final
on 15 March 2009.
Rangers
first match of the 2008–09 Scottish Cup
was away to Scottish First Division
leaders St. Johnstone. The match at McDiarmid Park
was played on a Tuesday night due to BBC Sport Scotland
's live coverage. An own goal
from Saints defender Stuart McCaffrey
gave Rangers the lead just before half-time and a late Nacho Novo
strike with ten minutes left made the game safe.
The match against Scottish Third Division
side Forfar Athletic
was to be shown on Sky Sports
and was therefore originally planned as a lunchtime kick-off on Sunday 8 February but was postponed due to a frozen pitch, the game was rescheduled and played on Wednesday 18 February. Rangers took an early lead in the match thanks to a Saša Papac
goal after only eight minutes but the team could not add to their advantage until after half-time. A Kenny Miller
double and Aarón Ñíguez
's first Rangers goal ensured the team's progress in a 4–0 win.
The quarter-final was the first tie played at Ibrox
by Rangers in the Scottish cup that season. The game ended in a convincing 5–1 win over Scottish Premier League
side Hamilton Academical
. The scoring was opened by Steven Whittaker
before Hamilton's Rocco Quinn
equalised. Rangers again took the lead through Kyle Lafferty
before Aarón Ñíguez netted a retaken penalty
as half time approached. Hamilton played most of the second half with 10 men due to injuries, goals after the break from Steven Davis
and another from Kyle Lafferty completed the win.
The semi-final at Hampden Park
was played against fellow Scottish Premier League side St. Mirren
. After just 75 seconds of the match Rangers were ahead through an Andrius Velička
goal. Kris Boyd
's 100th Rangers goal after 66 minutes made it 2–0 and a Kenny Miller goal twenty minutes from time saw Rangers through to their second successive final.
Falkirk's
first Scottish Cup match of the season was against the runners-up from the previous season, Queen of the South
. Falkirk took the lead after Craig Barr
fouled Graham Barrett
, Scott Arfield
converted the penalty. Queen's equalised five minutes later through a deflected Barry Wilson strike to leave the score level at half-time. Despite a superb free kick by Bob Harris
to give Queen of the South a 2–1 lead, Falkirk went on to score a further three goals to win 4–2. A Graham Barrett
double and a second from Arfield.
The Bairns faced Scottish Premier League opposition in the next round in the shape of Heart of Midlothian
. A Steve Lovell
header after 59 minutes sent Hearts out of the Cup in a game which saw two red card
s, one for each side. Heart's Marius Žaliūkas
was sent-off after wrestling Carl Finnigan
to the ground and Falkirk's Arfield was shown red for a second bookable offence.
A trip to the Highlands
ensued for the quarter-final after Falkirk were drawn away to Inverness Caledonian Thistle
. A victory was secured by a Carl Finnigan penalty after 31 minutes when Lionel Djebi-Zadi
was sent off for grappling with the striker inside the penalty box.
The semi-final match against Dunfermline Athletic
was played at Hampden Park despite the Scottish Football Association
offering to change the match to a different venue. Tam Scobbie
opened the scoring when he knocked a Neil McCann
free kick into the Pars goal with his shoulder early in the second half. The win was assured after Scott Arfield converted a penalty in the 89th minute, McCann had won the spot kick after being brought down by Dunfermline's Greg Ross.
, this was their 50th final overall. Falkirk won the cup in 1913 and 1957; they reached the final in 1997 but lost.
Rangers had just won the Scottish Premier League
to become Scottish champions
and Falkirk had narrowly avoided relegation from the SPL; both had done so in the last match of their respective league seasons. The two teams had met each other four times that season three league meetings which were all won by Rangers and a Scottish League Cup
Semi-final which Rangers also won. Falkirk had not beaten Rangers in any competition since an SPL meeting in December 2006, They had last met Rangers in the Scottish Cup in a 1998–99 Quarter-final which Rangers won 2–1, The last time they beat Rangers in a cup competition was in the 1994–95 League Cup, They had never previously met in a Cup Final.
at the end of April that it would be fair to both clubs and wanted to avoid unsold tickets being returned. Both semi-finals at Hampden were well below the 52,000 stadium capacity, with only 32,341 supporters watching Rangers beat St. Mirren
3–0 in the first semi-final at Hampden, while 17,124 watched Falkirk's victory over Dunfermline
24 hours later.
On 27 May 2009, it was reported that Falkirk had failed to sell its originally allocation of tickets, only 12,200 to date, this meant that the club would be limited to 13,000 tickets in total. Meanwhile, Rangers were given an additional 3,000 tickets on top of there allocation which would now mean that the Glasgow
club had a total of 28,000 for the final.
youth team player, Craig Gowans, who died in a tragic accident at the club's old training ground in July 2005, Bairns manager John Hughes asked Gowans' father, John, to lead out the team at Hampden Park
.
, who was ruled out until the following season after knee ligament damage substained in November 2008, and defender Kirk Broadfoot
due to a foot injury. There were fitness concerns over Pedro Mendes
and Maurice Edu
who were both suffering from thigh injuries.
Falkirk were without on-loan midfielder Arnau Riera due to a suspension he picked up in the semi-final against Dunfermline Athletic
, he since returned to parent club Sunderland only to be released on 28 May 2009. Ex-Rangers players Steven Pressley
and Neil McCann
returned from suspension and injury respectively. Both players were missing from the final Scottish Premier League
match of the season
|-
|
style="font-size: 90%" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" align=centre>
FALKIRK :
|
GK
1
Dani Mallo
RB
5
Jackie McNamara
CB
20
Darren Barr
(c)
CB
14
Gerard Aafjes
LB
33
Tam Scobbie
CM
47
Burton O'Brien
CM
6
Kevin McBride
CM
4
Patrick Cregg
CM
16
Scott Arfield
ST
15
Steve Lovell
ST
7
Neil McCann
Substitutes:
GK
17
Robert Olejnik
DF
10
Steven Pressley
MF
24
Mark Stewart
ST
21
Carl Finnigan
ST
11
Michael Higdon
Manager:
John Hughes
Source: BBC Sport, The Guardian
and Sky Sports HD2
. In Australia
it was shown live on Setanta Sports
. A highlights package of the Scottish Cup final was shown on BBC One Scotland at 2200 BST on the day of the match.
Scottish Cup
The Scottish Football Association Challenge Cup,, commonly known as the Scottish Cup or the William Hill Scottish Cup for sponsorship purposes, is the main national cup competition in Scottish football. It is a knockout cup competition run by and named after the Scottish Football Association.The...
. The final was played at Hampden Park
Hampden Park
Hampden Park is a football stadium in the Mount Florida area of Glasgow, Scotland. The 52,063 capacity venue serves as the national stadium of football in Scotland...
in Glasgow on 30 May 2009. The match was contested by Rangers
Rangers F.C.
Rangers Football Club are an association football club based in Glasgow, Scotland, who play in the Scottish Premier League. The club are nicknamed the Gers, Teddy Bears and the Light Blues, and the fans are known to each other as bluenoses...
, who were defending the trophy having won the 2008 Final
2008 Scottish Cup Final
The 2008 Scottish Cup Final was a football match which took place at Hampden Park in Glasgow on 24 May 2008. The match was the final of the 123rd Scottish Cup and was contested by Queen of the South and Rangers. Queen of the South beat Aberdeen 4–3 in their semi-final, Rangers beat St...
, and Falkirk
Falkirk F.C.
Falkirk Football Club is a Scottish professional football club based in Falkirk. It is one of two professional football teams from the town, the other being East Stirlingshire...
who last won the Cup in 1957.
Scottish Premier League
Scottish Premier League
The Scottish Premier League , also known as the SPL , is a professional league competition for association football clubs in Scotland...
side Falkirk were contesting a Scottish Cup final for the fourth time in their history. While it is Rangers' 51st appearance in a final, winning 32 times and losing 17, with one final (1909) resulting in the cup being withheld. It was Rangers' second cup final of the season, having lost to Celtic
Celtic F.C.
Celtic Football Club is a Scottish football club based in the Parkhead area of Glasgow, which currently plays in the Scottish Premier League. The club was established in 1887, and played its first game in 1888. Celtic have won the Scottish League Championship on 42 occasions, most recently in the...
in the League Cup Final
2009 Scottish League Cup Final
The 2009 Scottish League Cup Final was the final match of the 2008–09 Scottish League Cup, the 62nd season of the Scottish League Cup. The match was played at Hampden Park, Glasgow on 15 March 2009, and was won by Celtic, who beat Old Firm rivals and Cup holders, Rangers, 2-0 after extra...
on 15 March 2009.
Rangers
Rangers
Rangers F.C.
Rangers Football Club are an association football club based in Glasgow, Scotland, who play in the Scottish Premier League. The club are nicknamed the Gers, Teddy Bears and the Light Blues, and the fans are known to each other as bluenoses...
first match of the 2008–09 Scottish Cup
Scottish Cup
The Scottish Football Association Challenge Cup,, commonly known as the Scottish Cup or the William Hill Scottish Cup for sponsorship purposes, is the main national cup competition in Scottish football. It is a knockout cup competition run by and named after the Scottish Football Association.The...
was away to Scottish First Division
Scottish Football League First Division
The Irn-Bru Scottish Football League First Division Championship is the highest division of the Scottish Football League and the second highest in the Scottish football league system....
leaders St. Johnstone. The match at McDiarmid Park
McDiarmid Park
McDiarmid Park is a football stadium in Perth, Scotland, the home ground of St. Johnstone FC. It has an all-seated capacity of 10,673.-History:...
was played on a Tuesday night due to BBC Sport Scotland
Sportscene
Sportscene is the name of a range of Scottish sports television programmes produced by BBC Scotland. Its main anchors are Dougie Donnelly, David Currie, Rob MacLean and Dougie Vipond, with Alison Walker and Richard Gordon acting as relief presenters...
's live coverage. An own goal
Own goal
An own net occurs in goal-scoring games when a player scores a goal that is registered against his or her own team. It is usually accidental, and may be a result of an attempt at defensive play that failed or was spoiled by opponents....
from Saints defender Stuart McCaffrey
Stuart McCaffrey
Stuart McCaffrey is a Scottish professional football defender, playing for Scottish club Greenock Morton.-Playing career:...
gave Rangers the lead just before half-time and a late Nacho Novo
Nacho Novo
Ignacio Javier "Nacho" Gómez Novo is a Spanish association footballer who plays for La Liga side Sporting Gijón.Novo formerly played for Huesca in Spain then moved to Scotland with Raith Rovers and Dundee. In July 2004, he moved to Rangers for £450,000. During his first season at the club he...
strike with ten minutes left made the game safe.
The match against Scottish Third Division
Scottish Football League Third Division
The Scottish Football League Third Division is the lowest division of the Scottish Football League and the fourth overall in the Scottish football league system....
side Forfar Athletic
Forfar Athletic F.C.
Forfar Athletic Football Club are a Scottish semi-professional football club from the town of Forfar, Angus. They are members of the Scottish Football League and currently play in the Second Division...
was to be shown on Sky Sports
Sky Sports
Sky Sports is the brand name for a group of sports-oriented television channels operated by the UK and Ireland's main satellite pay-TV company, British Sky Broadcasting. Sky Sports is the dominant subscription television sports brand in the United Kingdom and Ireland...
and was therefore originally planned as a lunchtime kick-off on Sunday 8 February but was postponed due to a frozen pitch, the game was rescheduled and played on Wednesday 18 February. Rangers took an early lead in the match thanks to a Saša Papac
Saša Papac
Saša Papac is a Bosnian association footballer who currently plays for Rangers in the Scottish Premier League and the Bosnia & Herzegovina national team....
goal after only eight minutes but the team could not add to their advantage until after half-time. A Kenny Miller
Kenny Miller
Kenneth "Kenny" Miller is a Scottish footballer who plays as a striker for Cardiff City and the Scotland national football team...
double and Aarón Ñíguez
Aarón Ñíguez
Aarón Ñíguez Esclápez , simply Aarón, is a Spanish footballer who plays for UD Almería as a midfielder.A product of Valencia CF's youth system, he was capped by Spain at various youth levels....
's first Rangers goal ensured the team's progress in a 4–0 win.
The quarter-final was the first tie played at Ibrox
Ibrox Stadium
Ibrox Stadium is a football stadium located on the south side of the River Clyde, on Edmiston Drive in the Ibrox district of Glasgow. It is the home ground of Scottish Premier League club Rangers and has an all-seated capacity of 51,082...
by Rangers in the Scottish cup that season. The game ended in a convincing 5–1 win over Scottish Premier League
Scottish Premier League
The Scottish Premier League , also known as the SPL , is a professional league competition for association football clubs in Scotland...
side Hamilton Academical
Hamilton Academical F.C.
Hamilton Academical Football Club, often known as Hamilton Academical, or Accies, are a Scottish football club from Hamilton in South Lanarkshire. They were established in 1874 from the school football team at Hamilton Academy. They remain the only professional club in British football to have...
. The scoring was opened by Steven Whittaker
Steven Whittaker
Steven Gordon Whittaker is a Scottish association footballer who currently plays as a right back for Scottish Premier League club Rangers and the Scotland national side....
before Hamilton's Rocco Quinn
Rocco Quinn
Rocco Quinn is a Scottish professional football player currently playing in midfield for Ross County.-Early career:...
equalised. Rangers again took the lead through Kyle Lafferty
Kyle Lafferty
Kyle Lafferty is an Northern Irishassociation footballer who currently plays as a striker for Scottish Premier League side Rangers and the Northern Ireland national team...
before Aarón Ñíguez netted a retaken penalty
Penalty kick
A penalty kick is a type of direct free kick in association football, taken from twelve yards out from goal and with only the goalkeeper of the defending team between the penalty taker and the goal.Penalty kicks are performed during normal play...
as half time approached. Hamilton played most of the second half with 10 men due to injuries, goals after the break from Steven Davis
Steven Davis
Steven Davis is a Northern Irish association footballer who currently plays for Scottish Premier League club Rangers and the Northern Ireland national team...
and another from Kyle Lafferty completed the win.
The semi-final at Hampden Park
Hampden Park
Hampden Park is a football stadium in the Mount Florida area of Glasgow, Scotland. The 52,063 capacity venue serves as the national stadium of football in Scotland...
was played against fellow Scottish Premier League side St. Mirren
St. Mirren F.C.
St Mirren Football Club are a Scottish professional football club based in Paisley, Renfrewshire who play in the Scottish Premier League, having been promoted from the First Division in 2005–06.St...
. After just 75 seconds of the match Rangers were ahead through an Andrius Velička
Andrius Velicka
Andrius Velička is a Lithuanian professional association footballer who plays for FK Ekranas. He also plays for the Lithuania national team.-FBK Kaunas:...
goal. Kris Boyd
Kris Boyd
Kris Boyd is a Scottish professional footballer who currently plays as a striker for Turkish side Eskişehirspor.Boyd grew up in the Ayrshire village of Tarbolton and started his senior career with Kilmarnock. He transferred to Rangers in January 2006, and was Rangers' top goalscorer in each of his...
's 100th Rangers goal after 66 minutes made it 2–0 and a Kenny Miller goal twenty minutes from time saw Rangers through to their second successive final.
Falkirk
Falkirk's
Falkirk F.C.
Falkirk Football Club is a Scottish professional football club based in Falkirk. It is one of two professional football teams from the town, the other being East Stirlingshire...
first Scottish Cup match of the season was against the runners-up from the previous season, Queen of the South
Queen of the South F.C.
Queen of the South Football Club is a Scottish professional football club founded in 1919 and located in Dumfries. The club currently plays in the Scottish First Division, the second tier of Scottish football. They are officially nicknamed The Doonhamers, but usually referred to as Queens or QoS...
. Falkirk took the lead after Craig Barr
Craig Barr
Craig Barr is a Scottish footballer who currently plays for Livingston, in the Scottish Football League.-Early years:...
fouled Graham Barrett
Graham Barrett
Graham Barrett is a former Irish professional footballer. He played for the Republic of Ireland national football team. Barrett began his career at Premier League team Arsenal...
, Scott Arfield
Scott Arfield
Scott Arfield is a Scottish football midfielder who currently plays for Huddersfield Town in League One. Arfield was a regular in the Scotland under-21 team.-Falkirk:...
converted the penalty. Queen's equalised five minutes later through a deflected Barry Wilson strike to leave the score level at half-time. Despite a superb free kick by Bob Harris
Robert Harris (footballer)
Robert "Bob" Harris is a Scottish footballer who plays for Blackpool. His position is left back.Harris started at Clyde before making over 100 first team appearances for Queen of the South for whom he played in the 2008 Scottish Cup Final...
to give Queen of the South a 2–1 lead, Falkirk went on to score a further three goals to win 4–2. A Graham Barrett
Graham Barrett
Graham Barrett is a former Irish professional footballer. He played for the Republic of Ireland national football team. Barrett began his career at Premier League team Arsenal...
double and a second from Arfield.
The Bairns faced Scottish Premier League opposition in the next round in the shape of Heart of Midlothian
Heart of Midlothian F.C.
Heart of Midlothian Football Club are a Scottish professional football club based in Gorgie, in the west of Edinburgh. They currently play in the Scottish Premier League and are one of the two principal clubs in the city, the other being Hibernian...
. A Steve Lovell
Steve Lovell
Stephen William Henry "Steve" Lovell is a former English footballer who played as a striker.-Portsmouth:...
header after 59 minutes sent Hearts out of the Cup in a game which saw two red card
Penalty card
A penalty card is used in many sports as a means of warning, reprimanding or penalising a player, coach or team official. Penalty cards are most commonly used by referees or umpires to indicate that a player has committed an offense. The referee will hold the card above his or her head while...
s, one for each side. Heart's Marius Žaliūkas
Marius Žaliukas
Marius Žaliūkas is a Lithuanian footballer who is the captain of Scottish Premier League club Hearts. He plays as either a centre back or a defensive midfielder.-Club career:...
was sent-off after wrestling Carl Finnigan
Carl Finnigan
Carl Finnigan is an English footballer who is currently playing for St. Johnstone.-Career:Finnigan was born in Jarrow. As a youngster, he played for Jarrow F.C.'s under-age teams before joining Newcastle United...
to the ground and Falkirk's Arfield was shown red for a second bookable offence.
A trip to the Highlands
Scottish Highlands
The Highlands is an historic region of Scotland. The area is sometimes referred to as the "Scottish Highlands". It was culturally distinguishable from the Lowlands from the later Middle Ages into the modern period, when Lowland Scots replaced Scottish Gaelic throughout most of the Lowlands...
ensued for the quarter-final after Falkirk were drawn away to Inverness Caledonian Thistle
Inverness Caledonian Thistle F.C.
Inverness Caledonian Thistle Football Club are a Scottish football club from Inverness who compete in the Scottish Premier League. They are currently managed by Terry Butcher and assistant manager Maurice Malpas...
. A victory was secured by a Carl Finnigan penalty after 31 minutes when Lionel Djebi-Zadi
Lionel Djebi-Zadi
Lionel Djebi-Zadi is a French footballer currently a free agent having most recently played for Inverness Caledonian Thistle in the Scottish First Division...
was sent off for grappling with the striker inside the penalty box.
The semi-final match against Dunfermline Athletic
Dunfermline Athletic F.C.
Dunfermline Athletic Football Club are a Scottish football team based in Dunfermline, Fife, commonly known as just Dunfermline. They currently compete in the Scottish Premier League....
was played at Hampden Park despite the Scottish Football Association
Scottish Football Association
The Scottish Football Association is the governing body of football in Scotland and has the ultimate responsibility for the control and development of football in Scotland. Members of the SFA include clubs in Scotland, affiliated national associations as well as local associations...
offering to change the match to a different venue. Tam Scobbie
Tam Scobbie
Thomas "Tam" Scobbie is a Scottish professional footballer who currently plays for Falkirk. Scobbie is also a regular squad member for the Scotland U-21 national team-Youth career:...
opened the scoring when he knocked a Neil McCann
Neil McCann
Neil Docherty McCann is a Scottish professional footballer who is currently playing for Partick Thistle-Club career:...
free kick into the Pars goal with his shoulder early in the second half. The win was assured after Scott Arfield converted a penalty in the 89th minute, McCann had won the spot kick after being brought down by Dunfermline's Greg Ross.
Background
Rangers went into the match as 32 time winners of the competition, they were the defending champions having won in 20082008 Scottish Cup Final
The 2008 Scottish Cup Final was a football match which took place at Hampden Park in Glasgow on 24 May 2008. The match was the final of the 123rd Scottish Cup and was contested by Queen of the South and Rangers. Queen of the South beat Aberdeen 4–3 in their semi-final, Rangers beat St...
, this was their 50th final overall. Falkirk won the cup in 1913 and 1957; they reached the final in 1997 but lost.
Rangers had just won the Scottish Premier League
Scottish Premier League
The Scottish Premier League , also known as the SPL , is a professional league competition for association football clubs in Scotland...
to become Scottish champions
Scottish football champions
The Scottish football champions are the winners of the highest league in Scottish football, namely the Scottish Football League from 1890 until 1998 and the Scottish Premier League thereafter....
and Falkirk had narrowly avoided relegation from the SPL; both had done so in the last match of their respective league seasons. The two teams had met each other four times that season three league meetings which were all won by Rangers and a Scottish League Cup
Scottish League Cup
The Scottish League Cup is a football competition open to all Scottish Football League and Scottish Premier League clubs. At present it is also known as the Scottish Communities League Cup owing to the sponsorship deal in place with the Scottish Government. In the past it has been sponsored by...
Semi-final which Rangers also won. Falkirk had not beaten Rangers in any competition since an SPL meeting in December 2006, They had last met Rangers in the Scottish Cup in a 1998–99 Quarter-final which Rangers won 2–1, The last time they beat Rangers in a cup competition was in the 1994–95 League Cup, They had never previously met in a Cup Final.
Ticket Allocation
Rangers were allocated 24,890 tickets for the final, while Falkirk received 11,740 tickets with another 3,200 available if needed. Falkirk had originally wanted an allocation similar to Rangers. All Falkirk season ticket holders were guaranteed a seat for the final. SFA spokesman Rob Shorthouse told BBC ScotlandBBC Scotland
BBC Scotland is a constituent part of the British Broadcasting Corporation, the publicly-funded broadcaster of the United Kingdom. It is, in effect, the national broadcaster for Scotland, having a considerable amount of autonomy from the BBC's London headquarters, and is run by the BBC Trust, who...
at the end of April that it would be fair to both clubs and wanted to avoid unsold tickets being returned. Both semi-finals at Hampden were well below the 52,000 stadium capacity, with only 32,341 supporters watching Rangers beat St. Mirren
St. Mirren F.C.
St Mirren Football Club are a Scottish professional football club based in Paisley, Renfrewshire who play in the Scottish Premier League, having been promoted from the First Division in 2005–06.St...
3–0 in the first semi-final at Hampden, while 17,124 watched Falkirk's victory over Dunfermline
Dunfermline Athletic F.C.
Dunfermline Athletic Football Club are a Scottish football team based in Dunfermline, Fife, commonly known as just Dunfermline. They currently compete in the Scottish Premier League....
24 hours later.
On 27 May 2009, it was reported that Falkirk had failed to sell its originally allocation of tickets, only 12,200 to date, this meant that the club would be limited to 13,000 tickets in total. Meanwhile, Rangers were given an additional 3,000 tickets on top of there allocation which would now mean that the Glasgow
Glasgow
Glasgow is the largest city in Scotland and third most populous in the United Kingdom. The city is situated on the River Clyde in the country's west central lowlands...
club had a total of 28,000 for the final.
Gowans asked to lead out Falkirk
As a mark of respect for a former FalkirkFalkirk F.C.
Falkirk Football Club is a Scottish professional football club based in Falkirk. It is one of two professional football teams from the town, the other being East Stirlingshire...
youth team player, Craig Gowans, who died in a tragic accident at the club's old training ground in July 2005, Bairns manager John Hughes asked Gowans' father, John, to lead out the team at Hampden Park
Hampden Park
Hampden Park is a football stadium in the Mount Florida area of Glasgow, Scotland. The 52,063 capacity venue serves as the national stadium of football in Scotland...
.
Team news
Rangers were missing midfielder Kevin ThomsonKevin Thomson
Kevin Thomson is a Scottish association footballer who plays for Middlesbrough and the Scotland national football team. Thomson began his career with Hibernian before joining Rangers in 2007 for a £2m transfer fee. He plays as a defensive midfielder with key attributes of passing and tackling...
, who was ruled out until the following season after knee ligament damage substained in November 2008, and defender Kirk Broadfoot
Kirk Broadfoot
Kirk Broadfoot is a Scottish professional association football player who plays for Scottish Premier League club Rangers. He has played mainly as a centre back during his career but has been playing regularly as a right back and sometimes as a left back...
due to a foot injury. There were fitness concerns over Pedro Mendes
Pedro Mendes
Pedro Miguel da Silva Mendes is a Portuguese footballer who plays as a midfielder for Vitória Guimarães of the Portuguese first division .Starting his career with home town club Vitória de Guimarães, Mendes won a UEFA Champions League medal with FC Porto in 2004...
and Maurice Edu
Maurice Edu
Maurice Edu is an American soccer player who plays for Rangers in the Scottish Premier League and the United States national team.- Early life :...
who were both suffering from thigh injuries.
Falkirk were without on-loan midfielder Arnau Riera due to a suspension he picked up in the semi-final against Dunfermline Athletic
Dunfermline Athletic F.C.
Dunfermline Athletic Football Club are a Scottish football team based in Dunfermline, Fife, commonly known as just Dunfermline. They currently compete in the Scottish Premier League....
, he since returned to parent club Sunderland only to be released on 28 May 2009. Ex-Rangers players Steven Pressley
Steven Pressley
Steven John "Elvis" Pressley is a retired Scottish footballer, who is now the manager of Scottish First Division club Falkirk. Pressley had a long playing career, playing for both halves of the Old Firm and making over 100 league appearances for both Dundee United and Hearts...
and Neil McCann
Neil McCann
Neil Docherty McCann is a Scottish professional footballer who is currently playing for Partick Thistle-Club career:...
returned from suspension and injury respectively. Both players were missing from the final Scottish Premier League
Scottish Premier League
The Scottish Premier League , also known as the SPL , is a professional league competition for association football clubs in Scotland...
match of the season
Match details
|
| style="font-size: 90%" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0"> | RANGERS: | |||
| GK | 25 | Neil Alexander Neil Alexander Neil Alexander is a Scottish professional football goalkeeper who is currently playing for Scottish Premier League side Rangers.-Early career:... |
||
| RB | 28 | Steven Whittaker Steven Whittaker Steven Gordon Whittaker is a Scottish association footballer who currently plays as a right back for Scottish Premier League club Rangers and the Scotland national side.... |
||
| CB | 3 | David Weir David Weir David Weir is a Scottish association footballer who plays for Scottish Premier League club Rangers and is a Scottish internationalist, as a centre back.... (c) |
||
| CB | 24 |  Madjid BougherraMadjid Bougherra Madjid Bougherra is a professional footballer. He currently plays for Lekhwiya and the Algeria national team. He is a defender, who can also play as a midfielder.... |
||
| LB | 5 |  Saša PapacSaša Papac Saša Papac is a Bosnian association footballer who currently plays for Rangers in the Scottish Premier League and the Bosnia & Herzegovina national team.... |
||
| RM | 35 |  Steven DavisSteven Davis Steven Davis is a Northern Irish association footballer who currently plays for Scottish Premier League club Rangers and the Northern Ireland national team... |
||
| CM | 6 | Barry Ferguson Barry Ferguson Barry Ferguson MBE is a Scottish footballer who plays as a midfielder for Blackpool.Ferguson has made 82 appearances in European competitions, all for Rangers, which makes him the record European appearance holder at the club. He was also inducted into the Rangers F.C. Hall of Fame... |
||
| CM | 12 | Lee McCulloch Lee McCulloch Lee Henry McCulloch is a Scottish association footballer who currently plays for Scottish Premier League side Rangers.He has been capped on 18 occasions by the Scotland national football team. During his career McCulloch has played for Motherwell, Wigan Athletic and Rangers as club level... |
||
| LM | 27 | Kyle Lafferty Kyle Lafferty Kyle Lafferty is an Northern Irishassociation footballer who currently plays as a striker for Scottish Premier League side Rangers and the Northern Ireland national team... |
||
| ST | 9 | Kris Boyd Kris Boyd Kris Boyd is a Scottish professional footballer who currently plays as a striker for Turkish side Eskişehirspor.Boyd grew up in the Ayrshire village of Tarbolton and started his senior career with Kilmarnock. He transferred to Rangers in January 2006, and was Rangers' top goalscorer in each of his... |
||
| ST | 18 | Kenny Miller Kenny Miller Kenneth "Kenny" Miller is a Scottish footballer who plays as a striker for Cardiff City and the Scotland national football team... |
||
| Substitutes: | ||||
| GK | 1 | Allan McGregor Allan McGregor Allan James McGregor is a Scottish association footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for Rangers and the Scotland national team... |
||
| DF | 72 | Danny Wilson Danny Wilson (Scottish footballer) Daniel "Danny" Wilson is a Scottish footballer who currently plays as a centre back or left back for Premier League club Liverpool and the Scottish national side.-Rangers:... |
||
| DF | 23 | Christian Dailly Christian Dailly Christian Eduard Dailly is a Scottish professional footballer who is without a club having last played for Championship side Portsmouth. He is a versatile player, often seen in defence or defensive midfield, but has played in most outfield positions during his career. Dailly is Scotland's... |
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| MF | 14 | Steven Naismith Steven Naismith Steven John Naismith is a Scottish association footballer who plays for Scottish Premier League club Rangers and the Scotland national team.Naismith began his career with Kilmarnock in 2004... |
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| ST | 10 | Nacho Novo Nacho Novo Ignacio Javier "Nacho" Gómez Novo is a Spanish association footballer who plays for La Liga side Sporting Gijón.Novo formerly played for Huesca in Spain then moved to Scotland with Raith Rovers and Dundee. In July 2004, he moved to Rangers for £450,000. During his first season at the club he... |
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| Manager: | ||||
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(c)
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Steve LovellSteve Lovell
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John HughesMATCH OFFICIALS
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MATCH RULES
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Statistics
| Statistic | Rangers | Falkirk |
|---|---|---|
| Goals scored | 1 | 0 |
| Total shots | 7 | 12 |
| Shots on target | 4 | 1 |
| Ball possession | 45% | 55% |
| Corner kicks | 4 | 2 |
| Fouls committed | 16 | 10 |
| Offsides | 1 | 7 |
| Yellow cards | 3 | 3 |
| Red cards | 0 | 0 |
Source: BBC Sport, The Guardian
Media coverage
In the UK the 2009 Scottish Cup Final was shown live on BBC One Scotland, Sky Sports 2Sky Sports
Sky Sports is the brand name for a group of sports-oriented television channels operated by the UK and Ireland's main satellite pay-TV company, British Sky Broadcasting. Sky Sports is the dominant subscription television sports brand in the United Kingdom and Ireland...
and Sky Sports HD2
Sky Sports
Sky Sports is the brand name for a group of sports-oriented television channels operated by the UK and Ireland's main satellite pay-TV company, British Sky Broadcasting. Sky Sports is the dominant subscription television sports brand in the United Kingdom and Ireland...
. In Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
it was shown live on Setanta Sports
Setanta Sports Australia
Setanta Sports Australia is a sports television channel operating in Australia and is available to homes and businesses across all of Australia...
. A highlights package of the Scottish Cup final was shown on BBC One Scotland at 2200 BST on the day of the match.