2009 Algerian presidential election, Background
The Council of Ministers announced on 3 November 2008 that a planned constitutional revision would remove the two-term limit on the presidency that was previously included in Article 74, thereby enabling Bouteflika to run for a third term. The People's National Assembly endorsed the removal of the term limit on 12 November 2008, with only the Rally for Culture and Democracy (RCD) voting against its removal.


2009 Algerian presidential election, Candidates
Thirteen candidates submitted papers to contest the election, but only six were approved to run:


2009 Algerian presidential election, Candidates
Although some urged former President Liamine Zéroual to run, he said in a published statement on 14 January 2009 that he would not, while also suggesting that it was not in the best interests of democracy for Bouteflika to run for a third term.


2009 Algerian presidential election, Candidates
RCD President Saïd Sadi announced on 15 January 2009 that the RCD would not participate in the elections, which he described as a "pathetic and dangerous circus", saying that to participate "would be tantamount to complicity in an operation of national humiliation".


2009 Algerian presidential election, Candidates
Bouteflika announced his independent candidacy for a third term at a rally in Algiers on 12 February 2009, and officially submitted his candidacy on 23 February, shortly before the deadline.


2009 Algerian presidential election, Results
The official turnout of 75% was disputed by the opposition, with some claiming it was as low as 16%. Informal US Embassy observations placed it at "25–30 percent at most."


2009 All England Super Series
The 2009 All England Super Series is the 99th edition of the All England Open Badminton Championships and also the third tournament of the 2009 BWF Super Series. It was held from 3–8 March 2009 in Birmingham, England.


2009 All England Super Series – Men's doubles
This article list the results of men's doubles category in the 2009 All England Super Series.


2009 All England Super Series – Men's singles
This article list the results of men's singles category in the 2009 All England Super Series.


2009 All England Super Series – Mixed doubles
This article list the results of mixed doubles category in the 2009 All England Super Series.


2009 All England Super Series – Women's doubles
This article list the results of women's doubles category in the 2009 All England Super Series of badminton.


2009 All England Super Series – Women's singles
This article list the results of women's singles category in the 2009 All England Super Series.


2009 All Star Children's Foundation Sarasota Open
The 2009 All Star Children's Foundation Sarasota Open was a professional tennis tournament played on outdoor green clay courts. It was part of the 2009 ATP Challenger Tour. It took place in Longboat Key, Florida, United States between May 9 and May 17, 2009.


2009 All Star Children's Foundation Sarasota Open, Singles entrants, Other Entrants
The following players received wildcards into the singles main draw:


2009 All Star Children's Foundation Sarasota Open, Singles entrants, Other Entrants
The following players received special exempt into the main draw:


2009 All Star Children's Foundation Sarasota Open, Champions, Doubles
Víctor Estrella /  Santiago González def. Harsh Mankad /  Kaes Van't Hof, 6–2, 6–4


2009 All Star Children's Foundation Sarasota Open – Doubles
Víctor Estrella and Santiago González became the first champions of this tournament, after their won 6–2, 6–4 against Harsh Mankad and Kaes Van't Hof in the final.


2009 All Star Children's Foundation Sarasota Open – Singles
James Ward won in the final 7–6(4), 4–6, 6–3, against Carsten Ball.


2009 All Thailand Golf Tour
The 2009 All Thailand Golf Tour is the 11th season of the All Thailand Golf Tour, the main professional golf tour in Thailand since it was established in 1999.


2009 All-Australian team
The 2009 All-Australian team represents the best performed Australian Football League (AFL) players during the 2009 season. It was announced on 14 September, as a complete Australian rules football team of 22 players. An initial squad of 40 players was previously announced on 1 September. The team is honorary and does not play any games.


2009 All-Australian team, Selection panel
The selection panel for the 2009 All-Australian team consisted of non-voting chairman Andrew Demetriou, Adrian Anderson, Kevin Bartlett, Gerard Healy, James Hird, Glen Jakovich, Mark Ricciuto and Robert Walls.


2009 All-Australian team, Team, Initial squad
A squad of 40 players, consisting of 12 defenders, 12 forwards and 16 midfielders/ruckmen was announced on 1 September. The top four teams after the home and away season provided 24 of the 40 players selected in the initial squad, with the bottom eight teams only providing seven players. Three clubs, Melbourne, Port Adelaide and Richmond, did not have any players nominated.


2009 All-Australian team, Team, Initial squad
Controversial omissions from the squad include former Brownlow Medallists Simon Black and Jason Akermanis, as well as prolific midfielders Jobe Watson, Scott Thompson, Bryce Gibbs, Aaron Davey, Joel Corey and Daniel Cross. Dane Swan was surprisingly named as a forward, despite playing mainly as a midfielder and only scoring 17 goals during the season.


2009 All-Australian team, Team, Final team
Nick Riewoldt was named as captain of the All-Australian team for the first time. The top two teams for the season, Geelong and St Kilda, each had five players selected. Nine players were selected for the first time, with Matthew Scarlett and Simon Goodwin receiving their fifth respective selections.


2009 All-Australian team, Team, Final team
The most controversial selections were the selection of Collingwood pair Leon Davis and midfielder Dane Swan as forwards, despite kicking only 34 and 18 goals respectively, ahead of Mark LeCras who kicked 58 goals for the season and Jason Porplyzia who kicked 52 goals.


2009 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.


2009 All-Big 12 Conference football team
The 2009 All-Big 12 Conference football team consists of American football players chosen as All-Big 12 Conference players for the 2009 Big 12 Conference 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).


2009 All-Big 12 Conference football team, Key
Bold = selected as a first-team player by both the coaches and media panel


2009 All-Big Ten Conference football team
The 2009 All-Big Ten Conference football team consists of American football players chosen as All-Big Ten Conference players for the 2009 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).


2009 All-Big Ten Conference football team, Key
Bold = Consensus first-team selection by both the coaches and media


2009 All-Ireland Intermediate Hurling Championship
The 2009 All-Ireland Intermediate Hurling Championship was the 26th staging of the All-Ireland hurling championship. The started on 31 May 2015 and ended on 29 August 2009.


2009 All-Ireland Intermediate Hurling Championship
Kilkenny were the defending champions, however, they were defeated in the final by Cork who won the title by 2-23 to 0-16.


2009 All-Ireland Minor Camogie Championship
The 2009 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 by eight points in the final, played at Semple Stadium Thurles. 2009 Kilkenny 5-10 Clare 3-8.


2009 All-Ireland Minor Camogie Championship, B Division
The Minor B final was won by Limerick who defeated Waterford by one point in a dramatic final at Mallow. Waterford defeated Derry 1–9 to 0–9 at Ashbourne and Limerick defeated Wexford 3–16 to 3–9 in the semi-finals. Naomi Carroll and Chloe Morey scored three points each. The Minor C final was won by Laois. Sarah Ann Fitzgerald scored 2–2 to help Laois defeat Carlow in the final by five points. Laois defeated Roscommon in the minor C semi-final  by 8–12 to 1–1 and Carlow defeated Cavan.


2009 All-Ireland Minor Camogie Championship, Arrangements
Clare defeated Cork 1–9 to 0–11 in the semi-final at Kilmallock, while ’s Denise Gaule scored 3–7 and Aoife Murphy 2–3 as Kilkenny defeated Tipperary by 5–15 to 3–4.


2009 All-Ireland Minor Camogie Championship, The Final
Five goals before half-time, two of them from Denise Gaule, enabled Kilkenny win the final. They lead 5.05 to 1.04 at the break


2009 All-Ireland Minor Football Championship
The 2009 All-Ireland Minor Football Championship was the 78th 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.


2009 All-Ireland Minor Football Championship
Tyrone entered the championship as defending champions, however, they were defeated by Armagh in the Ulster quarter-final.


2009 All-Ireland Minor Football Championship
On 20 September 2009, Armagh won the championship following a 0-10 to 0-7 defeat of Mayo in the All-Ireland final. This was their second All-Ireland title overall and their first in sixty championship seasons.


2009 All-Ireland Minor Hurling Championship
The 2009 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 12 April 2009 and ended on 6 September 2009.


2009 All-Ireland Minor Hurling Championship
On 6 September 2009, Galway won the championship after a 2-15 to 2-11 defeat of Kilkenny in the All-Ireland final. This was their 8th championship title overall and their first title since 2005.


2009 All-Ireland Minor Hurling Championship
Tipperary's John O'Dwyer was the championship's top scorer with 4-37.


2009 All-Ireland Senior Camogie Championship
The 2009 All-Ireland Senior Camogie Championship—known as the Gala All-Ireland Senior Camogie Championship for sponsorship reasons— is the high point of the 2009 season in the sport of camogie. It commenced on 20 June 2009 and ended with the final on 13 September 2009. Eight teams competed in the Senior Championship out of twenty-seven who competed overall in the Senior, Intermediate and Junior Championships. The final of the 2009 Senior Championship was contested by Cork—the reigning champions—and Kilkenny at Croke Park on 13 September 2009. The final was available to view worldwide. Cork were the champions.


2009 All-Ireland Senior Camogie Championship, Launch
The Championship was launched in Croke Park, Dublin on 10 June 2009. Camogie Association of Ireland President Joan O'Flynn said at the launch that the 2009 Championship would be "the highest profile yet". The Camogie Association also announced the use of county grounds for the first time, with the aim of improving attendances and facilities. This led to some debate on the role of women in sport, with Marie O'Halloran of The Irish Times claiming that female athletes were "still playing second fiddle". Camogie county boards were also undecided whether their players would dress in a skirt or shorts—they presently wear "skorts".


2009 All-Ireland Senior Camogie Championship, Summary
The eight teams were drawn into two groups of four. Each team played one another once only. The top two in each group contested the semi-finals. Cork went into the 2009 Senior Championship as reigning champions. They began their title challenge by dismissing Dublin. League champions Wexford began their challenge with a game against Limerick in Hospital.


2009 All-Ireland Senior Camogie Championship, Summary
The semi-finals were contested at Nowlan Park, Kilkenny on 15 August 2009. Galway versus Kilkenny and Cork versus Wexford were the semi-finals. Cork and Kilkenny progressed to the final. Kilkenny's victory over Galway was unexpected as 33% of their team was under the age of twenty.


2009 All-Ireland Senior Camogie Championship, Summary
Prior to the final, representatives from both the Minor (Offaly versus Waterford) and Senior Championship finals met President Joan O'Flynn at Croke Park. The teams were named on 10 September 2009. The semi-final between Kilkenny and Galway in which Kilkenny produced a late surge to snatch victory deep in injury-time to qualify for their first final since 2001 was described as “one of the most memorable games ever played in Nowlan Park.” The final between Cork and Kilkenny was played at Croke Park on 13 September 2009 and was broadcast live in Ireland on RTÉ Two and internationally on RTÉ.ie.


2009 All-Ireland Senior Camogie Championship, Summary
Highlights were shown on The Sunday Game in Ireland and worldwide on the same channels. Cork were featuring in their eighth consecutive final, whilst Kilkenny last appeared in the final in 2001 when they lost to Tipperary. Kilkenny last won the final in 1995. The teams had met earlier in the Championship in Group 1 when Cork beat Kilkenny by a scoreline of 2-05 to 0-07.


2009 All-Ireland Senior Camogie Championship, Summary
The Gala Performance Award was awarded the player who topped a public poll as having given the season's best performance.


2009 All-Ireland Senior Camogie Championship Final
The 2009 All-Ireland Senior Camogie Championship Final was the 78th All-Ireland Final and the deciding match of the 2009 All-Ireland Senior Camogie Championship, an inter-county camogie tournament for the top teams in Ireland.


2009 All-Ireland Senior Club Hurling Championship Final
The 2009 All-Ireland Senior Club Hurling Championship final was a hurling match played at Croke Park on 17 March 2009 to determine the winners of the 2007–08 All-Ireland Senior Club Hurling Championship, the 39th 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 De La Salle of Waterford, with Portumna winning by 2-24 to 1-8.


2009 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 De La Salle. It remains their only clash in the All-Ireland series. Portumna were hoping to make their own piece of history by becoming only the fourth team to retain the title.


2009 All-Ireland Senior Club Hurling Championship Final
The first half was a pedestrian affair, with De La Salle clearly nervous from the outset. Their inside forward line had a torrid afternoon against the tight marking Portumna defence, and when attacks were broken up, the Galwaymen broke up the field. De La Salle's cause wasn't helped when forwards Lee Hayes and Derek McGrath had to leave the field after picking up injuries. After 20 minutes, Portumna were 1-7 to 0-1 ahead, courtesy of a Damien Hayes goal.


2009 All-Ireland Senior Club Hurling Championship Final
De La Salle's indiscipline out the field cost them and with Joe Canning's radar working to aplomb from 65s and sideline cuts, they paid a heavy price on the scoreboard. When Hayes added his second goal two minutes before the break, the game was effectively over as a contest. De La Salle were awarded a penalty just before the break, but goalkeeper Stephen Brenner's shot was tipped over the bar by Portumna custodian Ivan Canning.


2009 All-Ireland Senior Club Hurling Championship Final
The second half offered more of the same, in spite of Paudie Nevin finding the net for De La Salle after a period of ping pong in the Portumna goalmouth. Tipperary native, Micheál Ryan, Andy Smith, David Canning and Kevin Hayes also found the range for Portumna, as the game resembled a training session close to the finish. John Mullane tried hard for De La Salle, but never got a chance to run at the opposing defence, and his point near the end, received a ripple of applause from the De La Salle faithful in the crowd. Portumna's victory margin was well merited with eleven of their players getting on the scoresheet


2009 All-Ireland Senior Club Hurling Championship Final
Portumna's victory secured their third All-Ireland title in four years. They joined Sarsfield's, Athenry and Birr as the only sides to have retained the All-Ireland title.


2009 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship
The 2009 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship was the inter-county Gaelic football tournament played between 31 counties of Ireland, London and New York. The draw for the 2009 championship took place on 9 October 2008. The tournament began on 10 May 2009.


2009 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship
The 2009 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final took place on 20 September 2009, contested by Cork and Kerry. This was the year Tadhg Kennelly made history by becoming the first person to ever hold AFL Premiership and All-Ireland winning medals in the sports of Australian rules football and Gaelic football—he previously won the biggest prize in Australian rules with Sydney Swans in 2005.


2009 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship, Fixtures and results, All-Ireland qualifiers, Round 3
A draw was made for round 3 of the qualifiers, with the winners of round 2 playing each other.


2009 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship, Fixtures and results, All-Ireland qualifiers, Round 4
A draw was made for round 4 of the qualifiers, with the winners of round three (Donegal, Kerry, Meath and Wicklow) playing against the losing provincial finalists (Antrim, Galway, Kildare and Limerick).


2009 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final
The 2009 All-Ireland Football Final was the 122nd event of its kind. Played between Cork and Kerry on 20 September 2009 in Croke Park, Dublin, it was the last football match of the 2009 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship.


2009 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final
Kerry won by a score of 0-16 to 1-09. It was their 36th All-Ireland SFC title, reaffirming their status as Gaelic football's most successful county.


2009 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final
In playing for the winning team, Tadhg Kennelly became the first person to ever hold AFL Premiership and All-Ireland winning medals in the sports of Australian rules football and Gaelic football—he previously won the biggest prize in Australian rules with Sydney Swans in 2005. Kennelly's former coach Paul Roos and some of his former Sydney teammates attended the game. The game was also attended by international guests of the Global Irish Economic Forum which was taking place in Dublin on the same weekend.


2009 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final
The game was televised nationally by RTÉ Two, online by RTÉ.ie and internationally by RTÉ Radio 1, with match highlights being shown on The Sunday Game on RTÉ Two and RTÉ.ie that night. RTÉ's coverage for the first time ever involved live pictures of its legendary broadcaster Mícheál Ó Muircheartaigh's commentary as given to RTÉ Radio 1 during the match; he appeared on The Late Late Show to discuss this with Ryan Tubridy.


2009 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final, History
The Irish Independent described Cork versus Kerry as "Gaelic football's busiest rivalry over the last two decades", and that going into the final it may be at its "most explosive", with eight sendings off during games between the teams in the past two years and 35 yellow cards since July 2008. On the day of the final, the Sunday Independent's Ralph Riegel described it as "a rivalry that traces its roots back to the old cross-border cattle raids of the ancient Gaelic clans". Both Martin Breheny in the Irish Independent and Colm O'Connor in the Irish Examiner noted that the 2009 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final would be the 19th meeting between the sides in the championship during the 2000s—with Breheny adding that their previous 19 meetings stretched back to 1982.


2009 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final, History
It was Kerry's sixth consecutive All-Ireland Final. It was also their eighth final of the decade, an all-time record. By winning the final they achieved five All-Ireland Senior Football Championship titles during the 2000s, matching their own efforts in the 1930s and the 1980s. Cork and Kerry previously met in the 2007 final, with Kerry winning by a ten-point margin.


2009 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final, Pre-match, Team selection
Cork named the same team that defeated Tyrone in the semi-final. A doubt, however, remained over the fitness of Ray Carey who injured his shoulder during a training session. Eight members of the 2007 final team featured. Cork also announced they had renewed their sponsorship deal with O2 days before the final. Going into the final, Cork had scored a goal in all of their fourteen Championship matches since 2007's qualifier game against Louth, also scoring eight goals in five matches against Kerry over a two-season period. Anthony Lynch and Nicholas Murphy were the remaining players from the 1999 final loss to Meath. Ray Carey was declared unfit on matchday and was replaced with Kieran O'Connor.


2009 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final, Pre-match, Team selection
Kerry's Colm Cooper was originally described as "very doubtful" for the final. However, he, alongside Paul Galvin, were later declared fit, with Kerry officials dismissing claims about Cooper's fitness as one of several "false stories" to have come out of the county in 2009. Kieran Donaghy, who had recovered from a foot injury, was expected to appear amongst the substitutes. Donaghy criticised the media for what he termed the "pandemonium" that was created surrounding Cooper throughout the campaign following a drinking session with Tomás Ó Sé which saw them both removed from the team for a time.


2009 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final, Pre-match, Team selection
Tadhg Kennelly also had to deny he would rejoin the Sydney Swans in the AFL. Kerry made one change from the semi-final line-up; Donnacha Walsh was replaced by Tommy Walsh. Prior to the match, speculation surrounded Kennelly and Walsh over whether they would return to play in Australia if they won their first All-Ireland medals. Kennelly later signed a two-year contract with Sydney Swans, as did Walsh; who signed a two-year deal with St Kilda Football Club around 2 months after the All Ireland Final


2009 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final, Pre-match, Referee controversy
Marty Duffy of Sligo was appointed match referee for the final. The decision led to comment from former managers of both counties involved in the final, Mick O'Dwyer who expressed his belief that the choice of referee was based on "politics" and Billy Morgan who thought that Pat McEnaney ought to have been appointed referee instead. The GAA officially refused to offer a response to the two men.


2009 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final, Pre-match, Referee controversy
Liam and Sam in the Irish Independent compared the "pre-emptive" criticism of the referee to a scenario where the referee were to question the manner in which one of the teams play the sport or express dismay that a better team should have qualified for the final instead. Radio Kerry analyst and former referee Weeshie Fogarty expressed his dismay at the criticism of Duffy, commenting: "It's bad enough to referee big games in Croke Park and see your name being castigated in the papers and torn asunder the following week. But by God, when it happens before the game, that is a new trend to me".


2009 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final, Match, Summary, First half
In the first minute, Kerry's Tadhg Kennelly struck the chin of Cork's Nicholas Murphy with his shoulder, escaping a caution in the process. Kennelly later admitted the challenge was premeditated, comparing himself to a "raging bull" in his autobiography. One minute later Cork's Donnacha O'Connor scored the first point of the final. Kennelly opened Kerry's account with a score from forty yards in the third minute. The seventh and ninth minutes respectively saw points from Cork's Colm O'Neill and Paddy Kelly.


2009 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final, Match, Summary, First half
A goal for Cork came in the tenth minute from Colm O'Neill, with Kerry's Colm Cooper responding two and three minutes later by winning two frees and scoring two points. Cork achieved a four-point lead 30 yards out. O'Connor sets up and makes it two from two for O'Connor to give Cork a four-point lead in the sixteenth minute when Donnacha O'Connor scored a free from 30 yards but Kerry's Tommy Walsh responded by scoring two further points three and four minutes later.


2009 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final, Match, Summary, First half
Colm Cooper scored from another free in the twenty-third minute, with Kennelly and Paul Galvin both missing two chances to score soon after. Declan O'Sullivan, Cooper and Kennelly soon followed with three points. Cork responded with a point from Daniel Goulding but Kerry's Tomás Ó Sé scored another. The final actions of the first half were frees scored by Cooper and Goulding for Kerry and Cork respectively.


2009 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final, Match, Summary, Second half
Kerry's Colm Cooper scored the opening point of the second half, with Cork's response consisting of several wides. Kerry captain Darren O'Sullivan then scored a dubious point which should not have been given as he bounced the ball twice before scoring. Kerry goalkeeper Diarmuid Murphy then preserved his team's four-point lead in the forty-seventh minute by saving Daniel Goulding's effort on goal. Donnacha O'Connor scored a free two minutes later to give Cork their first point for some time. Tadhg Kennelly was substituted for Donnacha Walsh. Goulding scored two more frees for Cork but Tommy Walsh followed up by scoring two frees for Kerry. Tomás Ó Sé scored what proved to be the final point of the match in the fifty-eighth minute. The remainder of the match consisted of wides and substitutes.


2009 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final, Post-match, Trophy presentation
Following a pitch invasion by fans after the 2009 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship Final, the GAA confirmed that the presentation of the Sam Maguire Cup would take place in Croke Park's Hogan Stand. The GAA insisted that it still remained worried about the health and safety of fans and expects an accident to happen "one of these days". Kerry captain Darren O'Sullivan expressed his indifference about the location: "If they give [the cup] out in the car park around the back, I just want to get my hands on it". During the presentation, Tadhg Kennelly did his dance which he previously did when he won the AFL Grand Final with the Sydney Swans in 2005.


2009 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final, Post-match, Reaction
Jack O'Connor claimed his team were influenced by the criticism which had come their way—"We were being written off – fellas like Spillane now were almost feeling pity for us. But that is where you get the energy from; you get it from enjoying each other's company and trying to build it up".


2009 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final, Post-match, Reaction
Conor Counihan claimed his team lost because of missed opportunities to score—"'We were definitely at a stage out there where we had opportunities and had we taken them, well it might have been an entirely different story. There's no doubt we could have put more pressure on Kerry at a couple of crucial periods. We didn't take our chances, however, and that's what it all boils down to".


2009 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final, Post-match, Reaction
Tadhg Kennelly confirmed that he was committed to the Kerry team and would not be returning to Sydney Swans for the following season—"My head is truly, truly set on Kerry. And my heart. That’s probably the main thing that has come out here".


2009 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final, Post-match, Reaction
Seán Moran in The Irish Times commended Kerry for how they "rattled off" another title, noting the achievement was "all the more admirable for the quality of opposition with which they have had to contend" and that Jack O'Connor, on his decision to return as manager, was "rewarded with the ultimate vindication".


2009 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final, Post-match, Homecoming
One of the largest crowds to ever attend an All-Ireland homecoming collected in Rathmore, County Kerry on 21 September 2009 to wait for the team train to arrive. With "The Best" playing in the background, Aidan O'Mahony and Tom O'Sullivan carried the Sam Maguire Cup to a stage which was erected in the town's train station and Tadhg Kennelly danced yet another jig of celebration as children queued to receive autographs. Touring the county, a fireworks display was on offer in honour of the team in Killarney and the streets of Tralee were tightly packed with wellwishers.


2009 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final, Post-match, Homecoming
Cork departed Dublin at 16:00 on 21 September 2009 en route to Cork's Kent Station via Mallow. Hundreds of people gathered at South Mall near Parnell Place to welcome the team, amongst them the Irish Minister for Foreign Affairs Micheál Martin and Dr John Buckley, Bishop of Cork and Ross.


2009 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final, Post-match, Awards
The nominations for the 2009 GAA All Stars Awards were announced on 25 September 2009. All but three of Kerry's winning team were nominated, with ten of Cork's team also being nominated. Kerry's Tomas Ó Sé, Declan O'Sullivan and Colm Cooper were also nominated in 2008. The nominees for Footballer of the Year were Paul Galvin and Tomás Ó Sé of Kerry and Graham Canty of Cork. Cork's Colm O'Neill was nominated for Young Footballer of the Year alongside Mayo's Aidan O'Shea and eventual winner Donegal's Michael Murphy.


2009 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship
The 2009 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship was the 123rd staging of the All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship, the Gaelic Athletic Association's premier inter-county hurling tournament. The draw for the 2000 fixtures took place on 8 October 2008. The championship began on 30 May 2009 and ended on 6 September 2009.


2009 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship
Kilkenny were the defending champions. Antrim and Galway joined the Leinster Championship for the first time.


2009 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship
On 6 September 2009, Kilkenny won the championship following a 2-22 to 0-23 defeat of Tipperary in the All-Ireland final. This was their 32nd All-Ireland title overall, their 7th championship of the decade and a record-equalling fourth All-Ireland title in-a-row.


2009 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship
Galway's Joe Canning was the championship's top scorer with 3-46. Kilkenny's Tommy Walsh won Hurler of the Year.


2009 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship, Provincial changes
Due to a lack of competition in their own respective provinces, Antrim and Galway pushed for entry to the Leinster Championship. At a special meeting of Congress on 4 October 2008, delegates voted to include Galway and Antrim in a restructured Leinster Championship on a trial basis for three years. Dublin, Wexford and Offaly spoke against the move, however, when put to a vote approximately 80% of delegates voted in favour.


2009 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship, Teams
A total of 12 teams competed in the championship, including all of the teams from the 2008 championship. There were no new entrants. On 3 August 2008, Westmeath won the Christy Ring Cup for the second year in succession, however, there was no promotion mechanism for them to join the top flight.


2009 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship, Format
The format of the 2009 championship was slightly different from previous years. Firstly, Galway have had no opposition in the Connacht Senior Hurling Championship since 2004. Due to this it was decided at a special meeting of the GAA's congress for Galway to join the Leinster Senior Hurling Championship for a three-year trial period, starting with the 2009 championship. Antrim, being the only Tier 1 team in the Ulster Senior Hurling Championship, also participated in the Leinster Championship on a three-year trial period. Antrim also competed in the Ulster Championship which was run as a separate tournament to the All-Ireland Hurling Championship.


2009 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship, Format
12 counties participated in Tier 1 of the 2009 Championship. These teams were as follows:


2009 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship, Format
Provincial ChampionshipsThe Munster championship was played as usual with five teams. The Leinster championship also proceeded as usual, except for the addition of both Antrim and Galway, bringing the total number of competing teams to seven. The Leinster and Munster champions advanced directly to the All-Ireland semi-finals.


2009 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship, Format
All-Ireland QualifiersThe qualifiers gave teams defeated in the provincial championships another chance at winning the All-Ireland. Phase 1: (2 matches) the three Leinster quarter-finalists and the Munster quarter-finalist play off. Phase 2: (2 matches) the two Leinster semi-finalists and two Munster semi-finalists play off. Phase 3: (2 matches) The four winners of Phase 1 and Phase 2 games meet in Phase 3. The two Phase 3 winners advance to the All-Ireland quarter-finals.


2009 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship, Format
All-Ireland SeriesQuarter-finals: (2 matches) The defeated Munster and Leinster finalists played the winners of the Phase 3 qualifiers. Semi-finals: (2 matches) The Munster and Leinster champions played the winners of the quarter-finals.


2009 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship, Format
Promotion and relegation between Tier 1 and Tier 2 was in operation in the 2009 championship. The defeated team in the Round 2 match of the Relegation playoffs was demoted to the 2010 Christy Ring Cup, to be replaced by the winners of the 2009 Christy Ring Cup.


2009 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship, Relegation play-offs
It was intended to hold a relegation playoff between Antrim and Wexford, but instead it was decided to allow both compete in the 2010 championship.


2009 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship, Player facts, Retirees
The following players played their last game in the 2009 championship:


2009 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship Final
The 2009 All-Ireland Hurling Final was a hurling match played on 6 September 2009 in Croke Park, Dublin, between Kilkenny and Tipperary. It was the first time the two teams had met in the All-Ireland final since 1991. Kilkenny's win was their fourth in a row, an accomplishment last matched by Cork between 1941 and 1944.


2009 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship Final
Kilkenny's victory gave them a record seventh title of the decade and a record 18th consecutive Championship win. Following the match, Kilkenny manager Brian Cody announced details of the release of his autobiography, Cody. Kilkenny hurler Henry Shefflin was named as the sport's Opel GPA Player of the Month for August after the win; Shefflin contributed 1–14 of Kilkenny's score in the final. Shefflin was named on The Etihad 125 Dream Team before the final. He also claimed his ninth All Star Award.


2009 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship Final
Prior to the game, Kilkenny were hailed as already being "the greatest side ever to play the game" by Eamonn Sweeney in the Sunday Independent as the Cork side who had already achieved four consecutive titles over sixty years previously did so against the backdrop of a foot-and-mouth disease outbreak which led to fewer games being played. Rock singer Shane MacGowan attended the final to support his team Tipperary.


2009 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship Final, Background
Kilkenny went into the 2009 hurling final as defending champions, having won it in three consecutive years from 2006 to 2008. They were aiming for their fourth consecutive All-Ireland Senior Hurling title, a feat only previously achieved in hurling by Cork from 1941 to 1944.


2009 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship Final, Ticketing
On 1 September 2009, the GAA confirmed that the final was an 82,000 sell-out. GAA Ticketing Manager Ronan Murphy said "Sunday's All-Ireland final is a sell-out. In fact both Tipperary and Kilkenny had been back to us looking for more tickets. There is an ancient rivalry between Tipperary and Kilkenny and the fact that Kilkenny are going for the four in a row also adds to the interest ... Throughout the country the demand for tickets was very strong".


2009 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship Final, Team news
Tipperary manager Liam Sheedy kept faith with the same team that beat Limerick in the Semi-final. Vice captain Conor O'Mahony was passed fit after suffering a 'dead leg' the previous week and lead the team from the centre-back position. Willie Ryan, who was named team captain at the start of the season, had to make do with a place on the substitutes bench. Goalkeeper Brendan Cummins, full-forward Eoin Kelly and right-corner forward Lar Corbett were the only survivors from the last Tipperary team to play in an All-Ireland final in 2001.


2009 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship Final, Team news
Kilkenny manager Brian Cody in naming his team, omitted 2008 All-Ireland-winning captain James "Cha" Fitzpatrick for the final in favour of Derek Lyng. In total Cody made two personnel changes to the side which beat Waterford in the Semi-final stage, Richie Hogan also started at right half-forward, with Henry Shefflin moving to centre-forward, Martin Comerford was the player to drop out of the team. Comerford later revealed he had received advance word of this, but not from management.


2009 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship Final, Match summary, First half
An early effort on goal by Kilkenny's Henry Shefflin was blocked by Tipperary goalkeeper Brendan Cummins. Tipperary then entered the lead following a point by Lar Corbett and two frees converted by Eoin Kelly. However, five points were then scored by Kilkenny in quick succession, with Eddie Brennan, Eoin Larkin and Tommy Walsh amongst the scorers. Tipperary's Kelly followed by Lar Corbett twice then scored. Kelly scored his eighth point of the match to give Tipperary the lead seven minutes before half-time. Five of six scores at the end of the first half came from Kilkenny though; amongst the scorers were Shefflin and Brennan. The sides were level in score on seven occasions throughout the first half but by the end it was Kilkenny who led by 0–13 to Tipperary's 0–11.


2009 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship Final, Match summary, Second half
The first notable action of the second half occurred when Kilkenny goalkeeper PJ Ryansaved from a Seamus Callinan effort on goal. Callinan, however, soon scored two points to bring the scores level, with Shane McGrath scoring the point that put Tipperary ahead once again. Ryan soon saved another effort by Tipperary's Kelly and Kilkenny players Shefflin and Hogan scored some more points. Tipperary substitute Benny Dunne was sent off in the 53rd minute for hitting out at Walsh. However Tipperary continued to dominate as Kelly, Noel McGrath and Callinan each scored points to keep their team two points ahead. A controversial penalty awarded against Tipperary was scored by Shefflin and within one minute Martin Comerford on as a substitute consolidated Kilkenny's lead with a second goal. The last points of the match were scored by Eoin Larkin to seal Kilkenny's victory.


2009 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship Final, Trophy presentation
Prior to the final, the GAA stated that the All-Ireland final post-match presentation of the Liam MacCarthy Cup would be returned to the centre of the pitch. The Association were considering a return to the centre of Croke Park for All-Ireland day presentations since the 2008 football decider between Tyrone and Kerry when Kerry's Colm Cooper was jostled by rival supporters as he left the field following the final whistle. From 1999 to 2001, presentations were made in the centre of Croke Park and passed off largely without incident.


2009 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship Final, Trophy presentation
However, a pitch invasion by fans following the 2009 hurling final meant plans to change the style of trophy presentation were cancelled, with Kilkenny captain Michael Fennelly receiving the Liam MacCarthy Cup in the Hogan Stand of Croke Park. GAA President Christy Cooney later spoke of his disappointment about the pitch invasion but indicated that it confirmed his belief that the invasions must stop. He said:


2009 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship Final, Trophy presentation
Despite all pre-match communications, press publicity and big-screen appeals, it was extremely disappointing to see our plans were not realised. Even allowing for all the exuberance and joy of supporters on the day, it was disappointing to see the disregard for the safety of others amongst fans intent on getting on the pitch and ignoring safety appeals.


2009 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship Final, Reaction
Kilkenny manager Brian Cody called the victory "very special", saying it felt "outstanding, terrific". However, he spoke of his annoyance at a question put to him by RTÉ's Marty Morrissey in his post-match interview which questioned the decision-making of the referee when he gave the penalty. While later appearing on Newstalk show Off the Ball, Cody reiterated his irritation with the RTÉ interview and also suggested there was a media "witch-hunt" against Kilkenny hurler Tommy Walsh—"The Tommy Walsh witch-hunt went on and Tommy Walsh rose above everything and proved the kind of player he is".


2009 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship Final, Reaction
Tipperary manager Liam Sheedy said the team could not have done any more, "these lads have done everything I’ve asked of them in last eight months, everything I could possible want them to. So to just come up short is very, very disappointing. We knew we were facing the best team in probably the history of the game".


2009 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship Final, Reaction
Barry O'Brien, the Tipperary County board chairman, said the county would raise the issue of introducing a video referee in future championships "to make sure the decisions are not only the right decisions, but are seen to be the right decisions". Former Offaly hurler Joachim Kelly, in the Irish Examiner, later agreed that video technology would be a good idea. Tipperary goalkeeper Brendan Cummins spoke in the aftermath of how he had appealed to the referee to look at the giant screen in Croke Park before awarding the penalty.


2009 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship Final, Reaction
Diarmuid O'Flynn of the Irish Examiner said the match had been above the "mediocrity" which in his belief had been on show all season during the 125th anniversary of the GAA. Seán Moran of The Irish Times felt it was a "shame" the trophy presentation was spoilt by what he called "the reckless behaviour of some supporters". The Irish Independent, in rating the performances of the teams taking part in the 2009 Senior Hurling Championship, ranked Kilkenny as number one "undisputed champions" and "the greatest team of all time". The Kilkenny People's John Knox claimed Kilkenny had "surviv[ed] the most searching test any team has possibly ever received in Croke Park" and were now "the greatest hurling team ever! ".


2009 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship Final, Reaction
Henry Shefflin and other members of the winning team appeared on The Late Late Show on 11 September 2009.


2009 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship Final, Civic reception
An estimated tens of thousands of fans gathered in Kilkenny city for the team's return the following night, taking photographs and receiving autographs when the team train eventually arrived at approximately 18:00. The Irish Times said "grown men cried and women swooned" as the team exited their train "blinking like astronauts from a space capsule, looking slightly shellshocked – and relieved – to be back". Henry Shefflin said it was "great to be home, back to our own people" and manager Brian Cody said returning to Kilkenny was "one of the highlights" of his experience. Kilkenny's mayor Malcolm Noonan and other politicians, formally dressed for the occasion, greeted the team as their open-top bus arrived at their civic reception held in the city centre. Following this, the team departed for their by now customary meal at Langton's Hotel.


2009 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship Final, Audience ratings
The All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship final was watched on RTÉ Two by 68% of those with televisions, its highest ratings for three years. Viewing figures peaked towards the end of the match. RTÉ.ie recorded 28,076 streams for the minor and senior hurling finals combined. A worldwide audience also watched the match.


2009 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship Final, Awards
The nominations for the 2009 GAA All Stars Awards were announced on 23 September 2009. Henry Shefflin, who had eight previous wins, was nominated for a potential ninth win which would have equalled the record number of wins jointly held by Kilkenny hurler D. J. Carey and Kerry footballer Pat Spillane. Tommy Walsh was nominated for a seventh consecutive year. Tipperary's Eoin Kelly received his sixth nomination. Despite losing the final, Tipperary achieved one more nomination than Kilkenny, and all but two of the team which started the final were included. First-time nominees for the finalists were Pádraic Maher, Paddy Stapleton, James Woodlock, Pat Kerwick, John O'Brien and Noel McGrath of Tipperary and Michael Rice of Kilkenny.


2009 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship Final, Awards
Kilkenny won six All-Star Awards, with Shefflin and Walsh included. Tipperary won four.


2009 All-Ireland Senior Ladies' Football Championship
The 2009 All-Ireland Senior Ladies' Football Championship was held between July 26 and September 27, 2009. Cork were the winners for the fifth season in a row.


2009 All-Ireland Senior Ladies' Football Championship, Fixtures and results, Relegation match
Donegal are relegated to the Intermediate Ladies' Football Championship for 2010.


2009 All-Ireland Senior Ladies' Football Championship Final
The 2009 All-Ireland Senior Ladies' Football Championship Final featured Cork and Dublin. Dublin made their first appearance in the final since 2004. Cork would win their fifth successive All-Ireland title. In a closely contested final, Cork scored four points in the final eight minutes to clinch the title by a single point.


2009 All-Ireland Senior Ladies' Football Championship Final, Teams
Team:1 Elaine Harte2 Rena Buckley3 Angela Walsh4 Geraldine O'Flynn5 Ciara O'Sullivan6 Bríd Stack7 Briege Corkery8 Juliet Murphy9 Norita Kelly10 Nollaig Cleary11 Deirdre O'Reilly12 Amy O'Shea13 Mary O'Connor (c)14 Valerie Mulcahy15 Rhona Buckley


2009 All-Ireland Senior Ladies' Football Championship Final, Teams
Substitutes:Laura McMahon for O'Shea (39)Linda Barrett for Rhona Buckley (42)Mairéad Kelly for O'Connor (51)


2009 All-Ireland Senior Ladies' Football Championship Final, Teams
Team:1 Clíodhna O'Connor2 Avril Cluxton3 Noelle Comyn4 Maria Kavanagh5 Colleen Barrett6 Sorcha Furlong7 Siobhán McGrath8 Denise Masterson (c)9 Niamh McEvoy10 Mary Nevin11 Amy McGuinness12 Elaine Kelly13 Lyndsey Davey14 Sinéad Aherne15 Lindsay Peat


2009 All-Ireland Senior Ladies' Football Championship Final, Teams
Substitutes:L. Kidd for Cluxton (27)N. Hurley for Kelly (39)E. Travers for Barrett (54)K. Flood for McEvoy (56)R. Byrne for Nevin (57)


2009 All-Ireland Under-21 Football Championship
The 2009 All-Ireland Under-21 Football Championship was the 46th staging of the All-Ireland Under-21 Football Championship since its establishment by the Gaelic Athletic Association in 1964.


2009 All-Ireland Under-21 Football Championship
Kerry entered the championship as defending champions, however, they were defeated by Cork in the Munster quarter-final.


2009 All-Ireland Under-21 Football Championship
On 4 May 2009, Cork won the championship following a 1-13 to 2-9 defeat of Down in the All-Ireland final. This was their 11th All-Ireland title overall and their first in two championship seasons.


2009 All-Ireland Under-21 Hurling Championship
The 2009 All-Ireland Under-21 Hurling Championship was the 46th staging of the All-Ireland Under-21 Hurling Championship since its establishment by the Gaelic Athletic Association in 1964. The championship began on 20 May 2009 and ended on 13 September 2009.


2009 All-Ireland Under-21 Hurling Championship
On 13 September 2009, Clare won the championship following a 0-15 to 0-14 defeat of Kilkenny in the All-Ireland final. This was their first All-Ireland title in the under-21 grade.


2009 All-Ireland Under-21 Hurling Championship Final
The 2009 All-Ireland Under-21 Hurling Championship final was a hurling match that was played at Croke Park, Dublin on 13 September 2009 to determine the winners of the 2009 All-Ireland Under-21 Hurling Championship, the 46th 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 Clare of Munster and Kilkenny of Leinster, with Clare winning by 0-15 to 0-14.


2009 All-Ireland Under-21 Hurling Championship Final
The All-Ireland final between Clare and Kilkenny was the first championship meeting between the two sides. Kilkenny were hoping to retain the title and claim their 11th championship. Clare were hoping to win their first All-Ireland title.


2009 All-Ireland Under-21 Hurling Championship Final
Kilkenny started the brighter and scored first through Mark Kelly who tapped over with just a minute on the clock. Clare signalled their intent from that point on and raced into a 0-3 to 0-2 lead with Colin Ryan and Caimin Morey both finding their range early on. Clare built on that early lead and were in control for most of the opening half, with the influential Ryan claiming four further points before the interval to help his side to an 0-8 0-6 half-time lead.


2009 All-Ireland Under-21 Hurling Championship Final
Kilkenny charged out of the blocks in the second half, putting real pressure on Clare by hitting three points without answer from Richie Hogan, James Nolan and Colin Fennelly. With fifteen minutes remaining in the match Kilkenny were ahead by 0-12 to 0-10. Clare dug deep to rally late on, outscoring the Cats by five points to two with John Conlon claiming two superb points to help his side to their first major silverware since winning the minor and senior All-Ireland double in 1997.


2009 All-Ireland Under-21 Hurling Championship Final
Clare's All-Ireland victory was their first. They became the eighth team to win the All-Ireland title and put them in joint sixth position with Wexford and Waterford on the all-time roll of honour.


2009 All-Ireland Under-21 Hurling Championship Final
Kilkenny's defeat was a record-equaling tenth in an All-Ireland final.


2009 All-Pacific-10 Conference football team
The 2009 All-Pacific-10 Conference football team consists of American football players chosen by various organizations for All-Pacific-10 Conference teams for the 2009 Pacific-10 Conference football season. The Oregon Ducks won the conference, posting an 8–1 conference record. Oregon then lost to the Big Ten champion Ohio State Buckeyes in the Rose Bowl 26 to 17. Stanford running back Toby Gerhart was voted Pac-10 Offensive Player of the Year. UCLA defensive tackle Brian Price was voted Pat Tillman Pac-10 Defensive Player of the Year.


2009 All-Pro Team
The 2009 All-Pro Team consists of National Football League (NFL) players named to the Associated Press (AP), Pro Football Writers Association (PFWA), and Sporting News All-Pro teams in the 2009 NFL season. The Associated Press and Sporting News named first and second-team selections. The AP team was selected by a national panel of 50 NFL writers. The Sporting News selection process consisted of a players' poll, making it "The Players' All-Pro Team". The PFWA All-NFL team is based on a poll of its more than 300 members.


2009 All-SEC football team
The 2009 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 2009 Southeastern Conference football season. Coaches could not vote for their own players, making a selection to 11 of the 12 coaches' squads earn one a unanimous selection.


2009 All-SEC football team
The Alabama Crimson Tide won the conference, beating the previous season's conference and national champion Florida Gators, 32 to 13 in the SEC Championship game. Alabama then defeated the Big 12 champion Texas Longhorns in the National Championship game 37 to 21. Alabama led the conference with six consensus first-team All-SEC selections by both the AP and the coaches. Florida was second with five. Alabama featured four on defense, while Florida had four on offense.


2009 All-SEC football team
Alabama running back Mark Ingram Jr., a unanimous selection, won the Heisman Trophy and was voted AP SEC Offensive Player of the Year. Florida quarterback Tim Tebow was a unanimous selection of the conference coaches and was voted the coaches' SEC Offensive Player of the Year. Tebow, who won the Heisman as a sophomore in 2007, was the preseason pick as the AP Offensive Player of the Year. Alabama linebacker Rolando McClain, unanimous, was voted the AP Defensive Player of the Year and won the Butkus Award given to the nation's top linebacker.


2009 All-SEC football team
Tennessee safety Eric Berry, a unanimous selection by AP, was the preseason pick as the AP Defensive Player of the Year and won the Thorpe award given to the nation's top defensive back. Georgia punter Drew Butler, a consensus selection, won the Ray Guy Award given to the nation's top punter. Berry, Butler, and Florida cornerback Joe Haden were unanimous All-American selections. Ingram and McClain missed out on being unanimous All-Americans by one selector.


2009 All-SEC football team
Florida tight end Aaron Hernandez, who won the Mackey Award given to the nation's top tight end, was later convicted of the murder of Odin Lloyd.


2009 All-SEC football team, Key
Bold = Consensus first-team selection by both the coaches and AP


2009 Allan Cup
The 2009 Allan Cup was the 2009 edition of the Canadian National Championship of Senior ice hockey. This tournament marked the 101st year that the Allan Cup has been awarded. The 2009 tournament was hosted by the City of Steinbach, Manitoba and the Steinbach North Stars. The tournament began on April 13, 2009, and ended April 18, 2009. All games were played at the T.G. Smith Centre.


2009 Allan Cup
In the final, the Bentley Generals won their first ever Allan Cup, defeated the Southeast Prairie Thunder 4-3 in double overtime.


2009 Allan Cup, Information
Both Quebec and the Maritime Provinces were not represented at the 2009 Allan Cup. It was the second consecutive year that the Maritimes had been unable to muster together a Senior "AAA" club. Quebec missed the tournament for the first time in recent history due to their only major Senior league being on hiatus that season.


2009 Allan Cup, Information
A new regional grouping was added for 2009, as Northern Ontario was represented by the Thunder Bay Twins who defeated the Kenora Thistles 2-games-to-1. The Southern Ontario region was represented by the Dundas Real McCoys, winner of Major League Hockey, the only league to fully be taking part in this year's Allan Cup.


2009 Allan Cup, Information
This years Allan Cup also featured a rare scenario where the host venue happened to be the home arena for two competing teams. While the Steinbach North Stars were the host team, the Southeast Prairie Thunder also earned a berth in the Allan Cup by defeating the Selkirk Rivermen in provincial playdowns. Saskatchewan was a battle between the 2007 Allan Cup champion Lloydminster Border Kings and the Weyburn Devils, won by Lloydminster.


2009 Allan Cup, Information
The Alberta champions, Bentley Generals, defeated the Fort St. John Flyers, the only team registered in British Columbia, to win the McKenzie Cup and the Pacific seed.


2009 Allianz Suisse Open Gstaad
The 2009 Allianz Suisse Open Gstaad was a tennis tournament played on outdoor red clay courts. It was the 42nd edition of the event known that year as the Allianz Suisse Open Gstaad and was part of the ATP World Tour 250 series of the 2009 ATP World Tour. It took place at the Roy Emerson Arena in Gstaad, Switzerland, from 26 July through 2 August 2009.


2009 Allianz Suisse Open Gstaad, ATP entrants, Other Entrants
The following players received wildcards into the singles main draw


2009 Allianz Suisse Open Gstaad, Finals, Doubles
Marco Chiudinelli /  Michael Lammer defeated  Jaroslav Levinský /  Filip Polášek, 7–5, 6–3.


2009 Allianz Suisse Open Gstaad – Doubles
Jaroslav Levinský and Filip Polášek were the defending champions, but lost in the final to Marco Chiudinelli and Michael Lammer, 7–5, 6–3.


2009 Allianz Suisse Open Gstaad – Singles
Victor Hănescu was the defending champion, but lost in the second round to Florent Serra.


2009 Allianz Suisse Open Gstaad – Singles
Thomaz Bellucci won in the final 6–4, 7–6(7–2), against Andreas Beck.


2009 Allsvenskan
Allsvenskan 2009, part of the 2009 Swedish football season, was the 85th Allsvenskan season played. AIK clinched their first Swedish title since 1998.


2009 Almaty Cup
The 2009 Almaty Cup was a professional tennis tournament played on outdoor hard courts. It was the third edition of the tournament which was part of the 2009 ATP Challenger Tour. It took place in Almaty, Kazakhstan between 24 and 30 August 2009.


2009 Almaty Cup, Singles entrants, Other entrants
The following players received wildcards into the singles main draw:


2009 Almaty Cup, Champions, Doubles
Denys Molchanov /  Yang Tsung-hua def. Pierre-Ludovic Duclos /  Alexey Kedryuk, 4–6, 7–6(5), [11–9]


2009 Almaty Cup – Doubles
Alexandre Krasnoroutskiy and Denys Molchanov were the defending champions, but only Molchanov tried to defend his title. He teamed up with Yang Tsung-hua and they won this tournament, by defeating Pierre-Ludovic Duclos and Alexey Kedryuk 4–6, 7–6(5), [11–9] in the final.


2009 Almaty Cup – Singles
Sebastián Decoud was the defending champion, but he chose to not compete this year. Ivan Sergeyev defeated Dustin Brown 6–3, 5–7, 6–4 in the final.


2009 America East Conference Baseball Tournament
The 2009 America East Conference Baseball Tournament took place from May 21-23 at Pete Sylvester Field in Endicott, New York. The top four regular season finishers of the league's seven teams qualified for the double-elimination tournament. In the championship game, first-seeded Binghamton defeated second-seeded Albany, 16-6, to win its first tournament championship. As a result, Binghamton received the America East's automatic bid to the 2009 NCAA Tournament, the program's first.


2009 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.


2009 America East Conference Baseball Tournament, All-Tournament Team, Most Outstanding Player
Binghamton second baseman Jim Calderone was named Most Outstanding Player.


2009 America East Men's Basketball Tournament
The 2009 America East Men's Basketball Tournament was held from March 6–8 through at SEFCU Arena place on the University at Albany campus. The final was held on March 14 at the Events Center, the home court of the Binghamton Bearcats, who were the highest remaining seed.


2009 America East Men's Basketball Tournament
The Bearcats earned their first ever trip to the NCAA Tournament, and were given the #15 seed in the East Regional. They played Duke in the first round of the Tournament, losing 86–62. Vermont gained a bid to the 2009 College Basketball Invitational, and won in the first round against Wisconsin-Green Bay 76–72, but would lose in the Quarter-Finals against Oregon State by a score of 71–70 in Overtime.


2009 America East Men's Basketball Tournament, Controversy
One month after the SEFCU Arena site was announced, the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference announced that they would be moving their 2009 Men's and Women's Tournament from the Sovereign Bank Arena in Trenton, New Jersey to the Times Union Center in Albany to be played on the same weekend as the America East.


2009 America East Men's Lacrosse Tournament
The 2009 America East Men's Lacrosse Tournament was the 10th edition of the America East Conference Men's Lacrosse Tournament and took place from April 29 to May 2 at the higher seeds home field. The winner of the tournament received the America East Conference's automatic bid to the 2009 NCAA Division I Men's Lacrosse Championship. Four teams from the America East conference will compete in the single elimination tournament. The seeds were based upon the teams' regular season conference record.


2009 America East Men's Lacrosse Tournament, Standings
Only the top four teams in the America East conference advanced to the America East Conference Tournament.


2009 American Express – TED Open
The 2009 American Express – TED Open was a professional tennis tournament played on outdoor hard courts. It was part of the 2009 ATP Challenger Tour. It took place in Istanbul, Turkey between 10 and 16 August 2009.


2009 American Express – TED Open, Singles entrants, Other entrants
The following players received wildcards into the singles main draw:


2009 American Express – TED Open, Champions, Doubles
Frederico Gil /  Filip Prpic def. Grigor Dimitrov /  Marsel İlhan, 3–6, 6–2, [10–6]


2009 American Express – TED Open – Doubles
Frederico Gil and Filip Prpic became the new champions, after defeating Grigor Dimitrov and Marsel İlhan 3–6, 6–2, [10–6] in the final.


2009 American Express – TED Open – Singles
Frederico Gil was the defending champion, but he lost to Florian Mayer in the semifinal. Illya Marchenko defeated Florian Mayer 6–4, 6–4 in the final.


2009 American Indoor Football Association season
The 2009 American Indoor Football Association season is the league's fifth overall season. The regular season began on Saturday, March 7 and ended on Monday, July 7. The league champion was decided on Sunday, July 26 as the Reading Express won AIFA Championship Bowl III. Prior to the regular season, the league held an exhibition game in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania called the AIFA Kickoff Classic.


2009 American Le Mans Series
The 2009 American Le Mans Series season was the 39th season for the IMSA GT Championship, with it being the eleventh season with the American Le Mans Series moniker. It began on March 21, 2009, and ended on October 10, 2009 after ten events. The series was composed of Le Mans Prototypes (LMP) and Grand Tourer (GT) race cars divided into four classes: LMP1, LMP2, GT1, and GT2. A fifth category, known as the Challenge class, was also added for select races and featured Porsche 997 GT3 Cup cars from the IMSA GT3 Cup Challenge. 2009 was also the final year for GT1, with Corvette Racing abandoning the class after Long Beach and switching over to much more competitive GT2 (renamed GT) class.


2009 American Le Mans Series
This was the first time that the Michelin Green X Challenge championship was used throughout a full ALMS season after its initial introduction at the 2008 Petit Le Mans. Two champions were determined by the entry which is the most efficient over the season within the LMP and GT categories.


2009 American Le Mans Series
Patrón Highcroft Racing duo David Brabham and Scott Sharp won the main LMP1 standings, holding off De Ferran Motorsports pairing Gil de Ferran and Simon Pagenaud at the final round of the season at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca. Adrián Fernández and Luis Díaz won the LMP2 title, in the final season of Fernández Racing, who closed at the end of the 2009 season. In GT2, Flying Lizard Motorsports' Patrick Long and Jörg Bergmeister won six races en route to the championship title. Husband-and-wife Martin and Melanie Snow won the inaugural GT Challenge class title, that ran at half of the season's ten races.


2009 American Le Mans Series, Schedule
The 2009 schedule remained mostly identical to the 2008 schedule, although the season was shortened in length. This was done to allow teams from the American Le Mans Series to participate in events for the new Asian Le Mans Series in November. On December 18, 2008, it was announced that the Detroit race would be canceled.


2009 American Le Mans Series, Schedule
The Challenge class of cars only participated in five rounds in 2009: Utah, Lime Rock, Mid-Ohio, Road America, and Laguna Seca.


2009 American Le Mans Series, Season results
Note that the GT1 class only competed in two rounds. Johnny O'Connell, Jan Magnussen, and Antonio García won the 12 Hours of Sebring for Corvette Racing, while Oliver Gavin and Olivier Beretta won for Corvette at Long Beach.


2009 American Le Mans Series, Championships
Points were awarded to the top ten cars and drivers which either finish the race or complete 70% of the winner's distance, except in the ALMS Challenge category where cars and drivers only have to complete 50% of their class winner's distance. Teams with multiple entries only scored the points of their highest finishing entry in each race. Drivers were required to drive a minimum of 45 minutes to earn points, except for the Long Beach event which required only 30 minutes. The GT1 category was only used for two events and no championships were awarded in that category.


2009 American Le Mans Series, Championships, Team championships
Teams with full entries were awarded points in the team championships. Teams which participated in partial season or on a race by race basis were not counted as part of the championship.


2009 American Le Mans Series, Championships, Team championships, ALMS Challenge standings
Gruppe Orange tied on points for the ALMS Challenge Team Championship, but Snow Racing broke the tie by having three wins over the season compared to Gruppe Orange's one.


2009 American Le Mans Series, Championships, Driver championships
Drivers who participated in races but failed to score points over the course of the season are not listed.


2009 American Le Mans Series, Championships, Driver championships, ALMS Challenge standings
Driver points were awarded collectively, with all the drivers who have driven for a team being awarded the same number of points.


2009 American Le Mans Series at Long Beach
The 2009 Tequila Patrón American Le Mans Series at Long Beach was the third round of the 2009 American Le Mans Series season. It took place at the Long Beach street circuit, California on April 18, 2009.


2009 American Le Mans Series at Long Beach
The de Ferran Motorsports Acura team earned their first victory in the series, leading the Highcroft Racing Acura to the finish. Fernández Racing Acura also won the LMP2 category for their third straight race while the #4 Chevrolet Corvette of Oliver Gavin and Olivier Beretta won Corvette Racing's final appearance in the GT1 category in the American Le Mans Series. Flying Lizard Motorsports won their second straight GT2 class victory after early leader Farnbacher-Loles suffered a suspension failure on circuit.


2009 American Le Mans Series at Long Beach, Report, Qualifying, Qualifying result
Pole position winners in each class are marked in bold.


2009 American Le Mans Series at Long Beach, Report, Qualifying, Qualifying result
† – The #62 Risi Competizione Ferrari's times were not allowed as the car failed post-qualifying inspection due to being below the minimum ride height.


2009 American Le Mans Series at Long Beach, Report, Race, Race results
Class winners in bold. Cars failing to complete 70% of winner's distance marked as Not Classified (NC).


2009 American League Central tie-breaker game
The 2009 American League Central tie-breaker game was a one-game extension to Major League Baseball's (MLB) 2009 regular season, played between the Detroit Tigers and Minnesota Twins to determine the champion of the American League's (AL) Central Division. It was played at the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome in Minneapolis, Minnesota, on October 6, 2009. The Twins won the game 6–5 in 12 innings and advanced to the 2009 AL Division Series where they were swept by the New York Yankees; the Tigers failed to qualify for the postseason.


2009 American League Central tie-breaker game
A tie-breaker was necessary after both teams finished the season with identical win–loss records of 86–76. The Twins, who had won the regular season series against the Tigers, 11 games to 7, were thus awarded home field due to a rules change prior to the 2009 season. It was the third tie-breaker played in MLB from 2007–2009. It was also the second consecutive tiebreaker for the AL Central title after 2008, when the Chicago White Sox defeated the Twins to win the division.


2009 American League Central tie-breaker game
The Twins became the first (and, as of the 2020 season, only) MLB team to contest tie-breaker games of any sort (divisional and/or wild card) in consecutive seasons. The tie-breaker is counted as the 163rd regular season game played by both teams and all events in the game are added to regular season statistics. This was the Twins' final regular season game at the Metrodome as the team moved to Target Field for the 2010 season. The tie-breaker was later named the Best Regular-Season Game of the Decade by Sports Illustrated.


2009 American League Central tie-breaker game, Background
The Tigers led the AL Central for periods at the start of the season in April, ultimately tying for the lead on May 10 and taking the lead outright on May 16. The Tigers held at least a share of the divisional lead from then onwards, holding their largest lead of 7 games on September 6. Although the Tigers went 16–12 in September, their second-best month by winning percentage in 2009, they won just 1 of 4 games in October.


2009 American League Central tie-breaker game, Background
The Twins went 16–11 and 4–0, respectively, over this same stretch to tie the Tigers for the divisional lead after the 162-game regular season. More broadly, the Tigers were 48–39 over the first half of the season while the Twins were 45–44 but the Twins came back in the second half going 41–32 leading up to the tie-breaker while the Tigers went 38–37 over the same span. The Twins won 11 of the two teams' 18 match-ups that season prior to the tie-breaker.


2009 American League Central tie-breaker game, Background
This late-season competition for the AL Central title included a four-game series between the two teams from September 29 to October 1. The series, played at the Tigers' home field Comerica Park, started with a day-night doubleheader caused by a rainout the night before when the series was scheduled to start. The final game of the series featured moments of contention between the two teams. In the third inning, Nate Robertson hit Denard Span. Minnesota starter Scott Baker hit Marcus Thames with a pitch the next inning.


2009 American League Central tie-breaker game, Background
Thames responded by sliding hard into second base to break up a potential double play that inning. Twins' reliever Jose Mijares then threw behind the Tigers' Adam Everett in the eighth inning. Umpire Angel Hernandez warned Mijares and the Tigers bench, Tigers' manager Jim Leyland argued with Hernandez, and he was ejected. Despite the warning Minnesota's Delmon Young was hit in the knee with the first pitch in the ninth inning by Jeremy Bonderman. Bonderman was immediately ejected as was Tigers' catcher Gerald Laird who argued with Hernandez and the benches cleared, though there was no brawl. Bonderman was suspended for three games, and Tigers' hitting coach Lloyd McClendon—who had been acting as manager following Leyland's ejection—was suspended for a game. McClendon, Leyland, and Laird were all fined.


2009 American League Central tie-breaker game, Background
Ultimately, the four-game series was split with two wins for each team, and the Tigers maintained a two-game lead with three games remaining for each club. The Tigers lost two of their next three games to the Chicago White Sox, whereas the Twins swept the Kansas City Royals in a three-game series leaving both teams tied with an 86–76 record. A tiebreaker game would decide the winner of the Central division while the loser would be eliminated from playoff contention.


2009 American League Central tie-breaker game, Background
Prior to the 2009 season, home field advantage in a tiebreaker game was decided by a series of coin tosses held towards the end of the regular season that would decide the home teams of all possible tiebreakers. A rule change following the 2008 season altered this process, leaving the site determined on a series of performance-based criteria beginning with the head-to-head record between the two teams that were tied. Therefore, the Twins took home-field advantage in this game, by virtue of winning the season series against the Tigers 11–7. The game was the third MLB tie-breaker in as many seasons, a record number for the league.


2009 American League Central tie-breaker game, Background
While October 5 had been the original scheduled date for a potential tiebreaker game, a scheduling conflict with the Minnesota Vikings, who were co-tenants of the Metrodome with the Twins, resulted in the tiebreaker game being moved a day later to October 6.


2009 American League Central tie-breaker game, Game summary
The game was scoreless through the first two innings. Detroit took a three-run lead in the third inning which started when Curtis Granderson walked, advanced on a ground out, and scored on a single by Magglio Ordóñez to center field. Ordóñez was then brought home via a two-run home run by Tigers' first baseman Miguel Cabrera. The Twins responded in the bottom of the inning, with Matt Tolbert singling to lead off the inning, advancing to second base on a single by Denard Span, and then moving to third on a flyball out. Tigers' starter Rick Porcello attempted a pickoff throw to first which hit the baserunner Span and went past the first baseman Cabrera. Span was out but Tolbert was able to score on Porcello's throwing error.


2009 American League Central tie-breaker game, Game summary
The score remained 3–1 until the bottom of the 6th inning. Porcello got the first two batters of the inning out but then allowed a home run to Jason Kubel to bring the game within one run. Porcello then walked the next batter, Michael Cuddyer, and was relieved by Zach Miner. The Twins loaded the bases against Miner, but did not score again in the inning. Scott Baker, the Twins' starter, walked the first batter of the 7th and was relieved by Jon Rauch though no runs scored.


2009 American League Central tie-breaker game, Game summary
The Twins took a 4–3 lead in the bottom of the 7th with a leadoff single by Nick Punto and a two-run home run by Orlando Cabrera. The Tigers responded, tying the game at 4 with a home run by Ordóñez in the top of the 8th off of Matt Guerrier. Guerrier allowed another two walks in the inning and was relieved by closer Joe Nathan who escaped the inning with no further scoring.


2009 American League Central tie-breaker game, Game summary
Nathan remained in the game, holding the Tigers scoreless in the 9th, while Tigers' closer Fernando Rodney did the same to Minnesota to force extra innings. Jesse Crain replaced Nathan in the top of the 10th and hit Aubrey Huff who was pinch hitting for Wilkin Ramirez. Don Kelly then pinch ran for Huff, and scored on a double by Brandon Inge to give the Tigers a 5–4 lead. The Tigers inserted Clete Thomas for Ordóñez in right field as a defensive replacement in the bottom of the 10th.


2009 American League Central tie-breaker game, Game summary
However the Twins retied the game at 5–5 as Cuddyer led off the inning with a triple and, following a Delmon Young groundout and a walk to Brendan Harris, scored on a single by Tolbert. Alexi Casilla pinch-ran for Harris and advanced to third on Tolbert's single. Nick Punto then hit a fly ball to left-fielder Ryan Raburn. Casilla attempted to score on the play, but inadvertently inched off the base before the ball was caught, and had to return to the base before breaking for home. Catcher Gerald Laird successfully tagged out Casilla to complete the inning-ending double play.


2009 American League Central tie-breaker game, Game summary
Both teams were held scoreless in the 11th. The Tigers threatened to score in the top of the 12th, with a walk by Cabrera and a single by Kelly with one out. Twins pitcher Bobby Keppel then intentionally walked Raburn to load the bases, hoping he could induce a double play. Then, Keppel threw a fastball close to batter Brandon Inge with his first pitch.


2009 American League Central tie-breaker game, Game summary
Inge believed he was hit by the ball and should advance to first, which would force a go-ahead run to score with the bases loaded, but home plate umpire Randy Marsh ruled the pitch did not hit Inge and allowed the at-bat to continue. Tigers' manager Jim Leyland would say later that "the replay kind of confirms that it did hit him," but Marsh maintained that replays were "inconclusive." Inge ultimately grounded into a force out at home and Laird would strikeout to close the top of the inning with no scoring.


2009 American League Central tie-breaker game, Game summary
Carlos Gómez led off the bottom of the 12th with a single for the Twins and advanced to second on a ground-out. With first base open, the Tigers intentionally walked Delmon Young to bring up Casilla. Casilla atoned for his earlier base-running blunder by hitting a ground ball through the right side of the infield. The base hit allowed the speedy Gomez to score from second without a play, thus giving the Twins a 6–5 walk-off victory.


2009 American League Central tie-breaker game, Aftermath
The tie-breaker win clinched the American League Central for the Twins and earned them a spot in the ALDS, in which they were swept by the New York Yankees in three games. The Tigers became the first team in MLB history to have a three-game division lead with four games remaining and lose the division.


2009 American League Central tie-breaker game, Aftermath
MLB tie-breaker games count as regular season games and this game affected certain statistical races for the 2009 season. For example, Jason Beck of MLB.com noted that if the umpire agreed with Brandon Inge on the contentious 12th inning call Inge would have tied for the most hit by a pitch in the American League. Twins' catcher Joe Mauer won the 2009 American League batting title, and his final batting average for the season moved from .364 to .365 in the game.


2009 American League Central tie-breaker game, Aftermath
The game was later chosen by Sports Illustrated as the Best Regular-Season Game of the Decade.


2009 American League Championship Series
The 2009 American League Championship Series (ALCS), the second round of the 2009 American League playoffs, was a best-of-seven game series matching the two winners of the 2009 American League Division Series. The AL East Division champions, the New York Yankees, defeated the AL West Division champions, the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, four games to two, to advance to the 2009 World Series, their first since 2003. This was the third time that these two teams faced each other in the playoffs. They met in the 2002 ALDS and 2005 ALDS with the Angels winning both series by 3–1 and 3–2.


2009 American League Championship Series
The Yankees held home-field advantage because they had a better regular-season record than Los Angeles Angels. The series, the 39th in league history, began on October 16 and ended on October 25. Fox Sports carried all games with Joe Buck and Tim McCarver in the broadcast booth. Starting with the 2009 season, weeknight games began 40 minutes earlier as suggested by Commissioner Bud Selig.


2009 American League Championship Series
The Yankees won the series four games to two, and went on to defeat the Philadelphia Phillies 4–2 in the World Series.


2009 American League Championship Series, Summary, New York Yankees vs. Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim
† Game 6 was originally scheduled to be played on Saturday, October 24, but was postponed because of rain.


2009 American League Championship Series, Game summaries, Game 1
Friday, October 16, 2009 — 7:57 PM (ET) at Yankee Stadium in the Bronx, New York


2009 American League Championship Series, Game summaries, Game 1
On a blustery night where the official game time temperature was 45 °F (7 °C), starter CC Sabathia limited the Angels to one run on four hits and a walk in eight innings, striking out seven in a 4–1 Yankee win.


2009 American League Championship Series, Game summaries, Game 1
The Yankees staked Sabathia to a 2–0 lead in the bottom of the first on an Alex Rodriguez sacrifice fly and an unusual RBI infield single from Hideki Matsui. Matsui hit a short popup to the left side of the infield, but there was a miscommunication between third baseman Chone Figgins and shortstop Erick Aybar and the ball fell in for a single, enabling Johnny Damon to score from second.


2009 American League Championship Series, Game summaries, Game 1
Vladimir Guerrero set up the Angels' only run in the top of the fourth, hitting a high fly ball to deep left field that looked to be a home run but bounced in front of the fence for a double instead, possibly due to the windy conditions. Guerrero scored two batters later on Kendrys Morales' single. The Yankees added a run in the fifth on Matsui's second run-scoring single of the night, and a pair of Angels errors led to New York's fourth run in the sixth. After reaching base on a walk, Melky Cabrera advanced to second on John Lackey's errant pickoff attempt. Derek Jeter then singled up the middle, but Torii Hunter overran the ball, allowing Cabrera to score without a play at the plate.


2009 American League Championship Series, Game summaries, Game 1
Mariano Rivera pitched the ninth, recording his 36th career postseason save.


2009 American League Championship Series, Game summaries, Game 2
Saturday, October 17, 2009 — 7:57 PM (ET) at Yankee Stadium in the Bronx, New York


2009 American League Championship Series, Game summaries, Game 2
Once again, the Yankees struck first in the second inning. After Nick Swisher worked a two-out walk—his first in this postseason—Robinson Canó hit his first career postseason triple to deep right-center field to score Swisher. In the bottom of the third, Derek Jeter hit a solo home run to right field to give the Yankees a 2–0 advantage. The Angels fought back in the fifth. After Maicer Izturis hit a leadoff ground rule double to right field, Erick Aybar's one-out single brought Izturis home to cut the lead in half.


2009 American League Championship Series, Game summaries, Game 2
Later in the inning, New York starter A. J. Burnett's bases-loaded wild pitch caused the game to be tied at two. Both teams threatened multiple times in the ensuing innings, but neither scored and the game was sent to extra innings. In the top half of the 11th, Gary Matthews, Jr. drew a walk off Yankees reliever Alfredo Aceves, advanced to second on a sacrifice bunt by Erick Aybar, and scored on an RBI single by Chone Figgins. At this point, the weather took a turn for the worse, which included rain and snow falling, but the Yankees battled back.


2009 American League Championship Series, Game summaries, Game 2
In the bottom half of the frame, Alex Rodriguez tied the game with a leadoff home run off Angels closer Brian Fuentes. Then, in the 13th inning, Melky Cabrera managed to reach on an error committed by Izturis, consequently driving in the winning run. Izturis had the option of throwing to first for the second out, but instead attempted a tough throw to get the force at second for a potential double play, completely missing shortstop Aybar. Figgins, who was backing up the play, came up with the ball in an attempt to get the play at the plate but it slipped out of his hand. Jerry Hairston, Jr., who had reached on a single to start the inning, came around to score on that error.


2009 American League Championship Series, Game summaries, Game 2
Alex Rodriguez's 11th-inning home run was his second late-inning game-tying home run in this postseason. Both were off the opposing team's closer (the Minnesota Twins' Joe Nathan, in ALDS Game 2).


2009 American League Championship Series, Game summaries, Game 3
Monday, October 19, 2009 — 4:13 PM (ET) at Angel Stadium of Anaheim in Anaheim, California


2009 American League Championship Series, Game summaries, Game 3
For the third game in a row the Yankees scored first, this time on Derek Jeter's leadoff home run off Angels starter Jered Weaver. They extended their lead on solo home runs by Alex Rodriguez in the fourth inning and Johnny Damon in the fifth, both off Weaver. Yankees starter Andy Pettitte held the Angels scoreless until the fifth inning, when he yielded a solo home run to Howie Kendrick in the fifth. The next inning, Vladimir Guerrero hit a two-run home run, also off Pettitte, to tie the game. The Angels took the lead in the seventh, thanks to Kendrick's one-out triple and Maicer Izturis' sacrifice fly, both off Joba Chamberlain. However, a Jorge Posada solo home run off Kevin Jepsen—the sixth in the game—tied it again in the eighth.


2009 American League Championship Series, Game summaries, Game 3
Another Angels' gaffe proved costly. In the eighth inning Abreu led off with a double but attempted to stretch it into a triple. An alert Jeter called for the ball at second and tossed to Mark Teixeira who was covering second, since Robinson Canó was in the outfield, to tag Abreu for the out.


2009 American League Championship Series, Game summaries, Game 3
For the second consecutive time in the series, the Yankees and Angels played extra innings. The Angels loaded the bases with one out in the tenth inning against Mariano Rivera, but were unable to score. In the bottom of the 11th inning, Yankees pitcher David Robertson retired the two Angels batters he faced and was one out away from forcing a 12th inning when manager Joe Girardi replaced him with Alfredo Aceves, a decision that would later be criticized by the New York media.


2009 American League Championship Series, Game summaries, Game 3
Aceves, who yielded a go-ahead run to the Angels in the 11th inning of Game 2 that was later erased by Rodriguez' home run, yielded a single to Kendrick on a 3–1 count. Jeff Mathis, the Angels' backup catcher who was inserted into the game in the eighth inning, followed with a double to deep left field, scoring Kendrick from first and winning the game in a walk-off.


2009 American League Championship Series, Game summaries, Game 4
Tuesday, October 20, 2009 — 7:57 PM (ET) at Angel Stadium of Anaheim in Anaheim, California


2009 American League Championship Series, Game summaries, Game 4
Yankees ace CC Sabathia started Game 4 on three days' rest, which proved to be no problem, as he pitched eight strong innings, allowing only one earned run on a home run by Kendrys Morales in the fifth, five hits, and two walks, while striking out five. For the fourth straight game in the series the Yankees scored first. With runners on second and third and one out, Robinson Cano hit into a fielder's choice to score Alex Rodriguez. After a walk loaded the bases, Melky Cabrera's two-run single made it 3–0 Yankees.


2009 American League Championship Series, Game summaries, Game 4
Next inning, Mark Teixeira hit a leadoff single and Angels' starter Scott Kazmir was relieved by Jason Bulger, who allowed a two-run home run to Rodriguez, tying a postseason record set by Lou Gehrig and Ryan Howard for recording an RBI in eight consecutive games. In the eighth, Cabrera walked off of Ervin Santana who was relieved by Matt Palmer. Johnny Damon's home run made it 7–1 Yankees. Rodriguez doubled to lead off the ninth and scored on Jorge Posada's sacrifice fly.


2009 American League Championship Series, Game summaries, Game 4
One out later, Robinson Cano walked and Brett Gardner singled before both scored on a double by Cabrera, giving him four RBIs. Chad Gaudin relieved Sabathia in the bottom of the ninth and retired the Angels in order as the Yankees were one win away from their first World Series since 2003. The game included three controversial calls by the umpiring crew that third base umpire and crew chief Tim McClelland—who made two of the three calls in question—admitted were in error, drawing more attention to the argument for instant replay in baseball.


2009 American League Championship Series, Game summaries, Game 5
Thursday, October 22, 2009 — 7:57 PM (ET) at Angel Stadium of Anaheim in Anaheim, California


2009 American League Championship Series, Game summaries, Game 5
Unlike the previous four games, this time the Angels scored first. With Chone Figgins on third base and Bobby Abreu on first, Torii Hunter singled to center field, scoring both Figgins and Abreu. Hunter then scored on an RBI double by Vladimir Guerrero, followed by a Kendrys Morales RBI single that scored Guerrero from second. All this was done before the first out was recorded. From that point on, neither starter—John Lackey for the Angels and A. J. Burnett for the Yankees—allowed a run until the seventh inning.


2009 American League Championship Series, Game summaries, Game 5
In the top half of that inning, Lackey worked into a bases-loaded jam with two outs when manager Mike Scioscia replaced him with Darren Oliver. Mark Teixeira connected with Oliver's first pitch for a double that scored all three inherited runners—Melky Cabrera, Jorge Posada, and Derek Jeter. After an intentional walk to Alex Rodriguez, Hideki Matsui singled, scoring Teixeira and tying the game. Oliver was replaced with Kevin Jepsen, who yielded a triple to Robinson Canó that scored Rodriguez and Matsui, giving the Yankees a two-run lead.


2009 American League Championship Series, Game summaries, Game 5
In the bottom half of the seventh, Abreu hit an RBI groundout that scored Jeff Mathis from third. Hunter then drew a walk, followed by a Guerrero single that scored Erick Aybar, and a Morales single that scored Hunter, giving the Angels a one-run lead. The Yankees threatened Angels closer Brian Fuentes in the ninth inning. With two outs, Fuentes loaded the bases, but Nick Swisher popped out to end the game.


2009 American League Championship Series, Game summaries, Game 6
Sunday, October 25, 2009 — 8:20 PM (ET) at Yankee Stadium in Bronx, New York


2009 American League Championship Series, Game summaries, Game 6
Game 6 was originally scheduled to be played on Saturday, October 24, but was postponed because of rain. Angels gaffes once again proved costly. In the top of the second, baserunner Vladimir Guerrero ran too far from first base on a fly ball out and was doubled off. The game remained scoreless until the top of the third inning when Bobby Abreu singled home Jeff Mathis, who singled to lead off and moved to second on a groundout, to give the Angels the early lead.


2009 American League Championship Series, Game summaries, Game 6
The Yankees left six men on base in the first and second innings before they finally broke through in the bottom of the fourth after Johnny Damon lined a two-run single with the bases loaded off of Joe Saunders to give them the lead for the remainder of the game. A single reloaded the bases before Alex Rodriguez walked to force in another run. Saunders was then removed in favor of Darren Oliver, who pitched 2+2⁄3 shutout innings. This remains to date the Angels last post-season victory.


2009 American League Championship Series, Game summaries, Game 6
Andy Pettitte pitched a strong game, allowing one run in 6+1⁄3 innings while striking out six. Mariano Rivera entered the game in the eighth inning for a six-out save. Chone Figgins hit a leadoff single in the eighth, moved to second on a groundout and scored on a Guerrero single with two outs to close the gap to 3–2. In the bottom of the eighth, Robinson Cano drew a leadoff walk off of Ervin Santana, who was relieved by Scott Kazmir.


2009 American League Championship Series, Game summaries, Game 6
The Angels misfielded two sacrifice bunts by the Yankees, a fielding error by Howie Kendrick and a throwing error by pitcher Scott Kazmir, allowing a run to score. A walk loaded the bases before Mark Teixeira's sacrifice fly made it 5–2 Yankees. Rivera retired the side in the ninth to record the Yankees' 40th American League pennant.


2009 American League Championship Series, Game summaries, Composite box
2009 ALCS (4–2): New York Yankees over Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim


2009 American League Championship Series, Aftermath
The Yankees finished off the job, beating the Philadelphia Phillies in World Series in six games. It was the fifth overall ring for the Core Four era Yankees (fourth for Posada who was left off the playoff roster in 1996) and the first for star players such as Alex Rodriguez, CC Sabathia, and Hideki Matsui. It was the team’s 27th World Series and their last to date.


2009 American League Championship Series, Aftermath
In regards to Matusi, on December 16, 2009, the 2009 World Series MVP agreed to a one-year deal with the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim worth $6.5 million. Matusi told Yomiuri Shimbun that he "loved the Yankees the best" but that he no longer felt valued and when his agent called to negotiate, "The Yankees had nothing prepared [in terms of contract conditions]." He made up his mind to sign with the Angels quickly. "I really felt their high expectations of me," he said. On April 13, 2010, Matusi returned to Yankee Stadium as a member of the Angels and received his championship ring and a long standing ovation.


2009 American League Championship Series, Aftermath
The 2009 American League Championship Series marked the end of the most successful era in Angels franchise history. From 2002-2009, they made six postseason appearances, which was highlighted by the by team winning the 2002 American League pennant and World Series. Before 2002, they had been to the postseason just three times in franchise history (1979, 1982, and 1986), never winning a postseason series. From 2010-2020, the Angels made the postseason just once (in 2014) and have not been back to an American Championship League Series since 2009.


2009 American League Division Series
The 2009 American League Division Series (ALDS) consisted of two concurrent best-of-five game series that determined the participating teams in the 2009 American League Championship Series. Three divisional winners and a "wild card" team played in the two series. The ALDS began on Wednesday, October 7 and ended on Sunday, October 11. The matchups were:


2009 American League Division Series
The Twins and Detroit Tigers finished the 162-game schedule in a first-place tie atop the American League Central and played a one-game playoff at the Metrodome on Tuesday, October 6 that was won by the Twins, 6–5, in 12 innings, giving them the division championship and a postseason berth.


2009 American League Division Series
The Yankees, by virtue of finishing with the best record in the American League, were given the choice of playing an eight-day series (with three off-days) or a seven-day series (with two off-days) and opted for the former.


2009 American League Division Series
This is the third consecutive season—and the fourth since 2004—that the Angels and Red Sox have met in the ALDS. The Red Sox swept the Angels in 2004 and 2007, and defeated the Angels 3–1 in 2008. The Twins and Yankees last met in the postseason in the 2004 ALDS, which the Yankees won 3–1.


2009 American League Division Series
The Angels and Yankees each swept their respective series in three games. Since the advent of division series play in 1995, this was the first time that the winners of both divisional series swept their opponents (Royals and Orioles swept both of their ALDS series in 2014, defeating the Angels and Tigers respectively). The Yankees went on to defeat the Angels 4–2 in the ALCS, and defeated the Philadelphia Phillies 4–2 to win the 2009 World Series.


2009 American League Division Series
Game 3 of the Twins–Yankees series was the final Major League Baseball game at the Metrodome, as the Twins moved into their new home stadium, Target Field, starting with the 2010 season.


2009 American League Division Series
TBS carried the tie breaker game and also televised all Division Series games in the United States.


2009 American League Division Series, New York vs. Minnesota, Game 1
6:07 p.m. (ET) at Yankee Stadium in the Bronx, New York


2009 American League Division Series, New York vs. Minnesota, Game 1
In the first postseason game at the new Yankee Stadium, the Yankees rebounded from an early 2–0 deficit to take the first game of the series, 7–2, behind a strong outing from CC Sabathia and timely hitting by Derek Jeter, Nick Swisher, Alex Rodriguez, and Hideki Matsui. The Twins opened the scoring in the third by stringing together three consecutive two-out hits, including an RBI single by Michael Cuddyer. One batter later, a passed ball by Jorge Posada enabled Joe Mauer to score from third, giving the Twins a 2–0 lead.