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) he makes very few errors, and obviosuly knows all the ML squads etc really well, so you get no stupid errors, and he keeps it fluent and professional.
NOW SAY YOU'RE NOT SERIOUS!!! I think he's bloody dreadul, he chews his words up, tries to be too clever by half, talks a load of codswallop into the bargin, and he gets excited, but disproportionatly so at really strange moments... I think he's my least favourite rugby co-commentator by a country mile...cjp wrote:....best in the Northern Hemisphere though would be Will Greenwood, talks sense but also gets really into the game and excited when certain events happen, although it is hard to beat the Aussie and NZ commentators.
yes i agree - Wood is treated as if he has the inside track in Irish rugby, but I really get the feeling that he's a complete outsider, he certainly never says anything particularly insightful. Vague and broadly optimistic. Andy Nichol - mindlessly optimistic, in spite of all the odds, before every match whether it be against Ireland or NZ he tells us all beforehand what Scotland 'need to do to win'mikerob wrote:I don't think the beeb's rent-a-celts: Keith Wood, Jonathon Davies and Andy Nichol are that great.
They are all a bit bland and I'm not sure how much they've kept up with technical things like the various defensive systems teams are using these days. Davies speciality is shouting "numbers!" when he thinks there is an overlap only for a drift defence to close everyone down 2 seconds later.
.. I don't mind Davies too much, but I think he gets a bit hacked off surrounded by the likes of Guscott, being all smug and insufferable, so he's started reacting by becoming a bit like that himself.. I met him once in Paris, and he was a completely stand-up guy, he would have stood around chatting all night! 
Below-par commentators don't talk a good game
Thursday March 27 2008
If the standard of rugby played in the Northern Hemisphere of late has left a lot to be desired, then you have to say that the quality of rugby commentaries in this part of the world has lived down to that level.
First, we had the astonishing faux pas of the BBC's commentator mixing up the names of French back row players Ibrahim Diarra and Fulgence Ouedraogo throughout the recent France v Italy match in Paris. He was wrong every time, except when one of them finally left the field.
Then there was the extraordinary utterance of Welshman Eddie Butler during the Grand Slam match between Wales and France, which summed up the declining standard now so widely heard on television.
Butler's phrase about "us" when talking in relation to Wales puzzled me. Doesn't he realise that the doyen of TV commentators the world over, Bill McLaren, became so universally respected partly because he took scrupulous care always to detach himself and, as far as humanly possible, his emotions from surfacing even amidst the greatest Scottish success?
The Brian Moore/Butler duo in Cardiff reminded me of the two old men in the Muppet Show, Stadler and Waldorf.
Something else McLaren always made sure he did was get his facts right. Had he heard it, I wonder what he would have made of Nigel Starmer-Smith's efforts on Eurosport during the French Top 14 League match between Albi and Biarritz.
Mentioning the fact that Biarritz were without several key players due to international calls and injuries, Starmer-Smith informed us that great names like "Yachvili, Traille, Willemse and Dusautoir were all missing" from Biarritz's ranks.
There was a good reason for Dusautoir's absence. He joined Stade Toulouse almost two years ago.
Does the Eurosport commentary team actually go to all the matches in France? Or are they just doing voice-overs from a London studio? And, if it's a case of the latter, is it the commentators' fault?
If such a skinflint approach exists, it clearly does not pay off. It's not professional because the commentators can't get there on the morning of the game, familiarise themselves with the coaches and some players. They can't get a feel for the event nor surround themselves with those who will be involved.
Starmer-Smith's lack of knowledge about Biarritz rugby club was badly exposed during the match at Albi. As the camera panned into the main stand, it focused on Biarritz coach Patrice Lagisquet. Starmer-Smith proudly announced : "And there's Patrice Lagisquet, sitting next to that man in the red top."
So who was the man in the red top? Father Christmas? Er, no. Biarritz backs coach Jack Isaacs.
One man who certainly knows what he is talking about in this field is Michael Watt, the man whose company, CSI, held the TV rights for all the world's top rugby unions back in the 1980s and 1990s, and who is still involved in the sports television and entertainment business.
Watt, a shrewd observer of the scene, said: "Probably 10 per cent of the world's rugby commentators are any good.
"The ones that stand out are people like Nick Mullins of the BBC, Miles Harrison of Sky and Stuart Barnes who certainly knows the game, plus John Drake in New Zealand and the Australian commentators who cover Super 14."
- Peter Bills
actually now you've mentioned this it's all i can ever remember him saying - he must do it about 5 times a match!!mikerob wrote:Davies speciality is shouting "numbers!" when he thinks there is an overlap only for a drift defence to close everyone down 2 seconds later.
'oh, they've got numbers on the left if they can use it!!" etc (pronounced nam-buzz)
Agree 100% Paul.I have his video and not only was he a fantastic commentator he comes across as a very much down to earth and decent man.Unfortunately not only are the guys these days not up to it from a commentary perspective a lot of them have unjustified egos to boot.When you see the preparation Bill put in before games you can see part of the reason why he was so brilliant.It wasn't just a job for him, it was like a vocation.Some of the little bits of information he had were testament to his interest in delivering a top notch all round performance.I remember when Gerry McLoughlin(Locky) scored that great try in 1982 when he seemed to carry the whole English & Irish pack over the line on his back Bill McLaren announced "they'll be singing down in Angela's tonight"--A reference to the pub in Sir Harry's Mall(Sandmall as we'd call it) in the heartland of Shannon RFC.Show me a commentator that would know or would be interested to know that type of information today.It may seem like little but it gave us a big thrill to hear it after a local hero had scored the try.pwrmoore wrote:The late Bill McClaren (sp?) is very sadly missed. He was a true expert who parked his partisan colours at the door when he entered the commentator's booth. He was the consummate professional and all who dare to follow in his footsteps should look at he master and follow his example.
