SKY Shine With Champions League Coverage

Sorry for my brief silence.  I’ve been doing other things and to be honest I’ve also been struggling to think of anything to write about that’s not related to Darren Sutherland.  It’s really knocked the boxing community here in Ireland for six.

I guess the biggest story on a wider sporting scale this week is the return of the Champions League.  This year, more than ever with so many debutants, the group stages don’t seem overly appealing – I always feel that it is a competition that doesn’t truly get underway until the knockout stages.  Clashes such as Liverpool v Debrecen and FC Zurich v Real Madrid are unlikely to inspire anyone bar the most die-hard of fans, or at the very least the fans of the underdog.

I am, as I’ve no doubt mentioned on here before, a fan of Manchester United so I tuned in to a fair chunk of their game against Besiktas in Turkey last night.  TV3 have the rights back here in Ireland so, naturally, I watched it on SKY.  I was glad I did.

Their coverage is immense.  Now, the punditry was meh – Michel Salgado’s English made him a puzzling choice for the studio panel – and I am a fan of Martin Tyler and Andy Grey.  What I really enjoyed last night, however, was the technical elements of what I was watching.  I accept, now, that this may be old news to many of you reading but since I’ve literally never been at home on a Champions League evening in recent years, it was my first time watching all eight Champions League games at once.

To give you a brief overview of how the system works, when you press the eponymous red button you are presented with a choice of eight games (on a Tuesday that is.  ITV have first choice on Wednesday evenings from this season meaning there will be seven games to choose from tonight).  Naturally, I picked the United game but when there was a goal, a little banner flashed across the screen.  I press that little red button again and, lo and behold, I’m watching Guti score in Switzerland or Inzaghi poaching one against Marseille or whatever – it really is a stunning service.

Now what SKY are doing is not revolutionary – I know of at least one other provider in the States that does something similar on an NFL Sunday, while the BBC have been giving viewers the opportunity to choose between sports at the Olympics or matches at Wimbledon for a few years now.  Yet, I enjoyed last night and again tonight, though the service was marred by the aforementioned absence of one game, in this case Liverpool v Debrecen.

In a world (and a blog) where we sports fans love to give out about all sorts, I’m going to take this rare opportunity to tip my hat in the general direction of SKY and say thanks for the entertainment.  Now if only the same levels of commitment could be shown to other sports...

Media Watch: The League of Ireland and the Recession

A glum week here on the media watch, given the unsurprising yet nonetheless sad demise of Setanta Sports in the UK. While Setanta Ireland is still on air (at the time of typing), thus meaning that we should still see League football from over here, this week has seen the indefinite postponement of the Setanta Sports Cup. Though never, I felt, the most cherished of competitions, there’s no denying that the loss of its substantial prize money will hurt the finances the League of Ireland clubs you and I adore.

Setanta’s demise comes on a week in which the finances of those same clubs have been under the spotlight. Limerick F.C’s case was widely reported after a public meeting was held in the city on Sunday night. A not-so-sexy 69 people showed up (exactly 500 less than were at Limerick’s 1-0 loss to Shels on Friday) but while the attendance was not the best, the media did their bit to save the Super Blues. By Monday, there were stark headlines in the local press that the club could go out of business this weekend unless €70,000 was found. Right now, again at the time of typing, it looks like the club will stave off the Grim Reaper thanks to a kind offer from a local businessman and the club have the media to thank, in part, for bringing awareness to Limerick’s issues.

While this is one positive way in which the financial woes of a League of Ireland club have been reported, it is in the minority. Also on Monday, the Irish Independent previewed the draws for the Qualifying Rounds of the Champions League and UEFA Cup Light a.k.a. the Europa League, focussing on Bohemians and explaining how a long European run was just what the bank manager, and not hte doctor, had ordered for the Gypsies. Alongside the article was a ‘helpful’ table which detailed the financial situations of the four clubs in the pot. Derry’s was the most positive even though, depressingly, the paper detailed vague rumours about their finances. The less said about Cork, Bohs and Sligo, the better. Was this really necessary? Could the Indo not have examined our improved European performances in recent years and wondered if this was the year that we would see a breakthrough for an Irish club?

Limerick and the European 4 aren’t the only clubs in trouble, of course. There have been problems at my own Galway United and at Drogheda also. We’ve heard all their stories, all topped with bleak headlines, particularly in the national press. While we hate to read or hear about these problems, the case in Limerick this week shows that on a local level at least, there is a groundswell of public will that wants to see our clubs survive these tough times. No League of Ireland club has yet gone to ground during this recession and long may that statement remain factually correct. We have a vibrant league, we have teams who play good football and we have players who are very, very talented. We’re just not told about them.

The League of Ireland needs an injection of positivity. The media can and should do its bit.

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This was originally posted over on http://www.extratime.ie

Merci Dider

Three valid penalty claims turned down + a last minute goal from Iniesta + a rightly stubborn ref who refuses to bow from pressure exerted by Chelsea players + capitulating in front of your own fans + more Champions League failure = An angry Didier Drogba



You know what Dider, three things tonight were disgraceful:

The fact that SKY replayed you cursing into the camera. That was funny but it was a disgraceful mistake.

The lack of respect for the referee from the Chelsea players and staff who surrounded him both before and after the final whistle. Panalties weren't given that should have been, sure, but Michael Ballack deserves a long, long ban for what he did, as do you.

And, thirdly, Didier, perhaps most disgraceful of all was you calling anyone a disgrace. If your reputation precedes you and you don't get penalties when you go down in the area, don't be surprised. You only have yourself to blame.