The 2008–09 Football League Trophy, known as the 2008–09 Johnstone's Paint Trophy for sponsorship reasons, is the 28th

Football League Trophy The English Football League Trophy, officially known as the Vertu Trophy for sponsorship reasons, is an annual English football knockout competition open to all clubs in EFL League One and EFL League Two and U-21 teams from the Premier Le ...

, a knockout competition for

English football Football is the most popular sport in England. Widely regarded as the birthplace of modern football, the first official rules of the game were established in England in 1863. The country is home to the world's first football league, the oldest ...

clubs in Leagues One and

Two 2 (two) is a number, numeral and digit. It is the natural number following 1 and preceding 3. It is the smallest and the only even prime number. Because it forms the basis of a duality, it has religious and spiritual significance in many ...

, the third and fourth tiers of English football.

Luton Town Luton Town Football Club is a professional association football, football club from Luton, Bedfordshire, England. The club currently competes in EFL League One, the third level of the English football league system. Nicknamed "The Hatters", L ...

won the competition, beating

Scunthorpe United Scunthorpe United Football Club is a professional association football club based in Scunthorpe, North Lincolnshire, England. The team competes in the National League, the fifth tier of the English football league system. The club was formed in ...

3–2 after extra time in the

final Final, Finals or The Final may refer to: *Final examination or finals, a test given at the end of a course of study or training *Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which d ...

. However, Luton were unable to defend their trophy as they were relegated from

the Football League The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, it is the oldest football league in the world, and was the top-level football league in England from ...

at the end of the season. The format was the same as that which had been used since

1996 1996 was designated as: * International Year for the Eradication of Poverty Events January * January 8 – A Zairean cargo plane crashes into a crowded market in the center of the capital city of the Democratic Republic of the Congo ...

, with four first round regions; North-West, North-East, South-West and South-East and a two-region format from the second round; North and South. The resulting regional winners then meet in the final.

First round

The First Round draw was conducted on 16 August 2008. The teams to be granted byes to the Second Round were drawn first, with the remaining teams drawn for the First Round ties. The First Round matches were played in the week commencing 1 September 2008.

Northern Section

Southern Section

First round byes

Northern section

Bury,

Carlisle United Carlisle United Football Club ( , ) is a professional association football club based in Carlisle, Cumbria, England. The team currently compete in the National League, the fifth level of the English football league system. They have played their ...

, Chester City,

Darlington Darlington is a market town in the Borough of Darlington, County Durham, England. It lies on the River Skerne, west of Middlesbrough and south of Durham. Darlington had a population of 107,800 at the 2021 Census, making it a "large town" ...

, Lincoln City,

Rochdale Rochdale ( ) is a town in Greater Manchester, England, and the administrative centre of the Metropolitan Borough of Rochdale. In the United Kingdom 2021 Census, 2021 Census, the town had a population of 111,261, compared to 223,773 for the wid ...

Rotherham United Rotherham United Football Club, nicknamed The Millers, is a professional association football club based in Rotherham, South Yorkshire, England. The team plays in EFL League One, the third tier of English football, after suffering relegation fr ...

Huddersfield Town Huddersfield Town Association Football Club is a professional association football club based in Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, England. They compete in , the third tier of English football league system, English football. Huddersfield Town we ...

Southern section

Cheltenham Town Cheltenham Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in the town of Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, England. The team competes in EFL League Two, the fourth level of the English football league system. Founded in 1887, ...

, Gillingham,

Hereford United Hereford United Football Club was an association football club based in Hereford, England. They played at Edgar Street for their entire history. They were nicknamed 'The Whites' or 'The Lilywhites', after their predominantly white kit, or 'Th ...

, Milton Keynes Dons,

Peterborough United Peterborough United Football Club is a professional association football club based in Peterborough, Cambridgeshire, England. The team compete in League One, the third level of the English football league system. Peterborough United formed in ...

Walsall Walsall (, or ; locally ) is a market town and administrative centre of the Metropolitan Borough of Walsall, in the West Midlands (county), West Midlands, England. Historic counties of England, Historically part of Staffordshire, it is located ...

Wycombe Wanderers Wycombe Wanderers Football Club () is a professional association football club based in the town of High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire, England. The team competes in League One, the third level of the English football league system. Founded in 188 ...

Second round

The Second Round draw was conducted on 6 September 2008, with matches played in the week commencing 6 October 2008.

Northern Section

Southern Section

Area quarter-finals

The draw for the area quarter-finals was conducted on 11 October 2008. The matches were played in the week commencing 3 November 2008, with the exception of the match between

Brighton & Hove Albion Brighton & Hove Albion Football Club, commonly referred to as Brighton, is a professional football club based in Brighton and Hove, East Sussex, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football. Their home gr ...

and

Swindon Town Swindon Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in Swindon, Wiltshire, England. The team, known as the "Robins", currently compete in , the fourth level of the English football league system. Founded as Swindon A ...

, which was played on 12 November 2008.

Northern Section

Southern Section

Area semi-finals

The draw for the area semi-finals was conducted on 8 November 2008, and matches were played in the week commencing 15 December 2008.

Northern Section

Southern Section

Area finals

The area finals, which serve as the semi-finals for the entire competition, are contested over two legs, home and away. The first legs were played on 20 January 2009; the second legs were played on 17 February 2009.

Northern Section

---- ''Scunthorpe United won 3–0 on aggregate.''

Southern Section

---- ''Brighton & Hove Albion 1–1 Luton Town on aggregate. Luton Town won 4–3 on penalties.''

Final

External links

Tournament home page
{{DEFAULTSORT:2008-09 Football League Trophy EFL Trophy seasons League Trophy

Trophy A trophy is a tangible, decorative item used to remind of a specific achievement, serving as recognition or evidence of merit. Trophies are most commonly awarded for sports, sporting events, ranging from youth sports to professional level athlet ...