Post by thales on Feb 22, 2007 16:23:46 GMT -1
The Irish eyes who will not have left Ronaldo smiling
RTE's John Giles, Eamon Dunphy and Liam Brady have no peers when it comes to football punditry.
Alan RuddockFebruary 22, 2007 02:29 AM
At what point did television producers decide that football fans were to be treated with contempt? Was Jimmy Hill too abrasive for the modern age, too likely to upset fragile egos (though, in fairness, it could have been the beard)? Blandness is now almost universal on British TV, whether it's the crafted dialogue on Gary Lineker's Match of the Day, Steve Ryder's obeisance at the feet of sporting gods or Jim Rosenthal's - well, better to let that one lie. On Sky, where Andy Gray and Richard Keys at least attempt analysis, the surface is barely scratched and conventional wisdoms go unchallenged. "The lad will be disappointed with himself for that performance" now comes at the top end of the most stinging rebukes and most of what passes for television analysis would not pass muster in a pub. With few alternatives on offer we mutely accept it, nodding sagely that the lad could, indeed, have done better. There is, however, a better way.
In a brief clip on Tuesday night John Giles, Eamon Dunphy and Liam Brady demonstrated that they have no peers in the business of football punditry. Two great players and a former journeyman player turned great controversialist were dissecting Manchester United's win against Lille. They didn't dwell for long on the referee (two correct decisions, one goal disallowed, one awarded) or get overly excited by Lille's foot-stomping childishness but focused on analysing different elements of the game.
Brady and Dunphy had prepared a package of Cristiano Ronaldo's entire contribution - completing, to memory, one pass out of 10, while losing possession or fluffing scoring chances every other time he received the ball. The clip concluded with Ronaldo's substitution, head shaking at the injustice of it all, spitting in disgust and shrugging his way past Sir Alex Ferguson, his manager.
Giles, Brady and Dunphy - along with Bill O'Herlihy, their host and interrogator - are brought together by RTE, the state-owned Irish broadcaster, to analyse football. They do not hold their punches. Brady and Dunphy have little time for the hype that surrounds Ronaldo, while Giles's scepticism is slightly more restrained.
For all three, Ronaldo is talented but well short of the greatness that has been bestowed on him by his manager and the British media. They see his flaws, his petulance, his failure to deliver on the biggest European occasions but they also see deep cynicism at work.
The hyping of Ronaldo, in their eyes, is about inflating his value for the balance sheet, and has little or no connection with reality. Ronaldo is a commodity rather than a footballer, a player measured not by his contribution on the field but by his potential contribution to the bottom line, so long as the marketing of him can deliver a profitable transfer.
Agree or disagree, but it is an analysis that demands a response and cuts through the hyperbole that usually gushes forth from British TV studios. Critically, RTE's gang of four treat their viewers as intelligent and informed fans and approach each match they review with a determination to provide insight and provoke response.
Their approach is in stark and dismal contrast to what passes for analysis on British television. There are rare exceptions - Martin O'Neill was a breath of fresh air during the World Cup and Graeme Souness occasionally punctures the mood of celebration - but for too much of the time producers and pundits appear to treat viewers with contempt.
It is not beyond the wit of the BBC, ITV, Sky or Setanta to recognise one simple fact: fans are not morons. They deserve better than pap and I am convinced they would respond enthusiastically if treated with respect. It might, however, knock a few million off Ronaldo's asking price.
Croke Park focus must be on rugby, not politics
The build-up to Saturday's Six Nations clash between Ireland and England at Croke Park has been dominated by politics rather than sport but hopefully the focus is now shifting to the pitch.
Peter Hain, the secretary of state for Northern Ireland, has mercifully been dissuaded from turning a rugby match into a political photo-opportunity and will not now be laying a wreath to commemorate the 14 people killed by British forces in the stadium more than 80 years ago, and will not be indulging the current fad of apologising for the misdeeds of the past.
The Gaelic Athletic Association, which has allowed its ground to be used for rugby and soccer while Lansdowne Road is readied for refurbishment, must take the credit for the shift in emphasis. It refused to countenance an apology or ceremony because it thinks it an inappropriate occasion for either: Saturday is about rugby, not righting wrongs, and politics is for another day.
There will be protests outside the stadium from the rump of the Republican movement that refuses to move with the times, and there may be some attempts at disrespect for the British anthem when it sounds out, but the overwhelming majority inside Croke Park will treat it with the silent respect that it has received at Lansdowne Road (somewhat different to the reception reserved for God Save The Queen at Hampden Park, but then the Scots are past-masters at ersatz nationalism).
The rugby, though, is what matters and it is a measure of the expectations heaped on this Irish side that even victory over England would not assuage the hurt caused by the defeat to France. This should have been a grand slam season for the Irish, and a third Triple Crown in a few seasons would be scant consolation. Defeat on Saturday, however, would render Ireland's rugby fans inconsolable. Not because it is England, though that would hurt, but because the brief blossoming of hope for this year's World Cup would have been crushed. Even the smooth-talking Hain could not find the words to apologise for that.
England ought to avoid delight in Australia's plight
Schadenfreude is impossible to avoid in sport, and England's delight at Australia's 3-0 hammering by the Black Caps of New Zealand is entirely forgivable. It is only a few weeks since John Buchanan, the Australia coach, was moaning that his boys were not being tested on the pitch and in a relatively short space of time they have been beaten by England and, even more dramatically, chased down by New Zealand. Australia now enjoy the unenviable distinction of being at the wrong end of the four biggest run chases in one-day international history, a statistic that must gnaw at their fabled self-confidence.
England's delight at Australia's predicament should be leavened by the ease with which New Zealand knocked off their victories, because it puts greater perspective on England's triumph in the recent one-day series and robs them of any psychological advantage that they might have held over the men in black. New Zealand will arrive at the World Cup brimming with confidence and with England in their sights, and in their group. Australia, too, if they can repair key players like Andrew Symonds, Brett Lee and Matthew Hayden, will be stronger for being chastened before the serious business begins. Schadenfreude, unfortunately, can all too swiftly rebound.
RTE's John Giles, Eamon Dunphy and Liam Brady have no peers when it comes to football punditry.
Alan RuddockFebruary 22, 2007 02:29 AM
At what point did television producers decide that football fans were to be treated with contempt? Was Jimmy Hill too abrasive for the modern age, too likely to upset fragile egos (though, in fairness, it could have been the beard)? Blandness is now almost universal on British TV, whether it's the crafted dialogue on Gary Lineker's Match of the Day, Steve Ryder's obeisance at the feet of sporting gods or Jim Rosenthal's - well, better to let that one lie. On Sky, where Andy Gray and Richard Keys at least attempt analysis, the surface is barely scratched and conventional wisdoms go unchallenged. "The lad will be disappointed with himself for that performance" now comes at the top end of the most stinging rebukes and most of what passes for television analysis would not pass muster in a pub. With few alternatives on offer we mutely accept it, nodding sagely that the lad could, indeed, have done better. There is, however, a better way.
In a brief clip on Tuesday night John Giles, Eamon Dunphy and Liam Brady demonstrated that they have no peers in the business of football punditry. Two great players and a former journeyman player turned great controversialist were dissecting Manchester United's win against Lille. They didn't dwell for long on the referee (two correct decisions, one goal disallowed, one awarded) or get overly excited by Lille's foot-stomping childishness but focused on analysing different elements of the game.
Brady and Dunphy had prepared a package of Cristiano Ronaldo's entire contribution - completing, to memory, one pass out of 10, while losing possession or fluffing scoring chances every other time he received the ball. The clip concluded with Ronaldo's substitution, head shaking at the injustice of it all, spitting in disgust and shrugging his way past Sir Alex Ferguson, his manager.
Giles, Brady and Dunphy - along with Bill O'Herlihy, their host and interrogator - are brought together by RTE, the state-owned Irish broadcaster, to analyse football. They do not hold their punches. Brady and Dunphy have little time for the hype that surrounds Ronaldo, while Giles's scepticism is slightly more restrained.
For all three, Ronaldo is talented but well short of the greatness that has been bestowed on him by his manager and the British media. They see his flaws, his petulance, his failure to deliver on the biggest European occasions but they also see deep cynicism at work.
The hyping of Ronaldo, in their eyes, is about inflating his value for the balance sheet, and has little or no connection with reality. Ronaldo is a commodity rather than a footballer, a player measured not by his contribution on the field but by his potential contribution to the bottom line, so long as the marketing of him can deliver a profitable transfer.
Agree or disagree, but it is an analysis that demands a response and cuts through the hyperbole that usually gushes forth from British TV studios. Critically, RTE's gang of four treat their viewers as intelligent and informed fans and approach each match they review with a determination to provide insight and provoke response.
Their approach is in stark and dismal contrast to what passes for analysis on British television. There are rare exceptions - Martin O'Neill was a breath of fresh air during the World Cup and Graeme Souness occasionally punctures the mood of celebration - but for too much of the time producers and pundits appear to treat viewers with contempt.
It is not beyond the wit of the BBC, ITV, Sky or Setanta to recognise one simple fact: fans are not morons. They deserve better than pap and I am convinced they would respond enthusiastically if treated with respect. It might, however, knock a few million off Ronaldo's asking price.
Croke Park focus must be on rugby, not politics
The build-up to Saturday's Six Nations clash between Ireland and England at Croke Park has been dominated by politics rather than sport but hopefully the focus is now shifting to the pitch.
Peter Hain, the secretary of state for Northern Ireland, has mercifully been dissuaded from turning a rugby match into a political photo-opportunity and will not now be laying a wreath to commemorate the 14 people killed by British forces in the stadium more than 80 years ago, and will not be indulging the current fad of apologising for the misdeeds of the past.
The Gaelic Athletic Association, which has allowed its ground to be used for rugby and soccer while Lansdowne Road is readied for refurbishment, must take the credit for the shift in emphasis. It refused to countenance an apology or ceremony because it thinks it an inappropriate occasion for either: Saturday is about rugby, not righting wrongs, and politics is for another day.
There will be protests outside the stadium from the rump of the Republican movement that refuses to move with the times, and there may be some attempts at disrespect for the British anthem when it sounds out, but the overwhelming majority inside Croke Park will treat it with the silent respect that it has received at Lansdowne Road (somewhat different to the reception reserved for God Save The Queen at Hampden Park, but then the Scots are past-masters at ersatz nationalism).
The rugby, though, is what matters and it is a measure of the expectations heaped on this Irish side that even victory over England would not assuage the hurt caused by the defeat to France. This should have been a grand slam season for the Irish, and a third Triple Crown in a few seasons would be scant consolation. Defeat on Saturday, however, would render Ireland's rugby fans inconsolable. Not because it is England, though that would hurt, but because the brief blossoming of hope for this year's World Cup would have been crushed. Even the smooth-talking Hain could not find the words to apologise for that.
England ought to avoid delight in Australia's plight
Schadenfreude is impossible to avoid in sport, and England's delight at Australia's 3-0 hammering by the Black Caps of New Zealand is entirely forgivable. It is only a few weeks since John Buchanan, the Australia coach, was moaning that his boys were not being tested on the pitch and in a relatively short space of time they have been beaten by England and, even more dramatically, chased down by New Zealand. Australia now enjoy the unenviable distinction of being at the wrong end of the four biggest run chases in one-day international history, a statistic that must gnaw at their fabled self-confidence.
England's delight at Australia's predicament should be leavened by the ease with which New Zealand knocked off their victories, because it puts greater perspective on England's triumph in the recent one-day series and robs them of any psychological advantage that they might have held over the men in black. New Zealand will arrive at the World Cup brimming with confidence and with England in their sights, and in their group. Australia, too, if they can repair key players like Andrew Symonds, Brett Lee and Matthew Hayden, will be stronger for being chastened before the serious business begins. Schadenfreude, unfortunately, can all too swiftly rebound.
