[Archived] Motd

[Hughesy]

Didnt watch it - but did they show the foul on Mame in the 1st half which looked like a penalty from the BBE?

The ref was crap on saturday - he should have sent off Schwarzer & he should have disallowed our goal...however he should have also given us a penalty for the headlock on Kalinic.

The BBC dont care about little old Blackburn!

[LeChuck]

Do people still watch Match of the Day? It's about as relevant these days as Football Focus.

I refuse to pay for subscription television as I don't watch it enough to justify the cost, so it's still my primary source for watching a round-up of PL action.

My main complaint is that it's on too late, like a lot of people I'm usually out elsewhere at that time on Saturday night, meaning I tend to watch MOTD2 a lot more. I think it'd be better if it started somewhere between 8-9pm.

If I miss both then I'll go on websites that show the goals, but they're nowhere near as enjoyable as MOTD, even in its poor state.

[Anti-Dingle-Brigade]

Hughesy, I've switched to the Darwen End so I got a perfect view of the challenge on M. Diouf, it was not a penalty, it was a good tackle. He got a good toe on the ball long before Diouf fell over him.

[DE.]

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/competitions/premier-league/8012152/Alan-Shearer-a-television-pundit-More-like-a-large-well-paid-child.html

One of the truisms about our world is that it is filled with things Alan Shearer knows nothing about: glaciers, DNA, the Middle East peace process. But you rather hoped Newcastle's new star signing wouldn't be one of them.

Assuming Shearer can operate a personal computer (don't head it, Alan, use your hands), and assuming he hasn't gnawed through his one working telephone line, here are a few facts he could have pulled off Wikipedia about Hatem Ben Arfa:

1) He played for France at every youth level before making his full debut three years ago.

2) He made his Champions League debut for Lyon against Manchester United before signing for Marseille for €11 million.

3) Nobody knows his real name; upon leaving a football ground he dons a long black cloak and simply dissolves into the night.

Actually, I just made the last one up, but for Shearer's purposes it might as well be true.

You may, or may not, have heard of Ben Arfa before he moved here, but then you aren't paid to talk about him on television.

"No one really knows a great deal of him," Shearer asserted confidently as he introduced highlights of Ben Arfa's performance against Everton.

It was an astonishingly deficient piece of analysis, for which his earlier golden nugget of insight – "It's weird seeing Birmingham wear red, isn't it?" – curiously failed to atone.

Perhaps it was just the strain of having to maintain two separate hairstyles, best described as

'Yul Brynner' at the front and 'Weetabix' at the back.

Unless Shearer comes to terms with his receding hairline, before long he's going to be the owner of the world's largest forehead.

Being Shearer must be a strange experience indeed. Clearly, on some level, he is able to perceive certain things.

He is aware that there is a white ball on a screen and that men in coloured clothing are running after it, and he is also vaguely aware that he is expected to comment on this.

But when he tries, his sentences are invariably dim and childlike: "they should have went on and won that game"; "everyone done their job, and they done it very well"; "they should have went two-nil up".

In fact, the easiest explanation is that Shearer is simply a very large, very well-paid child who is somehow directed every Saturday night to a sofa and filmed for television.

The mere act of a team wearing their third kit is enough to put a kink in his sense of reality.Of course, television in general is stuffed to the last pixel with the inane, the irksome and the plain contemptible. But in most cases, we can choose not to watch them.

With football coverage, our sense of grievance is amplified. This is purely because we are compelled to drill through the deadening husk of the studio segments in order to get what we actually came for – the creamy footballing kernels buried within.

And somehow, Match of the Day vexes us most of all. Rightfully, we hold it to a higher standard. After a lacklustre few years, there were green shoots of resuscitation.

Alan Hansen's evisceration of Arsenal's Theo Walcott after he had scored a hat-trick against Blackpool was brazen, persuasive, deliciously controversial. But the large, imbecilic dent Shearer continues to etch in the Match of the Day sofa reminds us that this is a programme that it simply not what it used to be.

Even the cherished Goal of the Month competition has been warped and defiled beyond measure.

There's no prize – not even premium bonds – and the jaunty The Life of Riley that used to be its soundtrack has long gone, replaced this season by some execrable piece of music that manages simultaneously to channel late-1990s dancehall and a young woman being tickled to death.

Yet it also serves as a reminder of why we keep tuning in every week – great goals, pulsating action and gripping narrative.

The highlight of Saturday's programme occurred not in the studio, but at the Stadium of Light.

Darren Bent's last-gasp winner hit the net, and as 38,000 Wearsiders roared in delight, on the touchline could be glimpsed the glowering, contorted visage of a furious Arsène Wenger.

It was one of those glorious tableaux of drama and disaster that only sport can bestow.

Or as Shearer might put it: "It done great."

[Guest bluerovers]

Yep, far more than anything else relating to the Premiership.

Latest viewing figures available (end of August), MotD had 4.04m viewers and was the 47th most watched programme on all on British tv (25th if you only count 1 episode of the soaps / each news broadcast).

For comparison, Sky managed 3.955m viewers across all 4 live matches + Gilette Soccer Saturday + Match First. Figures aren't available for Goals on Sunday, but are less than 0.2m

It might not service the needs of "real fans" anymore, but it's still one of the most watched sports programmes there is.

Viewing figures are bollards, the way the calculate them is flawed. Makes an interesting stat to put in a newspaper story but not reliable for much else

[AndyC]

My choice of taking in a Rovers game (or failing that highlights) in order of preference...

1) Being there (obviously)

2) xxxxx

3) Football First

4) Goals On Sunday

5) Rovers World

6) Footytube highlights

7) MOTD

Don't think I've watched MOTD for nearly years now as at least one of the other 6 has always been available.

add Yahoo! to your list

http://uk.eurosport....#video=21975300

[BlueMonday]

Let me guess you are 25ish now?

I wish.

[Clitherover]

Used to Love Match of the Day when I was 10, when it did actually show the best Match of the day. It should be renamed

Chelsea, Manu or Arsenal Match of the day.

Its an irrelevance. Watch Football First.

No, because not everyone has enough money to chuck away by paying for Sky Sports.

[Beta Ray Bill]

Viewing figures are bollards, the way the calculate them is flawed. Makes an interesting stat to put in a newspaper story but not reliable for much else

It's not a debate about how accurate the figures are - and the system BARB uses was revamped this year and is now meant to be the most reflective in the world and certainly drives the way advertisers and TV companies act - but there are clearly vastly greater numbers who watch MotD than Premiership footage by any other means.

The programme may be of dubious worth in some people's eyes, but it still serves a purpose to 4m+ a week.

[HemelRover]

Is it any surprise MOTD shaft us when Big Sam is our manager and we employ the likes of Diouf? They rarely cut us any slack at the best of times, so I certainly wouldn't expect them to now. All they're interested in is big club bias (which includes Liverpool, for some reason) and fairytale stories like Burnley or Blackpool being promoted.

To be honest. They are prodcing a show to appeal to all football fans.

Rovers is not a team that the general public want to watch. This is why we are usually on last.

[Greedy_Crawford]

I respect most of the posts on this thread as they come from true Rovers fans. However, having watched Rovers for 30 years plus I have to say with a sad heart that that was one of the worst games I have sat through on Saturday. I did not see any football at all. I saw alot of hopeful punts and effort, little skill, some blatant gamesmanship (being polite to EHD) and a poor referring display.

MOTD got the highlight levels right - 90 seconds or so and on last - and they discussed the only talking points at the right level IMO.

From a neutral perspective we are very poor to watch. Lets just get over it. I am a Rovers fan, but would not watch the level of fare served up if it was any one else.

[Biddy]

See everyone thinks MOTD is against them. Wolves keeper thinks the same Wolves keeper hits out at MOTD coverage

[thenodrog]

I could stand MoTD amnd MoTD2 far better if they didn't drone on in syrupy praise of some big club player whose frequently average performance is dissected in minute detail. It's bloody awful and tedious and especially so when old big head does it. I'd honestly rather watch adverts. That time could and should be allocated to give more air time to us crappier teams.

[chaddyrovers]

goals on sunday on sky sports is far better than motd. they give a balance view whether it's a top four team or bottom of the league. I haven't watch motd for 3 years at least. just find it boring and favour the top 5 teams.

[BlueMonday]

I could stand MoTD amnd MoTD2 far better if they didn't drone on in syrupy praise of some big club player whose frequently average performance is dissected in minute detail. It's bloody awful and tedious and especially so when old big head does it. I'd honestly rather watch adverts. That time could and should be allocated to give more air time to us crappier teams.

Agreed. In its heyday MoTD didn't pander to 'Big Club' sensibilities. It's sold its soul and frankly the punditry is awful.

[trueblue]

Agreed. In its heyday MoTD didn't pander to 'Big Club' sensibilities. It's sold its soul and frankly the punditry is awful.

Bring back David Coleman I say

[EWOODACE1]

The main matches seen are always the same teams. I hate it more when their main game is the match that was live on sky. If rovers and wigan drew 5-5 they would still put our match on after the bigger teams. BBC is a shambles these days. Not just motd

[Mattyblue]

Collymore on MOTD

Normally cannot abide the man, but he is bang on the money here.

[BlueMonday]

Like with any TV program these days, they have to get the highest possible number of viewers. They certainly wouldn't do that if they didn't give in to the most popular teams.

Personally it's a good thing for me. It forces me to watch the other games and I get over an hour of the TV to myself.

I know what your saying, but the BBC is a public service broadcaster and shouldn't be subject to commercial pressures. MoTD shouldn't be chasing viewing figures, it should be producing a football programme that offers something different to the commercial channels and not Kissing ManU Chealsea butt.

[Doaksie]

Collymore on MOTD

Normally cannot abide the man, but he is bang on the money here.

Have to agree with a lot of what he says. A shake-up of the stale team of 'experts' is a must in my opinion. Ian Wright though Stan, come on... Even Channel 5 have dumped him and he has previously walked out on Match of the Day has he not.

[DE.]

Collymore on MOTD

Normally cannot abide the man, but he is bang on the money here.

Like Collymore can talk... I've had the misfortune of listening to him on talkSPORT and although he has different opinions most of them are laughable.

[Guest bluerovers]

I quite like Collymore, he cetainly always stands up for us... He's a bit shouty but I agree with most of what he says....

[Stuart]

Collymore was on talksport on the way home just now, talking to Durham.

He talks a lot of sense, especially about how pundits need to get their act together - citing Shearer not knowing much about Ben Arfa - and even criticised the editorial which doesn't actually show the story of the match (I imagine it fits the agenda of the Man U, Chelsea, Arsenal loving 'fans' out there).

He cited the example of Sunderland's game against Arsenal at the weekend, saying it was the best first 45 minutes he's seen this season - by Sunderland (didn't see it - can't comment). The editorial did nothing of the sort and said Sunderland struggled to get the ball up to Bent.

Just goes to show that it's not just "little old Blackburn" who get the rough end of the stick.

I bet Shearer will be well schooled (and a little sheepish) on Saturday night - if he's even there!

[magicalmortensleftpeg]

Its the national broadcaster showing the only premier league football highlights on terrestrial. It hasnt got much of a choice but to put the bigger teams up front unless there is a 5-4 or something. Face it, if its Arsenal vs Liverpool or Bolton vs Fulham i think the neutral fan would definately prefer to watch the former over the latter. Rovers obviously get the stale end of the deal but thats life. Id rather be last on MOTD then first on the Football League show.

[Rovermatt]

Plus last time I saw the intro wasn't Shearer playing in Rovers colours?

He is playing in our colours.