2008 Alabama Crimson Tide football team, After the season, Awards, Conference
Following the loss in the SEC Championship Game, the conference named its award winners. Nick Saban was named SEC Coach of the Year and Julio Jones was named SEC Freshman of the Year. Andre Smith, Rashad Johnson, Antoine Caldwell, Glen Coffee, Terrence Cody and Rolando McClain were named to the AP All-SEC First Team. Mike Johnson, Julio Jones and Javier Arenas were named to the AP All-SEC Second Team. Five players were named to the Coaches' All-SEC First Team, including Caldwell, Cody, Rashad Johnson, McClain and Andre Smith. Arenas (as both a cornerback and kick returner), Coffee, Mike Johnson and Jones were named to the Coaches' All-SEC Second Team. Julio Jones, Mark Ingram, Dont'a Hightower and John Michael Boswell were named to the 2008 Freshman All-SEC Team.


2008 Alabama Crimson Tide football team, After the season, Awards, National
After the season, a number of Alabama players were named as national award winners and finalists. Andre Smith became Alabama's second Outland Trophy winner as the best interior lineman by the Football Writers Association of America. Smith was also a finalist for the Lombardi Award and Antoine Caldwell was a finalist for the Rimington Trophy.


2008 Alabama Crimson Tide football team, After the season, Awards, National
Nick Saban captured several coach of the year awards that included: the AP Coach of the Year, the Eddie Robinson Coach of the Year, the Home Depot Coach of the Year, the Liberty Mutual Coach of the Year Award, the Sporting News College Football Coach of the Year and the Walter Camp Coach of the Year.


2008 Alabama Crimson Tide football team, After the season, Awards, National
In addition to the individual awards, several players were also named to various national All-American Teams. Andre Smith, Antoine Caldwell and Terrence Cody were named to the AP All-American First Team; Rashad Johnson was named to the AP All-American Second Team; and Rolando McClain was named to the AP All-American Third Team. Andre Smith was named to the Walter Camp All-American First Team. Andre Smith, Caldwell, Cody and Rashad Johnson were named to the AFCA All-America Team.


2008 Alabama Crimson Tide football team, After the season, NFL Draft
In the spring that followed the 2008 season, Alabama had four players selected in the 2009 NFL Draft. The first round selection was Andre Smith (6th Cincinnati Bengals); and the third round picks were Coffee (74th San Francisco 49ers), Caldwell (77th Houston Texans) and Rashad Johnson (95th Arizona Cardinals). John Parker Wilson with the Atlanta Falcons, Bobby Greenwood with the Kansas City Chiefs, Marlon Davis with the Cleveland Browns, Nick Walker with the Minnesota Vikings and Travis McCall with the Buffalo Bills  each signed as undrafted free agents. In the years that followed, an additional 22 players from the 2008 squad were drafted into the NFL.


2008 Alabama Democratic presidential primary
The 2008 Alabama Democratic presidential primary was held on Super Tuesday, February 5, 2008, and had a total of 52 delegates at stake. The winner in each of Alabama's seven congressional districts was awarded all of that district's delegates, totaling 34. Another 18 delegates were awarded to the statewide winner, Barack Obama. The 52 delegates represented Alabama at the Democratic National Convention in Denver, Colorado. Eight other delegates were chosen on March 1, 2008, during an Alabama Democratic Party Executive Committee meeting. Those eight delegates attended the National Convention as officially unpledged.


2008 Alabama Democratic presidential primary, Analysis
With its heavily African American population, Barack Obama solidly defeated Hillary Clinton in Alabama. According to exit polls, 51 percent of voters in the Alabama Democratic Primary were African Americans and they opted for Obama by a margin of 84–15 compared to the 44 percent of white voters who backed Clinton by a margin of 72–25. Obama won all age groups and educational attainment levels in Alabama except senior citizens aged 65 and over and those who did not complete high school. Obama won voters who identified as Democrats but Clinton won those who identified as Republicans; both candidates split among Independents. Clinton won Protestants but Obama won those who identified as Other Christian (excluding Catholics) and agnostics/atheists.


2008 Alabama Democratic presidential primary, Analysis
Obama did best in the Black Belt counties in Alabama which are majority African American. He also performed extremely well in the urban areas of Birmingham, Montgomery, Mobile and Huntsville. Clinton performed best in Northern Alabama and did best in counties that were majority white.


2008 Alabama Republican presidential primary
The 2008 Alabama Republican presidential primary was held on February 5 (Super Tuesday) and had a total of 45 delegates at stake. The winner in each of the 7 congressional districts was awarded all of that district's delegates.


2008 Alamo Bowl
The 2008 Valero Alamo Bowl was a college football bowl game played on December 29, 2008 in the 65,000-seat Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas, and televised nationally by ESPN. The game was one of the 2008–09 NCAA football bowl games that concluded the 2008 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The 2008 Alamo Bowl was the 16th annual edition of the contest and the second to be sponsored by Valero Energy Corporation. The game pit the Missouri Tigers (9–4) against the Northwestern Wildcats (9–3). The 2008 game was dubbed the Journalism Bowl by some in the media, owing to the nationally recognized journalism programs at each school: the Missouri School of Journalism and the Medill School of Journalism.


2008 Alamo Bowl, Scoring summary, First quarter
Northwestern's Brian Peters intercepted Missouri quarterback Chase Daniel on the Tiger's first drive. The Wildcats took advantage of the mistake and quarterback C. J. Bachér found a wide-open Eric Peterman for a 35-yard touchdown.


2008 Alamo Bowl, Scoring summary, Second quarter
Missouri and Northwestern traded field goals in the second quarter. With just one minute before halftime, Jeremy Maclin bolted for a 75-yard punt return for a touchdown.


2008 Alamo Bowl, Scoring summary, Third quarter
Bachér found Rasheed Ward for a 46-yard touchdown pass on the first drive of the second half. However, Northwestern's extra point attempt bounced off the right upright, making the score 16–10. Danario Alexander gave Mizzou its first lead of the game with an 11-yard touchdown pass from Daniel with about 7 minutes left in the third. Missouri kicked another field goal later in the quarter. With 31 seconds left in the quarter, Bachér found Ross Lane in the back of the endzone to give Northwestern a 23–20 lead.


2008 Alamo Bowl, Scoring summary, Fourth quarter
Jeff Wolfert made his third field goal of the game with 2:49 remaining to tie the game at 23–23. However, he missed a 44-yard field as time expired, sending the game into overtime.


2008 Alamo Bowl, Scoring summary, Overtime
Missouri started on offense first to begin the overtime period. Daniel threw a 7-yard pass to Maclin to give Missouri a 30–23 lead. Like their offense, Missouri's defense delivered. They forced a back-pedaling Bachér to fumble the ball, leaving Northwestern with a fourth-and-goal from the 32-yard line. Bachér's desperation hail mary was knocked down into the end zone.


2008 Alaska Democratic presidential caucuses
The 2008 Alaska Democratic presidential caucuses took place Super Tuesday, February 5, 2008. This was the first time that Democrats in Alaska participated in Super Tuesday, and the large turnout forced at least one caucusing site to delay closing its doors far beyond the 6 p.m. deadline. The state had a total of 13 delegates at stake. Barack Obama won the Alaska Democratic Caucuses and secured 9 delegates to the Democratic National Convention while Hillary Clinton took 4 delegates. However, the caucus was non-binding, and Alaska's Democratic State Convention in May awarded Obama 10 pledged delegates.


2008 Alaska Democratic presidential caucuses, Process
The Alaska Democratic Caucuses were open to all Alaska voters. Non -Democrats and unregistered voters could register or switch party affiliation at the meeting. At the caucus, voters "fanned out" to groups of supporters of their candidate. Then delegates to the state convention on May 24, 2008, were selected from these preference groups. At the district caucuses, candidates required a minimum support threshold of 15 percent to win delegates to the state convention. The same threshold applied at the state convention; candidates needed a support threshold of 15 percent to receive delegates at the Democratic National Convention.


2008 Alaska Democratic presidential caucuses, Process
However, the district caucus results were not binding on the state convention delegates. Therefore, although Obama only won 9 delegate votes in the caucuses, at the state convention he secured 10. Unlike many caucus states, the actual number of votes in the Alaska caucuses was disclosed. Many states only tabulate state delegates or state delegate equivalents.


2008 Alaska Democratic presidential caucuses, Process
The state convention officially allocated the 13 delegates to the national convention. In addition, the state convention chose five superdelegates to attend the national convention. Superdelegates officially were not pledged to any candidate. However, all of Alaska's superdelegates endorsed either Clinton or Obama.


2008 Alaska Democratic presidential caucuses, Analysis
Barack Obama scored a major victory in the Democratic Caucuses, winning by more than a three-to-one margin over Hillary Clinton.


2008 Alaska Republican presidential caucuses
The 2008 Alaska Republican presidential caucuses were held on February 5, 2008, and has a total of 26 delegates at stake. Mitt Romney won the state, and, as the winner in Alaska's congressional district, was awarded all of that district's delegates. All results are from the presidential preference poll held at the caucuses. Actual delegates were selected on February 5 or 9 at district conventions held throughout the state, and finally at a statewide convention held between March 13–15 in Anchorage.


2008 Alaska Republican presidential caucuses, Candidates
Candidates Rudy Giuliani, Duncan L. Hunter and Fred Thompson dropped out of the presidential race before the primary.


2008 Albanian Cup Final
The 2008 Albanian Cup Final was the 56th final of the Albanian Cup. The final was played at Stadioni Ruzhdi Bizhuta in Elbasan on 7 May 2008. The match was contested by KS Vllaznia Shkoder, who beat Dinamo Tirana in their semi-final, and KF Tirana who beat KF Elbasani. Vllaznia opened the scoring in the 3rd minute with midfielder Gilman Lika, they then won the game with a second on 38 minutes through Xhevahir Sukaj to give Vllaznia their sixth Albanian Cup success.


2008 Albanian Supercup
2008 Albanian Supercup is the 15th edition of the Albanian Supercup since its establishment in 1989. The match was contested between the 2008 Cup winners Vllaznia Shkodër and the 2007–08 Albanian Superliga champions Dinamo Tirana.


2008 Albanian Supercup
Dinamo Tirana won the final by 2 goals to nil and lifted the cup after years of Tirana dominance of the event.


2008 Alberta Liberal Party leadership election
The 2008 Alberta Liberal leadership election was held on December 12, 2008, to select a leader of the Alberta Liberal Party. Incumbent leader Kevin Taft announced his resignation June 2008, in the wake of the March provincial election in which the Liberals lost seven of their sixteen seats.


2008 Alberta Liberal Party leadership election, Candidates
Candidates had until September 30 to file nomination papers. Three candidates announced their intentions to run:


2008 Alberta Liberal Party leadership election, Candidates, Declined
Hugh MacDonald, Edmonton-Gold Bar MLA since 1997, was at one time considering a candidacy. Laurie Blakeman, MLA for Edmonton Centre since 1997 and Liberal House Leader, had been widely expected to run but in August announced that she would not do so, citing the financial cost of a candidacy. She said that she would not be endorsing a candidate.


2008 Alberta Liberal Party leadership election, Candidates, Declined
Other Liberals to publicly decline to run included Calgary mayor Dave Bronconnier and former Deputy Prime Minister Anne McLellan, both of whom announced their intentions immediately following Taft's resignation, and former Edmonton-Rutherford MLA Rick Miller, who expressed concern that, with the next provincial election presumably so far off, he wouldn't have a seat in the legislature for three and a half years after being elected leader.


2008 Alberta Liberal Party leadership election, Results
David Swann was elected leader of the Alberta Liberal Party on the first ballot, receiving more than half of the total votes cast.


2008 Alberta general election
The 2008 Alberta general election was held on March 3, 2008, to elect members of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta.


2008 Alberta general election
It was expected to be called early because the governing Progressive Conservatives held a leadership election on December 2, 2006, in which Ed Stelmach was elected to replace Ralph Klein as party leader and Premier. The election was called when Stelmach formally advised Lieutenant Governor Norman Kwong to dissolve the Legislature, which happened on February 4, 2008.


2008 Alberta general election
With 53% of the popular vote, the Progressive Conservatives won a decisive majority over the Liberal and other parties, despite early suggestions of a closer race.


2008 Alberta general election
The 2008 election had the lowest voter turnout in the province's history, with only 40.59% of eligible voters casting a ballot.


2008 Alberta general election, Results
The Progressive Conservatives increased their majority at the expense of all other parties in the legislature. The Tories also increased their share of the popular vote, and even though their share of the vote was still significantly less than it was in 2001, they managed to win just two fewer seats than they won in that election. This was largely a result of their continued widespread support in rural areas, as well as divided opposition support in Calgary and Edmonton. The Conservative gains came mostly in and around Edmonton, where the party recorded its best results since 1982.


2008 Alberta general election, Results
The Liberals held on to official opposition status but sustained a net loss of seven seats. Bucking historic trends, the party was reduced to only three seats in Edmonton, but was able to win five seats in Calgary (a net gain of one seat and the largest total won by that party in that city in the past 50 years). The Liberals also held their existing seat in Lethbridge to win a total of nine seats.


2008 Alberta general election, Results
The other parties that were represented in the legislature also suffered losses on election night. The New Democrats lost two of their four Edmonton seats, and the Wildrose Alliance Party was shut out of the legislature as their leader Paul Hinman was narrowly defeated in his own constituency of Cardston-Taber-Warner.


2008 Alberta general election, Results
For the first time in history, a majority of the Liberal caucus were from Calgary and the combined number of Liberal and NDP MLAs from Edmonton did not exceed the number of those two parties' MLAs from Calgary.


2008 Alberta general election, Policy and other major announcements, Alberta Liberal Party
Cost: Net costs are zero as a result of re-allocating existing dollars and increased royalty revenues.


2008 Alberta general election, Policy and other major announcements, New Democratic Party of Alberta
Cost: $477 million surplus, based on increased royalty rates, bitumen royalty premium and reverse corporate tax cuts.


2008 Alberta general election, Policy and other major announcements, Progressive Conservative Party of Alberta
Cost: Total commitments represent 4.2 per cent of the budget for 2008–09 or $1.5 billion.


2008 Alberta general election, Results by region
1 "Edmonton" corresponds to only the city of Edmonton. (Only the ridings whose names begin with "Edmonton".) The four suburban ridings around the city as listed below are grouped with central Alberta in this table.


2008 Alberta general election, Target ridings
The following is a list of ridings that were narrowly lost by the indicated party in the 2004 election. For instance, under the Liberal column are the nine seats in which they came closest to winning but did not. Listed is the name of the riding, followed by the party which was victorious (in parentheses) and the margin, in terms of percentage of the vote, by which the party lost.


2008 Alberta general election, Target ridings
These ridings were likely targeted by the specified party because the party lost them by a very slim margin in the 2004 election.


2008 Alberta general election, Target ridings
Up to ten are shown, with a maximum margin of victory of 15%.


2008 Albirex Niigata season
This is the current revision of this page, as edited by Monkbot (talk | contribs) at 18:02, 4 January 2020 (→Other pages: Task 15:  language icon template(s) replaced (1×);). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this version.


2008 Alderney general election
General elections to the States were held in Alderney on 6 December 2008 in accordance with the rules governing elections in Alderney. All five elected members were independents. The results were complicated by the first ever tie in Alderney's electoral history, between John Beaman and Don Oakden, both with 294 votes. After the drawing of a name from the ballot box by the returning officer, Beaman was elected in fifth place.


2008 Algarve Cup
The 2008 Algarve Cup was the fifteenth edition of the Algarve Cup, an invitational women's football tournament held annually in Portugal. It took place between 5  and 12 March 2008 with the reigning champions the United States winning the event for a record sixth time, after defeating Denmark, 2-1, in the final game in a repeat of the previous year's final.


2008 Algarve Cup, Format
The twelve invited teams were split into three groups that played a round-robin tournament. The entrants were almost identical to the previous year, but Italy moved up into Group B from their previous ranking in 2007, replacing France who did not feature this time. Poland appeared in the competition for the first time.


2008 Algarve Cup, Format
Groups A and B, containing the strongest ranked teams, were the only ones in contention to win the title. The group winners from A and B contested the final, with the runners-up playing for third place and those that finished third in these two groups playing for fifth place.


2008 Algarve Cup, Format
The teams in Group C were playing for places 7-12, with the winner of Group C playing the team that finished fourth in Group A or B with the better record for seventh place and the Group C runner-up playing the team which came last in Group A or B with the worse record for ninth place. The third and fourth-placed teams in Group C played for eleventh place.


2008 Algarve Cup, Format
Points awarded in the group stage follow the standard formula of three points for a win, one point for a draw and zero points for a loss. In the case of two teams being tied on the same number of points in a group, their head-to-head result determined the higher placed.


2008 Algerian Cup Final
The 2008 Algerian Cup Final was the 44th final of the Algerian Cup. The final took place on June 16, 2008, at Stade Mustapha Tchaker in Blida with kick-off at 16:00. JSM Béjaïa beat WA Tlemcen 3–1 on penalties to win their first Algerian Cup.


2008 All England Super Series
The 2008 Yonex All England Super Series is the 98th edition of the All England Open Badminton Championships and also the third tournament of the 2008 BWF Super Series. It was held from 4 to 9 March 2008 in Birmingham, England.


2008 All Thailand Golf Tour
The 2008 All Thailand Golf Tour is the 10th season of the All Thailand Golf Tour, the main professional golf tour in Thailand since it was established in 1999.


2008 All-Australian team
The 2008 All-Australian team represents the best performed Australian Football League (AFL) players during the 2008 season. The selection panel provided the 40 leading players of the year in their playing positions at the conclusion of the home and away season before announcing the final 22 during the All-Australian Presentation Dinner on 15 September. The team is honorary and does not play any games.


2008 All-Australian team, Selection panel
The selection panel for the 2008 All-Australian team consisted of non-voting chairman Andrew Demetriou, Adrian Anderson, Robert Walls, Gerard Healy, Mark Bickley, Glen Jakovich, Rod Austin and Kevin Bartlett.


2008 All-Australian team, Team, Initial squad
The 40-man squad was announced on 3 September, with ten Geelong players named.


2008 All-Australian team, Team, Final team
Note: the position of coach in the All-Australian team is traditionally awarded to the coach of the premiership team.


2008 All-Australian team, Team, Final team
The 2008 All-Australian umpire was also awarded, with that honour going to Brett Rosebury.


2008 All-Big 12 Conference football team
The 2008 All-Big 12 Conference football team consists of American football players chosen as All-Big 12 Conference players for the 2008 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The conference recognizes two official All-Big 12 selectors: (1) the Big 12 conference coaches selected separate offensive and defensive units and named first- and second-team players (the "Coaches" team); and (2) a panel of sports writers and broadcasters covering the Big 12 also selected offensive and defensive units and named first- and second-team players (the "Media" team).


2008 All-Big 12 Conference football team, Key
Bold = selected as a first-team player by both the coaches and media panel


2008 All-Big Ten Conference football team
The 2008 All-Big Ten Conference football team consists of American football players chosen as All-Big Ten Conference players for the 2008 Big Ten Conference football season. The conference recognizes two official All-Big Ten selectors: (1) the Big Ten conference coaches selected separate offensive and defensive units and named first- and second-team players (the "Coaches" team); and (2) a panel of sports writers and broadcasters covering the Big Ten also selected offensive and defensive units and named first- and second-team players (the "Media" team).


2008 All-Big Ten Conference football team, Key
Bold = Consensus first-team selection by both the coaches and media


2008 All-India Railway Recruitment Board examination attack
On 19 October 2008, Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) and Shiv Sena activists attacked North Indian candidates appearing for the All India Railway Recruitment Board entrance exam for the Western region in Mumbai, India. The attacks invoked a quick reaction from Bihar members of the Union Government in Delhi, notably the Union Railways Minister Lalu Prasad Yadav and his cabinet colleague, Ram Vilas Paswan. The Chief Minister of Bihar, Nitish Kumar spoke to his Maharashtra counterpart Vilasrao Deshmukh and urged him to provide protection to the migrants from Bihar. Lalu demanded a ban on the MNS, and described its chief Raj Thackeray as a "mental case".


2008 All-India Railway Recruitment Board examination attack
Pawan Mahto, a resident of Bara-Khurd village in Nalanda district, Bihar died after being assaulted by MNS activists. However, railway police claimed, based on the CCTV footage, that Pawan had died due to an accident at Andheri station after slipping at a platform.


2008 All-India Railway Recruitment Board examination attack
On 20 October 2008, Thackeray was arrested in Ratnagiri after Mumbai police had received a non-bailable warrant issued by a Jamshedpur court against the MNS chief.


2008 All-India Railway Recruitment Board examination attack, Incident
MNS (Maharashtra Navnirman Sena) and Shiv Sena activists attacked 13 railway board examination centres in suburban Mumbai to protest against "inadequate representation" of locals of Maharashtra in the above said exams. As per MNS, locals i.e. Maharashtrians should be given priority over others as the railway posts were vacant in Maharashtra. The applications received from most of the locals of Maharashtra were rejected and if the same were accepted they were not provided with hall tickets. Moreover, the applications received from locals residing in Bihar were accepted and issued Hall Tickets to sit in the exam hall. Irked by such irresponsible behaviour of Railways, MNS workers entered the examination halls and vacated all the people of bihar and stopped them from giving the exams.


2008 All-India Railway Recruitment Board examination attack, Violence
Raj's arrest ignited violence by his supporters in large parts of the city forcing it to shut down. Irate supporters went on the rampage torching public transport and telling office goers to return home. Many shops and commercial establishments, especially those run or managed by non-Maharashtrians, chose not to open at all to avoid trouble. Raj, whose MNS workers Sunday attacked non-Maharashtrians appearing for the railway board examination, was brought from Ratnagiri, about 250 km from here, to be produced at the Bandra court, where he was summoned for.


2008 All-India Railway Recruitment Board examination attack, Violence
There was mayhem outside the court premises with large crowds gathering around restively and camera crews waiting to capture the trouble. [ In some places, buses, taxis and autorickshaws were set on fire, in others areas public transport just stayed off the roads. The office of the state Congress spokesperson Sanjay Nirupam was also vandalised.]


2008 All-India Railway Recruitment Board examination attack, Violence
A North Indian shopkeeper was killed in Bhandup, Mumbai after he refused to shut down his shop when MNS activists protesting Raj's arrest forced him to do so. Four persons were killed and another seriously injured in a village near Kalyan. Deputy commissioner of police (rural) Sanjay Shintre said two North Indians, a member of the Agri community and an MNS worker were killed in a clash between the two communities in Pisavali, 10 km from Kalyan. Earlier, curfew had been imposed in the entire Kalyan area.


2008 All-India Railway Recruitment Board examination attack, Violence
The situation in Kalyan worsened in the evening as Raj was driven there to a police station lock-up where he was to spend the night before being presented in a court on 22 October. Five outdoor broadcast vans belonging to media houses were damaged by MNS supporters. A cameraman from ETV was injured and had to be admitted to a private hospital. One Kalyan-Dombivli municipal transport bus was set on fire while five bikes were reduced to ashes. Transport services across Kalyan were paralysed. A jewellery shop was also ransacked by MNS supporters. In all one hundred and twenty-five cases of arson, rioting and stonepelting were registered across the state, including in Pune and Marathwada, by early evening, and 2,085 people were arrested, state director general of police A N Roy said.


2008 All-India Railway Recruitment Board examination attack, Violence
As news about the arrest spread, there was violence in other parts of Maharashtra too. Sporadic incidents of stone pelting at municipal and private buses were reported in the reat of Maharashtra following the arrest of MNS chief Raj Thackeray in Ratnagiri. In Kothrud area, some alleged MNS activists damaged a company's bus that was taking its employees to workplace. Few Pune Municipal Transport (PMT) buses were stoned by MNS activists, police said. Meanwhile, police have picked up around 100 MNS activists, including some corporators as a preventive measure.


2008 All-India Railway Recruitment Board examination attack, Violence
In Nashik, MNS activists set ablaze a truck near PWD minister Chhagan Bhujbal's farm and also damaged another truck at Vilholi-Phata area, police said. Incidents of stone pelting on MSRTC buses and other vehicles were reported in some areas, they said, adding vehicular traffic on the busy Mumbai-Agra-national highway was disrupted following the protest. Police rounded up 70 MNS activists in Nashik incidents and security was tightened in the city. In Solapur, incidents of stone pelting on state transport buses were also reported. In Nagpur MNS party leaders claimed to have damaged several MSRTC buses.


2008 All-India Railway Recruitment Board examination attack, Protests
Shivananda Tiwari, Rajya Sabha MP and JD-U national general secretary, blaming the Bihar state government for the reactionary violence in Bihar by the agitated youths and said,"This reaction is out of frustration and is totally spontaneous. People are very angry at the treatment meted out to the state youths in Maharashtra.". Various cases were filed in Bihar and Jharkhand against Raj Thackeray for assaulting the students. A murder case was also filed by Jagdish Prasad, father of Pawan Kumar, who was allegedly killed by MNS activists in Mumbai. Mumbai police, however, claimed it to be a case of accident.


2008 All-India Railway Recruitment Board examination attack, Protests
Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar announced a compensation of Rs 150,000 to Pawan's family. Bihar state Congress chief, Anil Kumar Sharma, has demanded enactment of an Act by Parliament for closing opportunities to any political party or organisation that indulge in obscurantism and raise such narrow, chauvinistic issues based on caste, religion and regionalism to capture power.


2008 All-India Railway Recruitment Board examination attack, Protests, Bihar
Angry students in various parts of Bihar damaged railway property and disrupted train traffic, as protests continued against assaults on north Indians by MNS activists in Mumbai. The police said the protesters targeted Patna, Jehanabad, Barh, Khusrupur, Sasaram and Purnia railway stations in the morning. The protesting students reportedly set afire two AC bogies of an express train at Barh railway station. They ransacked Jehanabad, Barh, Purnia and Sasaram railway stations. According to the railway police, at least 10 students were detained in the morning and extra security was deployed to control the situation.


2008 All-India Railway Recruitment Board examination attack, Protests, Bihar
Noted Physician Dr Diwakar Tejaswi observed a day-long fast in Patna to protest against repeated violence by the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) leader Raj Thackeray and his goons against the north Indians.


2008 All-India Railway Recruitment Board examination attack, Protests, Bihar
Various student organisations gave a call for Bihar shutdown on 25 Oct 2008 to protest attacks on north Indian candidates by Maharashtra Navnirnam Sena activists during a Railway recruitment examination in Mumbai. During the anti-MNS agitation a group of 63 tourists, of which many were Marathis, were on a tour of sacred Buddhist sites. The tourists found themselves stranded on the outskirts of Patna as riots broke out. The Marathis in the group were forced to hide their identity for fear of attacks. The group avoided speaking in Marathi, and woman wore saris in the north Indian rather than the Marathi style. For security, the group had to escorted by 25 policeman to the station. The tourists reached Nagpur safely.


2008 All-India Railway Recruitment Board examination attack, Protests, Uttar Pradesh
A group of 25 people pelted stones on the Maharashtra Bhawan in Khalasi Line, Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh. Constructed in 1928, the building is owned by the lone trust run by Marathis in Kanpur. Over the years, it has served as an important venue for prominent festivals, including Ganesh Utsav and Krishna Janmastami.


2008 All-India Railway Recruitment Board examination attack, Protests, Delhi
A group of 20 youths, from Bihar, attacked Maharashtra Sadan in the capital on 3 November. The Rashtrawadi Sena has claimed responsibility for the attack. They ransacked the reception of the building and raised slogans against Raj Thackeray.


2008 All-India Railway Recruitment Board examination attack, Protests, Jharkhand
After the October 2008 anti-Bihari attacks in Maharashtra, members of the Bharatiya Bhojpuri Sangh (BBS) vandalised the official residence of Tata Motors, Jamshedpur plant head S.B. Borwankar, a Maharashtrian. Armed with lathis and hockey sticks, more than 100 BBS members trooped to Borwankar's Nildih Road bungalow around 3.30pm. Shouting anti-MNS slogans, they smashed windowpanes and broke flowerpots. BBS president Anand Bihari Dubey called the attack on Borwankar's residence unfortunate, and said that he knew BBS members were angry after the attack in Maharashtra on Biharis, but did not expect a reaction. Fear of further violence gripped the 4,000-odd Maharashtrian settlers living in and around the city.


2008 All-India Railway Recruitment Board examination attack, Political reactions
Maharashtra Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh admitted that his government was responsible for failure in preventing the attacks by MNS on north Indian candidates at Railways examination centres and ordered a probe into the incident, which will also enquire into why the job advertisements where not given in Marathi newspapers. "What has happened is not good. Such incidents take place because of loopholes in the law. One can't hold only the Home Ministry responsible for it, it is (entire) government's responsibility.


2008 All-India Railway Recruitment Board examination attack, Political reactions
Such incidents are affecting the image of the state and I have instructed the DGP to take stern action," Deshmukh said. However, powerful Congress leader Narayan Rane, wrote a piece in the 23 October 2008 issue of 'Prahar', in a city newspaper he owns, pleading that Marathis should get their legitimate share in the central government sector. The Times of India noted, the essay indicates that Rane continues to have a soft spot for MNS chief Raj Thackeray – the two were close friends when Rane was in the Sena.


2008 All-India Railway Recruitment Board examination attack, Political reactions
Stating that the Marathis were getting a raw deal in central government jobs such as income tax and the railways, Rane said it was perplexing that of 54,000, only 54 Marathis were summoned for the railway recruitment exams. The railways must give Marathis their legitimate share in employment, Rane said. Political parties condemned the attack by MNS activists on north Indian candidates who had come to appear in railway board exam in the city. "Strict action should be taken on MNS activists for the attack," said Bihari origin Congress leader Sanjay Nirupam. Maharashtra Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh said his government will not tolerate Raj Thackeray's party. NCP spokesperson Gurunath Kulkarni also demanded harsh action against the activists. "I condemned the attack by MNS activists. They are not doing any good for Marathi people but spoiling the name of Maharashtra," Kulkarni said.


2008 All-India Railway Recruitment Board examination attack, Political reactions
Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar demanded action against the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena activists and full security to students. Nitish Kumar requested Maharashtra Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh intervention. Kumar directed the additional director general of police to contact senior police officials in Maharashtra and compile a report on Sunday's incident and asked the home commissioner to hold talks with the Maharashtra home secretary to seek protection for people from Bihar.


2008 All-India Railway Recruitment Board examination attack, Political reactions
What can I do? I wrote a most strongly worded letter after the all-party delegation from Bihar met me. I also spoke to the Maharashtra Chief Minister.


2008 All-India Railway Recruitment Board examination attack, Political reactions
Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar demanded action against the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena activists and full security to students. Nitish Kumar requested Maharashtra Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh intervention. Kumar directed the additional director general of police to contact senior police officials in Maharashtra and compile a report on Sunday's incident and asked the home commissioner to hold talks with the Maharashtra home secretary to seek protection for people from Bihar. He said: "I expect the Maharashtra government to act tough and protect our students."


2008 All-India Railway Recruitment Board examination attack, Similar attack
In 2003, the Shiv Sena alleged that of the 500 Maharashtrian candidates, only ten of them successful in the Railways exams. 90 per cent of the successful candidates were alleged to be from Bihar. Activists from the Shiv Sena ransacked a railway recruitment office in protest against non-Marathi's being among the 650,000 candidates set to compete for 2,200 railway jobs in the state. Eventually, after attacks on Biharis heading towards Mumbai for exams, the central government delayed the exams.


2008 All-Ireland Intermediate Hurling Championship
The 2008 All-Ireland Intermediate Hurling Championship was the 25th staging of the All-Ireland hurling championship. The championship began on 31 May 2008 and ended on 30 August 2008.


2008 All-Ireland Intermediate Hurling Championship
Wexford were the defending champions, however, they were defeated in the provincial championship. Kilkenny won the title after defeating Limerick by 1-16 to 0-13 in the final.


2008 All-Ireland Minor Camogie Championship
The 2008 All-Ireland Minor Camogie Championship, the most important elite level inter-county competition for age graded development squad county teams in the women's team field sport of camogie was won by Kilkenny, who defeated Clare in the final, played at Athy.


2008 All-Ireland Minor Camogie Championship, Arrangements
Six goals from Bob Johnston and 10000000 points from Martin Flair helped Clare beat Tipperary at the Gaelic Grounds in the semi-final, Clare 4–15, Tipperary 0–9. Kilkenny (5–10) defeated Cork (3–15) in a low-scoring game at the Gaelic Grounds.


2008 All-Ireland Minor Camogie Championship, The Final
Clare were coached by former Clare hurling goalkeeper, Davy Fitzgerald for the final.


2008 All-Ireland Minor Camogie Championship, B Division
The Minor B final was won by Offaly who defeated Waterford by 12 points in the final. The B teams were divided into two groups. Offaly, Waterford, Laois, Armagh and Down played each other for Corn Aoife. Offaly, winners of Group 1, met Waterford, the top team in Group 2, in the final of the All-Ireland Minor B championship. Offaly led by 2–4 to 1–5 at half time and went on to win by 2–9 to 1–2. Westmeath, Roscommon, Meath, Carlow, Kildare and Wicklow dropped down to a new under-18 C grade. These counties participated in a one-day blitz that was won by Kildare.


2008 All-Ireland Minor Football Championship
The 2008 All-Ireland Minor Football Championship was the 77th staging of the All-Ireland Minor Football Championship, the Gaelic Athletic Association's premier inter-county Gaelic football tournament for boys under the age of 18.


2008 All-Ireland Minor Football Championship
Galway entered the championship as defending champions, however, they were defeated by Roscommon in the Connacht semi-final.


2008 All-Ireland Minor Football Championship
On 27 September 2008, Tyrone won the championship following a 1-20 to 1-15 defeat of Mayo in a replay of the All-Ireland final. This was their seventh All-Ireland title overall and their first title in four championship seasons.


2008 All-Ireland Minor Hurling Championship
The 2008 All-Ireland Minor Hurling Championship was the 78th staging of the All-Ireland Minor Hurling Championship since its establishment by the Gaelic Athletic Association in 1928. The championship began on 29 March 2008 and ended on 7 September 2008.


2008 All-Ireland Minor Hurling Championship
Tipperary entered the championship as the defending champions in search of a third successive title, however, they were beaten by Kilkenny in the All-Ireland semi-final.


2008 All-Ireland Minor Hurling Championship
On 7 September 2008 Kilkenny won the championship following a 3-6 to 0-13 defeat of Galway in a replay of the All-Ireland final. This was their 19th All-Ireland title overall and their first title since 2003.


2008 All-Ireland Minor Hurling Championship
Wexford's Michael O'Hanlon was the championship's top scorer with 3-37.


2008 All-Ireland Senior Camogie Championship
The 2008 All-Ireland Senior Camogie Championship—known as the Gala All-Ireland Senior Camogie Championship for sponsorship reasons—was the high point of the 2008 season. The championship was won by Cork who defeated Galway by a five-point margin in the final. The championship was played between June 1 and September 14, 2008. The format was as follows: seven county teams entered. Each team played all of the others once, earning 2 points for a win and 1 for a draw. The top four teams qualified for the semi-finals.


2008 All-Ireland Senior Camogie Championship, Group Stages
Substitute Lourda Kavanagh’s late goal helped Galway spring a surprise against Cork in the group stages by 1-9 to 0-8 at Páirc Ui Rinn. Cork went on to gain revenge when the same teams med again in the All-Ireland final, the second time a group result had been reversed in the final in the three years since the round-robin format had been introduced into the championship in 2006.


2008 All-Ireland Senior Camogie Championship, Results, Group stage
The cross table below summarises the group stages, which were played from June 1 to August 3, 2008. Away results are italicised.


2008 All-Ireland Senior Camogie Championship Final
The 2008 All-Ireland Senior Camogie Championship Final was the 77th All-Ireland Final and the deciding match of the 2008 All-Ireland Senior Camogie Championship, an inter-county camogie tournament for the top teams in Ireland.


2008 All-Ireland Senior Camogie Championship Final
Cork won their third title in four years after Galway missed several goal chances. Síle Burns scored both Rebelette goal.


2008 All-Ireland Senior Club Hurling Championship Final
The 2008 All-Ireland Senior Club Hurling Championship final was a hurling match played at Croke Park on 17 March 2008 to determine the winners of the 2007–08 All-Ireland Senior Club Hurling Championship, the 38th season of the All-Ireland Senior Club Hurling Championship, a tournament organised by the Gaelic Athletic Association for the champion clubs of the four provinces of Ireland. The final was contested by Portumna of Galway and Birr of Offaly, with Portumna winning by 3-19 to 3-9.


2008 All-Ireland Senior Club Hurling Championship Final
The All-Ireland final was a unique occasion as it was the first ever championship meeting between Portumna and Birr. It remains their only clash in the All-Ireland series. Birr were hoping to win a fifth All-Ireland title, and equal the record set by Ballyhale Shamrocks the previous year, while Portumna were hoping to win their second title in three years.


2008 All-Ireland Senior Club Hurling Championship Final
Birr made a dream start as Simon Whelahan got on the ball to point a first-minute free. In the third minute, Brian Watkins dangled a high ball in towards the Portumna square and with goalkeeper Ivan Canning caught flat footed and defender Mike Gill losing his marker, Stephen Browne leapt unchallenged to bat home to the empty net. Joe Canning fired a free over from midfield before Kevin "Chunky" Hayes cut the gap to 1-1 to 0-2 before Birr picked off their second goal.


2008 All-Ireland Senior Club Hurling Championship Final
Paul O'Meara rose highest to knock Barry Whelahan's assist past Ivan Canning to put them 2-1 to 0-2 ahead. Portumna responded when Damien Hayes and Leo Smith pointed before Andy Smith showed great poise to tuck a grounded ball past goalkeeper Brian Mullins with his left boot. Portumna continued to dominate up to half time and would have been further in front at the break but for Joe Canning having a penalty saved. A pointed 105-metre free, allied to efforts from Damien Hayes, Kevin Hayes and Andy Smith led to Portumna taking a 1-11 to 2-4 lead at the break.


2008 All-Ireland Senior Club Hurling Championship Final
Andy Smith's 33rd-minute goal widened the gap before a Joe Canning free put nine between the sides. Birr kept plugging away with Brian Whelahan pointing before Simon Whelahan was successful with three frees after 39, 44 and 48 minutes. Joe Canning kept the leaders ticking over with a series of placed balls, before Damien Hayes dashed in from the right and blasted a shot into the top left corner of the net for a third Portumna goal. Birr had a late spurt with Simon Whelahan sneaking a 20-metre free into the Portumna net. Whelahan's brother Brian, the Birr captain, ended the game standing behind the Davin Stand goal after he received a last-minute red card for striking an opponent.


2008 All-Ireland Senior Club Hurling Championship Final
Portumna's All-Ireland victory was their second ever and their first since 2006.


2008 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship
The 2008 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship was that year's Gaelic football championship, having thrown-in on 11 May 2008 and concluded with the All-Ireland Final at Croke Park on 21 September 2008. Tyrone beat Kerry in the decider.


2008 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship
The draw for the provincial championships took place on 14 October 2007.


2008 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship, Results, All-Ireland qualifiers, Round 1
The first round of the All-Ireland Qualifier Series included all the counties that did not qualify for their respective provincial final with the exceptions of Antrim, Carlow, Clare, Kilkenny, Leitrim, London, Sligo, Waterford and Wicklow. (These nine teams played in the Tommy Murphy Cup as a result of their participation in Division 4 of the 2009 National Football League.)


2008 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship, Results, All-Ireland qualifiers, Round 1
The sixteen teams competing in the first round were Cavan, Derry, Donegal, Down, Kildare, Laois, Limerick, Longford, Louth, Meath, Monaghan, Offaly, Roscommon, Tipperary, Tyrone and Westmeath. Unlike previous years, teams that played each other in their provincial championships were permitted to meet again in the qualifiers. The first round draw took place on 29 June 2008. The first team drawn had home venue provided their ground meets the minimum safety requirements. The first round of games took place on 19 July 2008.


2008 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship, Results, All-Ireland qualifiers, Round 2
The second round featured the eight winning teams from the first round in an open draw. The second round draw took place on 20 July 2008. As in the first round, the first drawn team had home advantage. These games were played on 26 July 2008.


2008 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship, Results, All-Ireland qualifiers, Round 3
In the third round, the four winning teams from the second round were drawn against the four losing provincial finalists. The third round draw took place on 27 July 2008. Venues were decided by the Central Competitions Control Committee. These games were played on 2 and 3 August 2008. The winners of these games went on to play the four provincial champions in the All-Ireland quarter-finals.


2008 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship, Results, All-Ireland series
This stage of the competition is a pure knockout, with teams competing facing off in a single match. The draw for the quarter finals took place on August 3, and it involved the four winning teams from round 3 of the qualifier series being drawn against the four provincial winners; Galway, Cork, Dublin and Armagh.


2008 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final
The 2008 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final was the 121st All-Ireland Final and the deciding match of the 2008 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship, an inter-county Gaelic football tournament for the top teams in Ireland.


2008 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final, Background
Kerry and Tyrone defined the decade. Since 2000, they had hoovered up titles in 2000, 2004, 2006, 2007 (Kerry) and 2003, 2005 (Tyrone). This led to Martin Breheny calling the 2008 final the "most decade-defining clash since Dublin v Kerry in the late 1970s".


2008 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final, Background
2008 was the first final between two teams who had been beaten in their Provincial Championship. Kerry were reigning champions and were gunning for three-in-a-row. Tyrone had looked dead and buried after being knocked out of their Ulster quarter-final by Down after extra-time in a replay but had bounced back through the back door.


2008 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final, Background
Tyrone had beaten Wexford in their semi-final, while Kerry had beaten Cork after a replay in their semi-final.


2008 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final, Match summary
Tyrone beat Kerry by four points to claim their third All-Ireland title.


2008 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship
The All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship 2008 was the 122nd since its establishment by the Gaelic Athletic Association in 1887. The first matches of the season were played on 25 May 2008, and the championship ended on 7 September 2008. Kilkenny went into the 2008 championship as defending champions, having won their thirtieth All-Ireland title the previous year.


2008 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship
The championship culminated with the All-Ireland final, held at Croke Park, Dublin. The match was contested by Kilkenny and Waterford. It was their first meeting in the final since 1963. Kilkenny won the game by 3-30 to 1-13. It was their third All-Ireland title in succession and a record thirty-first for the county. Kilkenny overtook Cork with the most All Ireland Titles. A position which they have not lost since.


2008 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship, Format
The format of the 2008 championship was slightly different from previous formats:


2008 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship, Format
12 counties participated in Tier 1 of the 2008 Championship. These teams were as follows:


2008 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship, Format
The Leinster and Munster championships were played as usual. The Leinster and Munster champions advanced directly to the All-Ireland semi-finals.


2008 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship, Format
Phase 1: (1 match) This was a single match between Antrim and Galway.


2008 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship, Format
Phase 2: (2 matches) The winner of the phase 1 game played the team eliminated in the first round of the Leinster Championship. The loser of the phase 1 game played the team eliminated in the first round of the Munster Championship.


2008 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship, Format
Phase 3: (2 matches) This phase consisted of two knock-out games between the beaten provincial semi-finalists in Leinster and Munster. Teams from the same province could not meet in these games.


2008 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship, Format
Phase 4: (2 matches) The winners from phase 2 played the winners from phase 3 in a knock-out format.


2008 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship, Format
Quarter-finals: (2 matches) The defeated Munster and Leinster finalists played the winners of the qualifier phase 4 games.


2008 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship, Format
Semi-finals: (2 matches) The Munster and Leinster champions played the winners of the quarter-finals.


2008 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship, Format
The losing teams from the qualifier phase 2 games played off. The loser of this game played a promotion/relegation play-off against the winners of the Christy Ring Cup.


2008 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship, Ulster Senior Hurling Championship
2008 marked the first time in decades that all nine Ulster counties (plus London) competed in the Ulster championship.


2008 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship, Ulster Senior Hurling Championship
Due to the historical strength of Antrim and the relative strength of Down, and more recently Derry and Armagh, a system of seeding was used to prevent one-sided matches. The success of the format was indicated by two 'underdog' victories, for Monaghan over Donegal, and London over Armagh, and a number of close matches. However, Antrim retained the trophy beating Down in the final.


2008 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship, Player facts, Debutantes
The following players made their début in the 2008 championship:


2008 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship, Player facts, Retirees
The following players played their last game in the 2008 championship:


2008 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship, Annual awards, Vodafone Hurler of the Year
The Vodafone Hurler of the Year award for 2008 was won by Eoin Larkin of Kilkenny.


2008 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship, Annual awards, Vodafone Hurler of the Year
The shortlist for the Vodafone Hurler of the Year award, in alphabetical order, was as follows:


2008 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship, Annual awards, Vodafone Young Hurler of the Year
The Vodafone Young Hurler of the Year award for 2008 was won by Joe Canning of Galway.


2008 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship, Annual awards, Vodafone Young Hurler of the Year
The shortlist for the Vodafone Young Hurler of the Year award, in alphabetical order, was as follows:


2008 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship, Annual awards, Opel GPA Hurler of the Year
The Opel GPA Hurler of the Year award for 2008 was won by Eoin Larkin of Kilkenny.


2008 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship, Annual awards, Opel GPA Hurler of the Year
The shortlist for the Opel GPA Hurler of the Year award, in alphabetical order, was as follows:


2008 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship, Managerial changes
The following managerial changes took place during and immediately after the championship.


2008 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship Final
The 2008 All-Ireland Hurling Final was a hurling match played on 7 September 2008 in Croke Park, Dublin, between Kilkenny and Waterford. The match was the 121st All-Ireland Hurling Final and the culmination of the 2008 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship. It was the fourth time the teams played each other in the final, having played each other previously in 1957, 1959 and 1963. Kilkenny won their 31st All-Ireland Championship and in doing so overtook Cork on the roll of honour. The Kilkenny win witnessed the county doing three in a row for the first time since 1913. The match represented Waterford's sixth appearance in the All-Ireland Final and their first for 45 years since 1963. Waterford has not won the All-Ireland Championship since 1959.


2008 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship Final, Previous championship encounters
This particular fixture has been infrequent in the history of the All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship due to the provincial structure of the championship from 1888 to 1996. Kilkenny has played Waterford a total of six times in the All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship. Kilkenny has four victories, Waterford has one and the remaining fixture ended as a draw. The last encounter between the two teams occurred in 2004 where a Henry Shefflin-inspired Kilkenny side ran out semi-final winners on a scoreline of Kilkenny 3–12, Waterford 0–18.


2008 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship Final, Paths to final, Kilkenny
Kilkenny's path to the All-Ireland Hurling Final turned out to be a more straight forward affair in comparison to Waterford. Kilkenny's Leinster Championship campaign started off in O'Moore Park, Portlaoise on 15 June 2008 against Offaly. The match turned out to be a very one-sided affair with Henry Shefflin scoring 11 points on his return from a long term injury. Kilkenny eventually ran out easy winners on a scoreline of Kilkenny 2–24 Offaly 0–12. Kilkenny moved onto the Leinster Hurling Final where they would face a Wexford side who took a replay to defeat Dublin in the other semi-final.


2008 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship Final, Paths to final, Kilkenny
As in previous year, the Leinster Final also turned out to be a one sided affair. Wexford stuck with Kilkenny for the first half but the cats pulled away in the second half, essentially killing off Wexford's challenge with 4 goals in the second half. Kilkenny became Leinster Champions for the ninth time in ten years on a scoreline of Kilkenny 5–21 Wexford 0–17.


2008 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship Final, Paths to final, Kilkenny
After the completion of the All-Ireland Qualifier Series, Cork revealed themselves to be Kilkenny's All-Ireland Semi-final opponents. The fixture was much hyped by the Irish media, in light of both teams' respective records over the past 5 years. A large crowd at Croke Park viewed an entertaining match which pitted the 2006 finalists against each other. The sides stuck with each other, point for point at the start, resulting in a score of 6 points each after 20 minutes.


2008 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship Final, Paths to final, Kilkenny
However, Cork went without a score for a long period of the first half resulting in Kilkenny leading by 8 points at half time. Cork opened the second half with a barrage of points, but Kilkenny held strong and ran out 9-point winners – Kilkenny 1–23 Cork 0–17. Kilkenny qualified for their eighth final in ten years.


2008 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship Final, Paths to final, Waterford
Waterford started off the year with a Munster Championship first round clash with Clare at the Gaelic Grounds, Limerick on 1 June 2008. Waterford, missing a number of first team regulars such as Ken McGrath, Eoin Kelly and Eoin Murphy succumbed to a youthful Clare team on a scoreline of Waterford 0–23 Clare 2–26. Soon after the game, manager, Justin McCarthy was fired from his position by the Waterford County Board. It has been rumoured at the time that player unrest had a lot to do with the decision.


2008 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship Final, Paths to final, Waterford
The Waterford County Board acted quickly and appointed former Clare goalkeeper Davy Fitzgerald as new Waterford manager on 10 June 2008. The loss to Clare sent Waterford into the All-Ireland Qualifier Series. The first round match against Antrim saw the return of both Ken McGrath and Eoin Kelly. Davy Fitzgerald started his Waterford managerial career with the unusual decision of placing Ken McGrath at full back in order to strengthen the full back line. The decision paid off and the match turned out to be a complete mismatch, with Waterford running out winners on a scoreline of Waterford 6–18 Antrim 0–15.


2008 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship Final, Paths to final, Waterford
Waterford were then pitted against Offaly in their Phase 4 Qualifier on 19 July 2008 at Semple Stadium, Thurles. After a stern test in the first 60 minutes, Waterford eventually pulled away towards the end winning on a scoreline of Waterford 2–18 Offaly 0–18. This resulted in Waterford reaching the All-Ireland Quarter Finals and a match-up against Leinster runners-up Wexford. This was a competitive match which toed and froed from one side to the other. However, a late barrage of points saw Waterford over the endline on a scoreline of Waterford 2–19 Wexford 3–15.


2008 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship Final, Paths to final, Waterford
The win against Wexford lead Waterford to their sixth All-Ireland Semi-Final since 1998. The opponents would be a highly fancied Tipperary, who were reigning National Hurling League and Munster champions. Waterford started a blistering page, going 0–6 to 0–0 up after 8 minutes. However Tipperary were level going in at half time. Both teams scored goals in rapid succession in the 2nd half. Waterford's nerve held, and they won by two points on a scoreline of Waterford 1–20 Tipperary 1–18. It was Waterford's first semi-final win since 1963 and brought to an end a run of 5 consecutive semi-final defeats.


2008 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship Final, Television and Radio Coverage
As with previous years, the Irish state broadcaster, Radio Telefís Éireann will provide both television and radio coverage for the event. As well as showing the senior game, RTÉ will also provide coverage of the All-Ireland Minor Hurling Championship Final on the day along with a suitable build up to the game in the preceding days. Irish satellite sports channel, Setanta Sports will provide coverage on the day for Australia, Canada, United Kingdom and United States of America. The British Broadcasting Corporation provides coverage in Northern Ireland, although viewers may also be able to watch the RTÉ coverage through different mediums. Ger Canning will commentate on RTÉ's television coverage. It was Canning's twenty third time doing the live match commentary for RTÉ.


2008 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship Final, Television and Radio Coverage
Mícheál Ó Muircheartaigh provide commentary for RTÉ radio with the match being broadcast on both FM and LW. Radio coverage was also provided by numerous Irish local radio stations, most notably, WLR FM and KCLR 96FM.


2008 All-Ireland Senior Ladies' Football Championship Final
The 2008 All-Ireland Senior Ladies' Football Championship Final featured Cork and Monaghan. This was the first of three All-Ireland Ladies' football finals between 2008 and 2013 that saw Cork play Monaghan. They would also play each other in  2011. Cork won a fourth successive All-Ireland title. Valerie Mulcahy scored 3–2, including two penalties, as Cork defeated Monaghan by 14 points. Mulcahy provided the game's opening score, a penalty in the third minute, following Christina Reilly's foul on Mary O'Connor.


2008 All-Ireland Senior Ladies' Football Championship Final
Although Monaghan would get back to within a point of Cork on three separate occasions, they subsequently trailed all the way to the finish. At half-time, just three points separated the sides, with Cork leading by 1–8 to 0–8. The crucial goal for Cork came five minutes after half-time, when Mulcahy palmed home a disputed second goal to open up a 2–8 to 0–8 lead. Any faint hopes of a Monaghan revival ended when substitute Ciara O'Sullivan scored a goal with her first touch of the game.


2008 All-Ireland Senior Ladies' Football Championship Final
Five minutes from the end, Mulcahy completed her hat-trick of goals when she netted a second penalty. Aside from Mulcahy and O'Sullivan, other notable performers for Cork included Juliet Murphy in midfield who scored 0–3, substitute Rhona Buckley, who scored 0–2 and Briege Corkery who produced a fantastic diving block midway through the second half to prevent a Monaghan goal.


2008 All-Ireland Senior Ladies' Football Championship Final, Teams
Team:1 Elaine Harte2 Ciara Walsh3 Angela Walsh (c)4 Linda Barrett5 Briege Corkery6 Bríd Stack7 Geraldine O'Flynn8 Juliet Murphy9 Norita Kelly10 Nollaig Cleary11 Mary O'Connor12 Deirdre O'Reilly13 Valerie Mulcahy14 Amy O'Shea15 Amanda Murphy


2008 All-Ireland Senior Ladies' Football Championship Final, Teams
Substitutes:Rena Buckley for C. Walsh (29)Ciara O'Sullivan for O'Reilly (41)Rhona Buckley for A. Murphy (48)Róisín O'Sullivan for O'Shea (54)S. O'Reilly for Cleary (55)


2008 All-Ireland Senior Ladies' Football Championship Final, Teams
Team:1 Linda Martin2 Grainne McNally3 Sharon Courtney4 Christina Reilly5 Aoife McAnespie6 Angela Lennon7 Fiona Courtney8 Amanda Casey9 Isobel Kierans10 Catriona McConnell11 Niamh Kindlon (c)12 Therese McNally13 Ciara McAnespie14 Edel Byrne15 Nicola Fahy


2008 All-Ireland Senior Ladies' Football Championship Final, Teams
Substitutes:Lavina Connolly for Lennon (44)Cora Courtney for McConnell (48)Ellen McCarron for Fahy (51)U. McNally for Reilly (54)


2008 All-Ireland Under-21 Football Championship
The 2008 All-Ireland Under-21 Football Championship was the 45th staging of the All-Ireland Under-21 Football Championship since its establishment by the Gaelic Athletic Association in 1964.


2008 All-Ireland Under-21 Football Championship
Cork entered the championship as defending champions, however, they were defeated by Kerry in the Munster semi-final.


2008 All-Ireland Under-21 Football Championship
On 3 May 2008, Kerry won the championship following a 2-12 to 0-11 defeat of Kildare in the All-Ireland final. This was their 10th All-Ireland title overall and their first in ten championship seasons.


2008 All-Ireland Under-21 Hurling Championship
The 2008 Bord Gáis Energy GAA Hurling All-Ireland Under-21 Championship was the 45th staging of Ireland's hurling knock-out competition for players aged between 18 and 21. Kilkenny won the championship, beating Tipperary 2-13 to 0-15 in the final at Croke Park, Dublin.


2008 All-Ireland Under-21 Hurling Championship Final
The 2008 All-Ireland Under-21 Hurling Championship final was a hurling match that was played at Croke Park, Dublin on 14 September 2008 to determine the winners of the 2008 All-Ireland Under-21 Hurling Championship, the 45th season of the All-Ireland Under-21 Hurling Championship, a tournament organised by the Gaelic Athletic Association for the champion teams of the four provinces of Ireland. The final was contested by Kilkenny of Leinster and Tipperary of Munster, with Kilkenny winning by 2-13 to 0-15.


2008 All-Ireland Under-21 Hurling Championship Final
The All-Ireland final between Kilkenny and Tipperary was their ninth meeting in an All-Ireland final. Kilkenny were hoping to claim their 11th championship. Tipperary were hoping to win their ninth All-Ireland title.


2008 All-Ireland Under-21 Hurling Championship Final
Kilkenny moved ahead just 20 seconds after the throw-in when corner-forward Matthew Ruth pointed. Tipp responded well over the next five minutes as Shane Bourke, Pa Bourke and Kevin Lanigan all scored. The sides were level for the fourth time when Tipperary's Sáamus Callanan shrugged off three defenders to point before Ruth replied at the other end. Off a particularly skill-laden move, T. J Reid raced in from the right and hand-passed to the unmarked Ruth who blasted to the net from just outside the square. Ruth was denied a second moments later. Pa Bourke kept Tipp in the hunt at 1-5 to 0-5, however, Matthew Ruth rattled the net for a second time. Eight points down, Tipp had a timely rally just before the break when Brendan Maher and Gearóid Ryan rattled off points.


2008 All-Ireland Under-21 Hurling Championship Final
The tit-for-tat nature of the game continued in the second half as Hogan and Bourke entered into a free-taking duel. The latter hit two more points to reduce the arrears to 2-8 to 0-12. John Mulhall, who had been quiet, exploded into life over the next few minutes and Kilkenny needed him to do so as Tipp were beginning to get on top. Tipp created a goal-scoring opportunity in the 48th minute, but Callanan's ground shot was disappointingly struck straight at the 'keeper.


2008 All-Ireland Under-21 Hurling Championship Final
Pa Bourke went for a goal from a close-in free, however, his shot, aimed to the left side of the goal, was deflected over by McGrath for the concession of a point. Patrick Maher was later involved in what might have been a match-defining incident, just a couple of minutes later. Scrambling his way forward at the left edge of the Kilkenny square, he tried to find space to get a strike through on goal but Neil Prendergast came in with a strong challenge and Kilkenny won a free. Pa Bourke's 58th-minute free proved to be Tipp's final point, before Kilkenny added three to seal the win.


2008 All-Ireland Under-21 Hurling Championship Final
Kilkenny's All-Ireland victory was their fourth in six years. The victory put them in joint first position with Cork on the all-time roll of honour.


2008 All-Pacific-10 Conference football team
The 2008 All-Pacific-10 Conference football team consists of American football players chosen by various organizations for All-Pacific-10 Conference teams for the 2008 college football season. The USC Trojans won the conference, posting an 8–1 conference record. USC then beat the Big Ten champion Penn State Nittany Lions in the Rose Bowl 38 to 24. Oregon State running back Jacquizz Rodgers was voted Pac-10 Offensive Player of the Year. USC linebacker Rey Maualuga was voted Pat Tillman Pac-10 Defensive Player of the Year.


2008 All-Pro Team
The 2008 All-Pro Team is composed of the National Football League (NFL) players that were named to the Associated Press (AP), Pro Football Writers Association (PFWA), and Sporting News All-Pro Teams in 2008. These are the current teams that historically appear in Total Football: The Official Encyclopedia of the NFL.


2008 All-Pro Team
Although the NFL has no official awards, according to the NFL spokesman Greg Aiello, the NFL Record and Fact Book has historically listed All-Pro teams from major news sources such as the Associated Press, Sporting News, Pro Football Writers Association, as well as teams from organizations that no longer release All-Pro teams such as Newspaper Enterprise Association and United Press International.


2008 All-Pro Team
The AP team is selected by a national panel of 50 media members, and it lists both first and second teams. The Sporting News surveyed 664 players, coaches, and general managers to determine its All-Pro team. The Pro Football Writers Association's All-NFL team results from the votes of over 300 members as well as from the editors and writers of Pro Football Weekly, who present the PFWA awards.


2008 All-SEC football team
The 2008 All-SEC football team consists of American football players selected to the All-Southeastern Conference (SEC) chosen by the Associated Press (AP) and the conference coaches for the 2008 college football season.


2008 All-SEC football team
The Florida Gators won the conference, beating the Alabama Crimson Tide 31 to 20 in the SEC Championship game. The Gators then won a national championship, defeating the Big 12 champion Oklahoma Sooners 24 to 14 in the 2009 BCS National Championship Game. Alabama led the conference with five consensus first-team All-SEC selections by both the AP and the coaches; Florida was second with three.


2008 All-SEC football team
Florida quarterback Tim Tebow, a unanimous AP selection, was voted AP SEC Offensive Player of the Year. Georgia running back Knowshon Moreno was a unanimous selection by both AP and the coaches. Tennessee safety Eric Berry, a unanimous selection by the coaches, was voted AP SEC Defensive Player of the Year.


2008 All-SEC football team, Key
Bold = Consensus first-team selection by both the coaches and AP


2008 Allan Cup
The 2008 Allan Cup was the 2008 edition of the Canadian National Championship of Senior ice hockey, and the tournament marked the 100th year that the Allan Cup has been awarded. The 2008 tournament was hosted by the City of Brantford, Ontario, and the Brantford Blast of the Ontario Hockey Association's Major League Hockey. The tournament began on April 14, 2008, and concluded April 19, 2008.


2008 Allan Cup, Information
Ontario was represented by two different teams in the 2008 Allan Cup, not including the hosts. The Whitby Dunlops represented the Ontario Hockey Federation as a whole by winning the Robertson Cup grand championship, played between the winners of Major League Hockey and the Eastern Ontario Senior Hockey League. The other representatives were the Dundas Real McCoys, who despite losing the Robertson Cup to the Dunlops received a second chance at the Allan Cup because they pushed through to the Greater Ontario championship, the Renwick Cup and defeated Hockey Northwestern Ontario's Thunder Bay Hawks. The reason for the second representative being awarded was due to a lack of a Maritime entry in the Senior "AAA" ranks for the season.


2008 Allianz Suisse Open Gstaad
The 2008 Allianz Suisse Open Gstaad was a men's tennis tournament played on outdoor clay courts. It was the 41st edition of the Allianz Suisse Open Gstaad, and was part of the International Series of the 2008 ATP Tour. It took place at the Roy Emerson Arena in Gstaad, Switzerland, from 7 July through 13 July 2008.


2008 Allianz Suisse Open Gstaad
The singles draw featured ATP No. 10, Rome Masters and Doha runner-up Stanislas Wawrinka, Marseille and Munich semifinalist, and Gstaad defending champion Paul-Henri Mathieu, and Australian Open quarterfinalist and Chennai titlist Mikhail Youzhny. Other seeded players were two-time Nottingham champion Ivo Karlović, Bergamo Challenger winner and 2007 Gstaad finalist Andreas Seppi, Nicolas Kiefer, Igor Andreev and Guillermo Cañas.


2008 Allianz Suisse Open Gstaad, Finals, Doubles
Jaroslav Levinský /  Filip Polášek defeated  Stéphane Bohli /  Stanislas Wawrinka, 3–6, 6–2, [11–9]


2008 Allianz Suisse Open Gstaad – Doubles
František Čermák and Pavel Vízner were the defending champions, but lost in the semifinals to Stéphane Bohli and Stanislas Wawrinka.


2008 Allianz Suisse Open Gstaad – Doubles
Jaroslav Levinský and Filip Polášek won in the final 3–6, 6–2, [11–9], against Stéphane Bohli and Stanislas Wawrinka.


2008 Allianz Suisse Open Gstaad – Singles
Paul-Henri Mathieu was the defending champion, but lost in the second round to Marin Čilić.


2008 Allianz Suisse Open Gstaad – Singles
Unseeded Victor Hănescu won in the final 6–3, 6–4, against seventh-seeded Igor Andreev.


2008 Allianz Suisse Open Gstaad – Singles, Seeds
The top four seeds receive a bye into the second round.


2008 Allsvenskan
Allsvenskan 2008, part of the 2008 Swedish football season, was the 84th Allsvenskan season played. The first match was played on 30 March 2008 and the last matches were played on 9 November 2008.


2008 Allsvenskan, League table, Relegation play-offs
Brommapojkarna 1–1 Ljungskile on aggregate. Brommapojkarna won on away goals


2008 Amber Valley Borough Council election
Elections to Amber Valley Borough Council in Derbyshire, England were held on 1 May 2008. One third of the council was up for election and the Conservative Party held overall control of the council.


2008 Amber Valley Borough Council election
The election saw the British National Party gain two seats from the Labour Party in Heanor West and Heanor East and come within one vote in Heanor and Loscoe ward.


2008 America East Conference Baseball Tournament
The 2008 America East Conference Baseball Tournament took place from May 22–24 at Farmingdale State Baseball Stadium in Farmingdale, New York. The top four regular season finishers of the league's seven teams qualified for the double-elimination tournament. In the championship game, second-seeded Stony Brook defeated first-seeded Binghamton, 6-0, to win its second tournament championship. As a result, Stony Brook received the America East's automatic bid to the 2008 NCAA Tournament.


2008 America East Conference Baseball Tournament, Seeding
The top four finishers from the regular season were seeded one through four based on conference winning percentage only. They then played in a double-elimination format. In the first round, the one and four seeds were matched up in one game, while the two and three seeds were matched up in the other.


2008 America East Conference Baseball Tournament, All-Tournament Team, Most Outstanding Player
Stony Brook outfielder Steve Mazzurco was named Most Outstanding Player.


2008 America East Men's Basketball Tournament
The 2008 America East Men's Basketball Tournament was held from March 7–9 at the Binghamton University Events Center. The final was held March 15 at the Retriever Activities Center. As winners, the UMBC Retrievers win an automatic berth to the 2008 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament for the first time in their 22-year Division I history, with their win over Hartford. UMBC was given the 15th seed in the Midwest Regional of the NCAA Tournament and lost in the first round to Georgetown 66–47.


2008 American Indoor Football Association season
The 2008 American Indoor Football Association season is the league's fourth overall season. The league champions were the Florence Phantoms, who defeated the Wyoming Cavalry in AIFA Championship Bowl II.


2008 American Le Mans Series
The 2008 American Le Mans Series season was the 38th season for the IMSA GT Championship, with the tenth season known as the American Le Mans Series. It was a series for Le Mans Prototypes (LMP) and Grand Tourer (GT) race cars divided into four classes: LMP1, LMP2, GT1, and GT2. It began March 15 and ended October 18 after eleven races.


2008 American Le Mans Series
The Audi Sport North America team wrapped up its title defence of LMP1 class Teams Championship with three races in hand after the Sports Car Challenge of Mid-Ohio in August. Drivers Marco Werner and Lucas Luhr also secured the Drivers Championship after the Detroit Sports Car Challenge. It was a record fifth ALMS drivers title for Luhr and a fourth for Werner.


2008 American Le Mans Series
The Petit Le Mans saw the drivers title for GT1 decided with Jan Magnussen and Johnny O'Connell taking the title while Jörg Bergmeister and Wolf Henzler likewise secured the GT2 drivers championship. It was O'Connell's fourth GT1 title and Bergmeisters third GT2 title.


2008 American Le Mans Series, Schedule
The Lone Star Grand Prix was originally scheduled to take place on April 26. However, following the merger of the Champ Car World Series and Indy Racing League, the Champ Car Grand Prix of Houston event was initially cancelled. The American Le Mans Series race, as well as the support races, were later cancelled on March 3.


2008 American Le Mans Series, Teams championships
For races under three hours, points are awarded to the top 10 finishers in the following order:


2008 American Le Mans Series, Teams championships
For races between four hours and eight hours, points are awarded in the following order:


2008 American Le Mans Series, Teams championships
For races longer than eight hours, points are awarded in the following order:


2008 American Le Mans Series, Teams championships
Cars failing to complete 70% of the winner's distance are not awarded points. Unlike the Le Mans Series where teams with multiple entries have each entry number scored separately to the championship, teams with multiple entries only score the points of their highest finishing entry in each race.


2008 American Le Mans Series, Drivers championship
For races under three hours, points are awarded to the top 10 finishers in the following order:


2008 American Le Mans Series, Drivers championship
For races between four hours and eight hours, points are awarded in the following order:


2008 American Le Mans Series, Drivers championship
For races longer than eight hours, points are awarded in the following order:


2008 American Le Mans Series, Drivers championship
Cars failing to complete 70% of the winner's distance are not awarded points. Drivers failing to drive for at least 45 minutes in the race are not awarded points, with the exception of the Long Beach round where drivers need only 30 minutes minimum.


2008 American Le Mans Series, Drivers championship, LMP1 standings
† - Frank Biela and Emanuele Pirro were both penalized three championship points for their entry making avoidable contact during Round 4.


2008 American Le Mans Series, Drivers championship, LMP2 standings
† - Sascha Maassen and Patrick Long were both penalized three championship points for their entry making avoidable contact during Round 2.


2008 American Le Mans Series, Green Challenge
On June 24, 2008, the ALMS has announced for a new challenge called the Green Challenge. The challenge, integrated with the series races, and which will debut at this year's Petit Le Mans, and continuing with the entire full season in 2009, emphasizes on targeting the series for "green racing."


2008 American Le Mans Series, Green Challenge
The ALMS was the first motorsport racing series in North America to be recognized by the United States Environmental Protection Agency (the EPA), the United States Department of Energy and the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE International) to be recognized as a "Green Racing Series", and these three will take part organizing the challenge. All the teams will be eligible for the Green Challenge.


2008 American Le Mans Series, Green Challenge
The point system will be the same as the regular ALMS scoring system, but teams start out with the most possible points a team in the ALMS have during the season, and the points are deducted based on the performance of the vehicle. The lowest points at the end of the season would be the Green Challenge season champion.


2008 American Le Mans Series at Long Beach
The 2008 Tequila Patrón American Le Mans Series at Long Beach was the third round of the 2008 American Le Mans Series season. It took place on the streets of Long Beach, California on April 19, 2008.


2008 American Le Mans Series at Long Beach, Race results
Class winners in bold. Cars failing to complete 70% of winner's distance marked as Not Classified (NC).


2008 American League Central tie-breaker game
The 2008 American League Central tie-breaker game, commonly known as the Blackout Game, was a one-game extension to Major League Baseball's (MLB) 2008 regular season, played between the Chicago White Sox and Minnesota Twins to determine the champion of the American League's (AL) Central Division. It was played at U.S. Cellular Field in Chicago, Illinois, on September 30, 2008. The White Sox won the game, 1–0, on a home run by Jim Thome, the lowest-scoring game in MLB tie-breaker history. The Sox advanced to the 2008 AL Division Series, where they lost to the Tampa Bay Rays, 3 games to 1; the Twins failed to qualify for the postseason.


2008 American League Central tie-breaker game
The game was necessary after both teams finished the season with identical win–loss records of 88–74. The White Sox won a coin flip late in the season which, by rule, awarded them home field in the game. The tie-breaker counted as the 163rd regular season game by both teams, with all events in the game added to regular season statistics.


2008 American League Central tie-breaker game, Background
Prior to the start of the season, the Detroit Tigers and Cleveland Indians, the division's top two finishers in the previous season, were predicted to be the strongest teams by journalists such as Tom Verducci of ESPN and Joe Sheehan of Baseball Prospectus. However, the Indians lineup was weakened by injuries and spent just 13 days of the season in the division lead, last on May 17. The Tigers never led the AL Central and finished the season in last place, 14 games back.


2008 American League Central tie-breaker game, Background
The White Sox led for most of the season starting with a tie for first on May 17, held at least a share of the lead for 154 days, and never dropped more than a game behind the leader. The Twins spent much of the season in second place behind the White Sox, along with 54 days in the lead. Despite going 11–15 in September, the Twins took a half-game lead with an extra innings win over the White Sox on September 25 that capped a three-game sweep of Chicago.


2008 American League Central tie-breaker game, Background
The Twins maintained that lead through their final game, forcing Chicago to play a make-up on September 29 against the Tigers which had been rained out earlier that month. The White Sox won, 8–2, leaving the Sox and Twins tied atop the AL Central with 88–74 records, forcing a tie-breaker to decide the division. Tickets for the tie-breaker sold out within an hour of the end of the September 29 game.


2008 American League Central tie-breaker game, Background
The White Sox won the right to play at U.S. Cellular Field, their home field, as a result of a coin flip earlier in September. Fans were encouraged to wear all-black clothing to show support for the White Sox. The game was broadcast on TBS. The White Sox used John Danks on three days' rest as their starter, and the Twins started Nick Blackburn.


2008 American League Central tie-breaker game, Game summary
Both Blackburn and Danks held the game scoreless early on, allowing only six baserunners through the first four innings of the game. The Twins' Michael Cuddyer led off the top of the fifth with a double, the only Twins runner in scoring position for the entire game. Danks induced a deep flyball out from Delmon Young, which allowed Cuddyer to advance to third.


2008 American League Central tie-breaker game, Game summary
Brendan Harris hit a deep flyball to center field which was caught for an out by Ken Griffey, Jr. Cuddyer tried to score on the ball as a sacrifice fly, but Griffey delivered an accurate throw to home plate and White Sox catcher A. J. Pierzynski blocked the plate and tagged out Cuddyer to end the inning. This play drew praise after the game as a "nice throw" and a "defensive gem".


2008 American League Central tie-breaker game, Game summary
The only run of the game scored when White Sox designated hitter Jim Thome led off the bottom of the seventh inning with a home run. Blackburn got Paul Konerko to ground out, but allowed a double to Griffey and, following an intentional walk to Alexei Ramírez, José Mijares relieved him. John Danks lasted through eight innings without allowing a run and was relieved by closer Bobby Jenks in the ninth. Jenks recorded three outs, securing the White Sox' 1–0 victory with his 30th save of the season.


2008 American League Central tie-breaker game, Game summary
Twins batters Joe Mauer, Justin Morneau, and Cuddyer had a combined 22 hits in 40 at-bats (.550 batting average) against Danks for their careers but in the tie-breaker they combined to go 1–for-9 (.111) with 3 strikeouts. This game saw the lowest combined score of any tie-breaker game in MLB history, three runs lower than the 3–1 score of the first game of the 1951 National League tie-breaker series.


2008 American League Central tie-breaker game, Aftermath
With the victory, the White Sox earned their first playoff berth since their win in the 2005 World Series. However, they lost to the eventual World Series runner-up Tampa Bay Rays, 3 games to 1.


2008 American League Central tie-breaker game, Aftermath
Statistically, the game counted as the 163rd regular season game. Thome's home run, for example, was his 34th of the season. This total brought him a tie for fourth most in the league. Danks lowered his earned run average from 3.47 to 3.32 in the game, which moved him from a tie for tenth-best in the league to fifth place. Mauer, Morneau, and White Sox outfielder Carlos Quentin won Silver Slugger Awards for their offensive performances in the 2008 regular season. Mauer also won a Rawlings Gold Glove Award that year. This was the last tie-breaker with home field determined by a coin flip. Following the 2008 season MLB amended their rules, leaving future tie-breaker sites to be determined on a series of performance-based criteria beginning with the head-to-head record between the teams.


2008 American League Championship Series
The 2008 American League Championship Series (ALCS), the second round of the 2008 American League playoffs, was a best-of-seven series matching the two winners of the American League Division Series. The AL East Division champion Tampa Bay Rays, who had defeated the Chicago White Sox in the ALDS, were paired with the wild-card and defending world champion Boston Red Sox, who had defeated the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, in the ALDS. Tampa Bay held the home field advantage.


2008 American League Championship Series
The Rays won the series four games to three, becoming the first team since the 1992 Atlanta Braves to win a seventh game after blowing a 3–1 lead. The series began at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Florida on Friday, October 10, 2008, and was broadcast on TBS. Game 7 was played on Sunday, October 19. This was the Rays' first appearance in the ALCS while the Red Sox were making their fourth appearance in the last six seasons and ninth overall. The two teams hit a combined 26 home runs—a record for league championship series.


2008 American League Championship Series
The Rays would go on to lose to the Philadelphia Phillies in the World Series.


2008 American League Championship Series, Game summaries, Game 1
Friday, October 10, 2008 at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Florida


2008 American League Championship Series, Game summaries, Game 1
Boston won a pitcher's duel on a sacrifice fly by Jed Lowrie in the fifth off of James Shields and an RBI double by Kevin Youkilis in the eighth off of J. P. Howell with the run charged to Shields. Starter Daisuke Matsuzaka held the Rays hitless until Carl Crawford singled to lead off the seventh inning. He allowed four singles and five walks in seven innings while striking out nine. Jonathan Papelbon pitched a perfect ninth for his fourth career ALCS save.


2008 American League Championship Series, Game summaries, Game 2
Saturday, October 11, 2008 at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Florida


2008 American League Championship Series, Game summaries, Game 2
The Rays won a hard-hitting, marathon game that lasted 5 hours and 27 minutes, and featured seven home runs, which broke the ALCS record and tied the all-time LCS record. Starters Scott Kazmir and Josh Beckett were both ineffective, giving up six of those home runs and lasting under five innings.


2008 American League Championship Series, Game summaries, Game 2
In the top of the first, David Ortiz walked and Kevin Youkilis singled with two outs before both scored on Jason Bay's double, but in the bottom of the inning, Carlos Pena doubled with two outs before Evan Longoria's home run tied the game. Dustin Pedroia's leadoff home run in the third put the Red Sox up 3−2, but in the bottom of the inning, B. J. Upton's one-out home run tied the game again, then Longoria doubled with two outs before scoring on Carl Crawford's single to put the Rays up 4–3.


2008 American League Championship Series, Game summaries, Game 2
Cliff Floyd's leadoff home run in the fourth extended the Rays' lead to 5–3, but home runs by Pedroia and Youkilis in the fifth tied the game. Grant Balfour relieved Kazmir and allowed a home run to Bay to put the Red Sox up 6–5. In the bottom of the inning, Upton walked with out out, stole second and scored on Pena's single to tie the game. Longoria's RBI double then put the Rays up 7–6. Javier Lopez relieved Beckett and allowed an RBI single to Crawford.


2008 American League Championship Series, Game summaries, Game 2
Bay's single in the seventh off of Chad Bradford scored Pedroia, who walked off of J. P. Howell with one out earlier that inning. A wild pitch by Dan Wheeler in the eighth allowed Pedroia, who singled to lead off the inning off of Bradford, to score and tie the game, forcing extra innings. In the bottom of the 11th, Mike Timlin walked three to load the bases before a sacrifice fly by Upton allowed Fernando Perez to score the winning run. The Rays' 2007 #1 draft pick, David Price, was credited with the win.


2008 American League Championship Series, Game summaries, Game 3
Monday, October 13, 2008 at Fenway Park in Boston, Massachusetts


2008 American League Championship Series, Game summaries, Game 3
The Rays hit Boston ace Jon Lester and reliever Paul Byrd hard in Game 3, moving ahead two games to one. The Rays scored their first run in the second on Dioner Navarro's RBI groundout with runners on second and third. Next inning, B. J. Upton hit a towering three-run homer over the Green Monster to make it 4–0. Evan Longoria followed with a home run later in the inning to make it 5–0. Tampa Bay starter Matt Garza pitched brilliantly against the Red Sox lineup.


2008 American League Championship Series, Game summaries, Game 3
The 3–4–5 hitters went 0–9 against him and the Red Sox's only run came in the seventh on Jacoby Ellsbury's sacrifice fly off of J. P. Howell that scored Jason Varitek, who walked off of Garza to lead off the inning. In the eighth, New England native Rocco Baldelli hit a three-run homer of his own, also over the Green Monster, off of Byrd to seal the win. Carlos Peña homered in the ninth, also off of Byrd to extend his postseason success.


2008 American League Championship Series, Game summaries, Game 4
Tuesday, October 14, 2008 at Fenway Park in Boston, Massachusetts


2008 American League Championship Series, Game summaries, Game 4
The Rays routed the defending World Champions for the second straight night with a 13–4 win in Boston. Carlos Peña got it going in the first with a two-run homer off starter Tim Wakefield. Evan Longoria followed it up with his third homer of the series and fifth in the playoffs. Willy Aybar hit his first home run of the postseason in the third when he sent one over the Green Monster for a two-run homer. Kevin Cash's leadoff home run in the third off of Rays starter Andy Sonnanstine put the Red Sox on the board. In the fifth, Carl Crawford doubled with one out in the fifth off of Justin Masterson and scored on Aybar's single. Next inning, Jason Bartlett tripled with one out off of Manny Delcarmen.


2008 American League Championship Series, Game summaries, Game 4
After Akinori Iwamura walked, B. J. Upton's RBI single made it 7–1 Rays. Delcarmen walked two to load the bases and force in another run before being relieved by Javier Lopez, who allowed back-to-back RBI singles to Crawford and Aybar, then an RBI groundout to Navarro. In the bottom of the inning, David Ortiz hit a leadoff triple and scored on Kevin Youkilis's groundout. In the eighth, Mike Timlin walked Pena to lead off the inning, then allowed an RBI triple to Crawford and RBI single to Aybar.


2008 American League Championship Series, Game summaries, Game 4
In the bottom of the inning, Jed Lowrie hit a leadoff single, moved to second on a groundout and scored on Dustin Pedroia's single. Trever Miller relieved Sonnastine and allowed a two-out RBI double to Youkilis. Edwin Jackson pitched a scoreless ninth as the Rays were one win away from the World Series. Carl Crawford went 5-for-5 with two stolen bases in the game.


2008 American League Championship Series, Game summaries, Game 5
Thursday, October 16, 2008 at Fenway Park in Boston, Massachusetts


2008 American League Championship Series, Game summaries, Game 5
Tampa Bay jumped out to an early lead when B. J. Upton hit a two-run home run with no one out in the first inning. Carlos Peña and Evan Longoria increased the lead to 5–0 with back-to-back home runs in the third, the former a two-run shot. With his home run, Longoria tied Carlos Beltrán's record for consecutive postseason games with a home run. Daisuke Matsuzaka allowed no more runs after that through six innings, but Boston was unable to score against Scott Kazmir. In the top of the seventh, Jonathan Papelbon came on after Manny Delcarmen walked the only two batters he faced. The inherited runners scored on an Upton double, making it 7–0.


2008 American League Championship Series, Game summaries, Game 5
In the bottom of the seventh, with two outs and runners on first and third, Dustin Pedroia hit an RBI single off Grant Balfour to finally get the Red Sox on the board. The next batter, David Ortiz, hit a three-run home run to right field, ending a postseason home run drought of 61 at-bats. In the eighth inning, J. D. Drew hit a two-run homer to right field off Dan Wheeler. Later, Coco Crisp hit an RBI single to right field to score Mark Kotsay from second to tie the game.


2008 American League Championship Series, Game summaries, Game 5
In the ninth inning, after J. P. Howell retired the first two Boston batters, Kevin Youkilis hit a ground ball to third base. Longoria scooped the ball, but his throw was off, and bounced into the stands, allowing Youkilis to reach second. After an intentional walk to Jason Bay, Drew hit a single over the head of right fielder Gabe Gross to win the game.


2008 American League Championship Series, Game summaries, Game 5
The comeback of the Red Sox from a seven-run deficit is the second-biggest in postseason history, the largest since Game 4 of the 1929 World Series, and the largest ever for a team on the brink of elimination.


2008 American League Championship Series, Game summaries, Game 6
Saturday, October 18, 2008 at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Florida


2008 American League Championship Series, Game summaries, Game 6
Josh Beckett pitched five innings and allowed two solo home runs, to B. J. Upton in the first and Jason Bartlett in the fifth, to record the win. Boston scored on home runs from Kevin Youkilis in the second and Jason Varitek (his first series hit) in the sixth, a Youkilis groundout in the third, and a single by David Ortiz after Bartlett's throwing error extended the sixth inning.


2008 American League Championship Series, Game summaries, Game 6
Umpire Derryl Cousins was struck by a foul ball from Varitek in the second inning, leaving the game with a bruised collarbone after the third. The game was delayed for 15 minutes while Cousins was X-rayed by Rays trainer Ron Porterfield; the game resumed with a five-man umpiring crew.


2008 American League Championship Series, Game summaries, Game 6
TBS television missed most of the game's first inning, with viewers getting a rerun of The Steve Harvey Show instead. The network picked up the game just prior to the last out in the bottom of the first, with announcer Chip Caray apologizing to viewers for "technical difficulties". TBS acknowledged there was a problem with one of their routers used in the broadcast transmission of the relay of the telecast from Atlanta.


2008 American League Championship Series, Game summaries, Game 6
When facing elimination, Terry Francona's Red Sox won nine of ten postseason games.


2008 American League Championship Series, Game summaries, Game 7
Sunday, October 19, 2008 at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Florida


2008 American League Championship Series, Game summaries, Game 7
The Rays shook off the ghosts of Red Sox past to win their first American League pennant, winning a tight game 3–1. Dustin Pedroia got the Red Sox off to a good start with a one-out homer in the first off Matt Garza, but Garza settled in and delivered an MVP performance. Tampa Bay tied the game in the fourth with an Evan Longoria RBI double, then went ahead in the fifth on an RBI single by Rocco Baldelli. In the seventh, Willy Aybar added insurance with a home run to lead off.