Airdrie United F.C.
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| Full name | Airdrie United Football Club | ||
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| Nickname(s) | The Diamonds The Waysiders |
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| Founded | 2002 | ||
| Ground | New Broomfield Airdrie Scotland (Capacity: 10,172) |
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| Chairman |  Jim Ballantyne |
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| Manager | Kenny Black |
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| League | Scottish Second Division | ||
| 2008–09 | Scottish First Division, 9th (Relegated via play-offs) | ||
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Airdrie United Football Club is a Scottish professional football team based in the town of Airdrie, North Lanarkshire. They are members of the Scottish Football League and were recently relegated to the Second Division.
The club were created in 2002 after the old Airdrie club Airdrieonians went into liquidation.
Airdrie have won two trophies in their short history. The first came in the 2003–04 season when they were crowned champions of the Scottish Second Division. They reached the Challenge Cup final they same year but were edged out by Inverness Caledonian Thistle. This season remains the most successful the club have experienced. Their second trophy was the Scottish Challenge Cup which they won in 2008 by beating Ross County.
The current manager is former Airdrieonians player Kenny Black, while the club captain is Paul Lovering.
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[edit] History
The club were formed in 2002, following the bankruptcy of Airdrieonians. . Airdrieonians had finished runners-up in the Scottish First Division in the 2001–02 season but went out of business with debts approaching £3 million. The collapse of "The Diamonds", as they were known due to their distinctive kits, created a vacancy in the Scottish Football League (in the Scottish Third Division) and local Airdrie man and Airdrieonians fan Jim Ballantyne attempted, with the help of others, to gain entry with a club called "Airdrie United" who were essentially to be a re-incarnation of Airdrieonians. Their application, however, was rejected as the then English Northern Premier League side Gretna were preferred by league members over the new Airdrie team. Ballantyne went on to complete a buy-out of the ailing Second Division side Clydebank and, with SFL approval, The club were relocated to Airdrie, the strips were transformed to resemble that of Airdrieonians and the name was changed to Airdrie United.
Airdrie United's first match took place at New Broomfield against Forfar Athletic with captain Stephen Docherty scoring the only goal of the game as the Diamonds won 1–0. This first season in existence saw the club take the form of promotion challengers and only narrowly fail to achieve this aim due to a late injury-time goal from Brechin City which saw them promoted ahead of the Diamonds. Airdrie shocked Premier League outfit Kilmarnock by knocking them out of that seasons Scottish League Cup on penalties at Rugby Park
United's first trophy came in the 2003–04 season, only the club's second in existence, when they won the Second Division Championship and gained promotion to the First Division. Sandy Stewart's side had started poorly but went on a run that saw them unbeaten in the last 18 games of the season. The final game of this run and of the league campaign saw a crowd of over 5,000 at New Broomfield to watch Airdrie defeat Greenock Morton 2–0 and lift the League Championship trophy, the club having been confirmed champions the previous week following their 1–0 victory away to Alloa Athletic at Recreation Park. In the same season, Airdrie United reached the final of the Scottish Challenge Cup, but lost 2–0 to Inverness Caledonian Thistle at McDiarmid Park.
In Airdrie's first season in the First Division they finished 5th, following this with a 6th place finish in 2005–06 season. Manager, Sandy Stewart was sacked early in the 2006–07 season, after over four years in charge, and was replaced by former Airdrieonians player and Airdrie United coach Kenny Black, his first management post.[1] Under Black the Diamonds finished the season 9th in the league, consigning them to the Scottish First Division Play-Off position. After beating Brechin City in the semi-final, by an aggregate score of 6–1, Aidrie lost the final againast Stirling Albion 5–4 on aggregate, relegating the club for the first time in their short history.
Airdrie started 2007–08 poorly, whilst off the pitch a mystery consortium saved New Broomfield and promised to "safeguard it for the club"[2]. The Diamonds' form improved on the park and they finished second in the table behind Ross County, entering them into the promotion playoffs with Clyde, Raith Rovers, and Alloa Athletic. Airdrie beat Raith 4–2 on aggregate in the semi-finals, before losing to their former groundsharing landlords Clyde 3–0 on aggregate, leaving Airdrie in the second division for the 2008–09 season. However, the enforced relegation of Gretna to the third division, following their being put into administration, caused a restructuring of the leagues, with Airdrie being promoted by virtue of being the losing play-off finalists.
Season 2008–09 saw mixed fortunes for the club. Having started the league campaign brightly, the team slipped down to the bottom end of the table. However, a Co-Operative Insurance Cup run saw the club overcome Ross County and Hearts, before exiting to Dundee Utd. in the 3rd round. The MG Alba Challenge Cup final win over Ross County saw fans treated to a 3–2 penalty shoot out victory after a 2–2 draw, with previous round wins to savour over Dumbarton, East Fife, Cowdenbeath and Partick Thistle.
This success did not go unnoticed, and much speculation surrounded manager Kenny Black in early November, with the media reporting him to be linked with the then vacant manager's seat at Dundee. However, this was put to bed as Black finally signed a contract with Airdrie.
Ultimately though the season ended in major disappointment and frustration - Airdrie escaped automatic relegation but again found themselves in a series of play-off games. Having disposed of Peterhead in the first 2 games by way of an aggregate score of 4-1, the final saw the Diamonds paired with Second Division runners up Ayr Utd. in the 2 legged final. Having returned from Somerset Park with a 2-2 draw, the Lanarkshire men were unable to defeat their Ayrshire opponents, losing the game 0-1 at New Broomfield. The defeat sealed the club to a 2nd relegation and a 3rd successive play off final loss.
With much pressure from the fans on the manager Kenny Black, chairman Jim Ballantyne announced in May the club would remain full-time with Black at the helm, leading the club in search of the 2009-2010 2nd Division Championship. Anything less, in Ballantyne's words " would be failure ".
[edit] Stadium
Airdrie United play their home fixtures at Excelsior Stadium, Airdrie, unofficially known as New Broomfield. The defunct Airdrieonians' previous home was sold to supermarket chain Safeway later becoming Wm. Morrisons, who were given permission to build a new store on the site. This transaction has been accused of being the cause of financial ruination of Airdrieonians, as their old ground was demolished several years before the new ground was given planning permission. In the intervening years the club ground-shared Broadwood Stadium, in Cumbernauld, the home of Clyde.
[edit] Colours
Airdrie United have inherited Airdrieonians' distinctive playing colours of a white top with a red diamond. The design gave rise to Airdrieonians' nickname, The Diamonds, which has also been adopted by Airdrie United.
[edit] Rivals
Motherwell F.C., Hamilton Academical F.C. and Partick Thistle F.C.
[edit] Officials
- Chairman: Jim Ballantyne
- Directors: Ann Marie Ballantyne, John Ballantyne, Rose Ballantyne,
- Honorary President: Ian McMillan
- Manager: Kenny Black
- Assistant Manager/Under 19s Manager: Jimmy Boyle
[edit] Current squad
As of 29 June 2009
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[edit] Managers
| Name | Reign | Achievements | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kenny Black |
2006- | Scottish Second Division Promotion to Scottish First Division 2007-08MG Alba Challenge Cup 2008 | |
| Sandy Stewart |
2002 to 2006 | Scottish Second Division Champions 2003–04 | Challenge Cup Runners-Up 2003–04 |
[edit] Honours & records
[edit] Honours
- Scottish Second Division: 2003–04
- Scottish Challenge Cup: 2008–09
[edit] General Club Records
| Record Type | Record | Additional Information |
|---|---|---|
| Most League Points in a Season | 70 | in Second Division 2002–03 |
| Most League Goals by a Player in Season | 19, Allan Russell | in Second Division 2007–08 |
| Record Total League Appearances | ||
| Record Total League Goals | 34, Stephen McKeown | |
| Record Attendance | 5,704 | v Greenock Morton on 15/5/04 in Second Division at New Broomfield |
| Record Win | 7–0 | v Dundee on 11/03/05 in First Division |
| Record Loss | 1–6 | v Greenock Morton on 1/11/03 in Second Division |
[edit] Performance
Scottish Football League
| Season | League | Position | Additional Information |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2008–09 | First Division | 9th | Relegated to Second Division after defeat in Play-Offs |
| 2007–08 | Second Division | 2nd | Promoted to First Division due to demise of Gretna |
| 2006–07 | First Division | 9th | Relegated to Second Division after defeat in Play-Offs |
| 2005–06 | First Division | 6th | |
| 2004–05 | First Division | 5th | |
| 2003–04 | Second Division | 1st | Promoted to First Division as Champions |
| 2002–03 | Second Division | 3rd |
Scottish Cup
- Best performance - 4th Round 2005–06
Scottish League Cup
- Best performance - 3rd Round 2002–03
Scottish Challenge Cup
- Winners 2008–09
[edit] Statistics
[edit] Average attendance
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[edit] Top league goalscorers
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[edit] Awards
[edit] Official Club Player of the Year
| Season | Senior Player of the Year | Young Player of the Year |
|---|---|---|
| 2007–08 | Allan Russell |
Kevin Watt |
| 2006–07 | Neil McGowan |
Stephen McKenna |
| 2005–06 | Bryan Prunty |
Steven McDougall |
| 2004–05 | Marvyn Wilson |
Stephen McKenna |
| 2003–04 | David Dunn |
Willie McLaren |
| 2002–03 |  Jerome Vareille |
Stephen McKeown |
[edit] Hall of Fame
| Season | Inductee |
|---|---|
| 2006–07 | Stephen Docherty, Paul Jack |
| 2005–06 | Alex MacDonald, Willie McCulloch, Jimmy Reid |
| 2004–05 | Brian McKeown, Lawrie Leslie |
| 2003–04 |  Steve Cooper, Billy Wilson |
| 2002–03 |  Antonio Calderon, Alan Lawrence, Jimmy Welch |
[edit] Notable former staff
[edit] Players
[edit] Managers
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ "Black Appointed new Airdrie boss". BBC Sport Online. 2006-11-17. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/teams/a/airdrie_united/6158264.stm. Retrieved on 2008-07-02.
- ^ "Mystery group saves club ground" article from BBC Sport
[edit] External links
[edit] Unofficial Site
The Broomfield Stomp [1]
[edit] Official Site
[edit] News pages
- Airdrie United BBC Sport page
- Airdrie Football Club News
- Airdrie United at Football.co.uk
- Airdrie United at The Airdrie Page
[edit] Photography
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Airdrie United F.C.
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