Australia’s highest levels of domestic football stand at the doorstep of a new frontier.
After 17 years of financial investment and support, the worst kept secret in the game has finally been revealed, with Foxtel’s departure from its A-League and W-League commitments confirming an obvious lack of conviction towards, and long term faith in, both competitions.
The move presents the recently empowered A-League owners with a potentially powerful and challenging scenario, one where their short-term decisions could well reshape the leagues, the media coverage of them and, in turn, the future investment thrown in their direction.
Any belief that all will be rosy right from the off is short-sighted. Now, with the greatest sense of autonomy they have ever felt and Network Ten on board as a free-to-air partner, some will rather foolishly suggest that, with all parties now motivated towards the betterment of the league, the sailing could well be smooth.
It will not be.
However, the cleaner structure that includes a free-to-air partner now financially committed and determined to produce a successful product for viewers, as well as a freshly rebranded streaming service in the form of Paramount+, does provide great hope. Streamlined coverage of the game that could well sit comfortably with fans.
The mad scramble for on-air positions in the new broadcasting team will be well underway and it would be no surprise if some decisions have already been made behind closed doors. Already a social media petition has been circling demanding Network Ten engage the services of former Fox Sports lead commentator Simon Hill.
Simon Hill. (Photo by Jason McCawley/Getty Images for Sydney FC)
It does seem an obvious choice, particularly considering the limited options available. Ben Homer has done a sterling job in the limited opportunities he has been granted at Fox. He calls a decent game of football and may well receive an expression of interest, while Adam Peacock does not offend in his play by play calls, seemingly aware that at times there is little need to comment.
Sadly, Brenton Speed does not appear to grasp that concept anywhere near as well; constantly citing stats, the previous clubs of players and frequently using awkward cross-sport references that appear designed to do nothing more than feather his own nest and demand viewers be somewhat impressed with the bank of data he has accumulated over the years.
With both Peacock and Speed used across a broad array of sports on the cable giant, it is unlikely they would leave the comfy confines of Fox Sports, with Homer perhaps the most likely to be given the opportunity to join the new broadcast structure.
Yet the network will need more than a solid caller like Hill and a developing one in Homer to manage the load across what will be another busy 12-team A-League season in 2021/22 and a hopefully elongated W-League campaign.
There are also no doubt a number of Fox Sports peripheral commentators with resumes in hand, desperate to lock up a gig with the new broadcast partner. Yet the majority of them may well struggle to earn such a position.
Should Archie Thompson and Mark Bosnich form parts of their plans, Network Ten will have taken a step back rather than forward. No questions exist around the cred both bring to the game, however, their presentation style in the coverage of highly pressurised live sport may not be seen as ideal by the new hosts of live Australian football.
Mark Bosnich interviews former Socceroos coach Ange Postecoglou. (Photo by Paul Kane/Getty Images)
Andy Harper has a far better grasp of what it takes to present a professional and slick product and while not being everyone’s cup of tea, his use as a more senior special comments expert could be utilised well and also connect the modern A-League sphere back to the NSL days with his extensive knowledge of both competitions.
John Kosmina potentially provides the same, despite often being somewhat blunt in his assessment of players and situations. Robbie Slater presents a grumpiness that the new hosts would be best to avoid, while Robbie Cornthwaite’s media career appears to be on the rise, something likely to see him earn a gig in the new team.
Gender balance will also be important, particularly as the streaming of all A- and W-League matches becomes the norm. Stephanie Brantz is as professional as they come, yet future coverage of the women’s game does need a more knowledgeable and analytical caller. Frankly, there does not appear to be one ready to take up the reins, however Georgia Yeoman-Dale should be the first choice when it comes to expert comments and analysis.
A challenge exists in locating a suitable anchor for the coverage. Tara Rushton did the job well for Fox Sports with class and poise for some time, however, she popped up on the Moto GP coverage late Sunday night and also looks unlikely to make the move away from the safety of her current employer, considering the obvious intent to apply her skillset in a multi-sport role.
Michael Zappone has filled the space at the pre-match desk quite well in recent times and is a popular man whose knowledge of and passion for football comes across in spades. Yet there is a lack of polish in his delivery that may well cause the suits at Network Ten to baulk when it comes to charging him with hosting duties.
There are some crucial decisions to be made when it comes to assembling an effective cast able to deliver the game successfully on free-to-air television in prime time and one capable of impressing fans enough to encourage them to commit to a monthly charge for the privilege of watching Australian football via an app.
In my view, anything resembling a Fox Sports mark two will be a disappointment. A-League broadcasts of the past have had their ups and downs, yet never made groundbreaking inroads when it came to market share.
Perhaps it is high time to try something and somebody completely different.
Aiden
Guest
Stuart Thomas* * I like single malt.
Para+Ten ISUZU Subway support Australian Football
Roar Rookie
Simon Hill poised for A-League return as part of broadcasting shake-up Sporting News, Josh Thomas The A-League's newest broadcaster looks poised to hand Simon Hill the chance to return to the commentary box from next season as they aim to keep football fans happy. Both the A-League and W-League recently wrapped up a five-year deal that will see the competitions shown exclusively on Network Ten and Paramount+ moving forward. Fans were quick to demand Hill be brought back into the fold as part of the new broadcast arrangement with the iconic commentator missing from the airwaves this season after his exit from Fox Sports last year. Australian Professional Leagues (APL) managing director Danny Townsend was asked directly about Hill on Tuesday night and hinted that he will be headhunted by Network Ten. "We're going to put the fan first for every decision we make and ultimately the fans want to hear the best broadcasters," Townsend said on SEN's The Global Game. "So we're going to make sure we find, wherever he may be, the best commentator in Australian football and make sure he's heard by as many people as possible." After months of rumours, the new broadcast deal was unveiled last week with the APL determined to shake-up their coverage of the domestic competitions and ensure football fans are their key focus. "We actually had the deal done months ago, we just kept you waiting, but it was one of those things where we needed to work through a process of getting the market to understand what the APL was all about, what our strategy was all about and how we were going to do things differently," Townsend said. "We needed a partner that was going to buy into that strategy, to really see the value, and that's what Channel 10 did. "There's lots of things we need to do and it's not one single thing. People ask me all the time what we're going to do differently and it's lots of things differently. "I think you can look at that through differently lenses: what are we going to do differently on the field, what are we going to differently around it, what are going to do marketing wise, what are we going to do about distribution of content. "But most importantly it's about engaging the consumer, which is the fan, and ultimately our game suffered I think from too much stakeholder management, not enough obsession for what fans are looking for and that's our focus. "Ensuring that we understand our fans better, understand what they like and that we serve them content and product they really love. That's what football's all about, enjoying the game, and ensuring that they're getting to engage in it the way that they like." Townsend also confirmed a new broadcast deal for the Socceroos and Matildas will likely be wrapped up in the coming weeks
Roberto Bettega
Roar Rookie
We've jumped ahead of the Iraqi league.
GWSingapore
Roar Rookie
Hoping that Network take a long term view regarding Saturday night free-to-air. If the coverage rates poorly early in the contract, the network might drop it to a secondary channel. If 10 stick with it for the longer haul interest and ratings will grow.
Lisa
Guest
I would put forward Joey Peters as a fantastic female analyst. Her football pedigree and insightful knowledge has been well received by football enthusiasts with her commentary on Matilda's games.
Stuart Thomas
Expert
Thank you.
Nick Symonds
Guest
"Mark Latham, Kossie and Muscat" - For a moment I thought you said - Mark Latham, Kochie and Muscat Muscat would be the odd one out there, so you could replace him with someone who's more media savvy like Eddie McGuire. Imagine those three together. Mark Latham, David Koch and Eddie McGuire.
Winter A League is Awesome
Guest
I don't mind AFL or Rugby and all sports have positive aspects. Afl and nrl figures from here https://afltables.com/afl/crowds/summary.html Does AFL beat A League by a lot? 30k compared to 10k average attendance. Its not as big as people make it out to be. Plus in NSW there is case that all NSW A League Teams beat AFL depending on how you look at it but I would need the average attendance by season for Syndey Swans and GWS. Plus once NSD is up than its even more figures for Football or A League in NSW. If Gold Coast had an A League team and Brisbane had another team than it would be pretty close compared to AFL attendance in QLD.
Midfielder
Roar Guru
yep
The Late News
Roar Rookie
But I was quite serious with my earlier post Stuart. I really enjoyed your article. Very timely.
Grem
Roar Rookie
Mark Latham, Kossie and Muscat would be the sideline team.
Grem
Roar Rookie
I love your positivity, I love football and I can't stand AFL. I don't know where you get your figures from but, as much as I can't understand why, AFL easily beats us for spectators. Summer football, at night, is our way to rebuild our game. Channel 10, Paramount and the APL, who invest a lot of money into our game and most of us know that too. Perhaps after a few good years we might be able to adjust our season bit by bit and year by year.
Stevo
Roar Rookie
Interesting conversation. 1/ I hope we don’t go down the Big Bash path. Football doesn’t need gimmicks to sell the ‘product.’ The ‘product’ is the game played in just about every country on the globe. It will sell itself if allowed to. 2/ Talk shows/personalities need to cater for a range of demographics and interests. From casual interests to hard core supporters. Young to older age bracket. Equal numbers of female/male on the couch (lolz, you know what I mean :laughing: ) 3/ Talk about the game as a whole not just the A-league. Bring in interesting information/personalities from NPL, indigenous communities, etc. Make it about the whole of football. Let’s get crackin’.
Nick Symonds
Guest
*Jack Lame should be football analyst, not technical.
Winter A League is Awesome
Guest
https://www.kickalgor.com/football-leagues/the-ka-football-leagues-global-rating-for-2020-21/the-ka-football-leagues-global-rating-for-2020-21-opening-year-2021-data-table/ This table includes 2nd Leagues as well. 1 ENG Premier League 2 ESP La Liga 3 ITA Serie A 4 GER Bundesliga 5 FRA Ligue 1 6 RUS Российская Премьер-Лига 7 POR Primeira Liga 8 BEL First Division A Pro League 9 NED Eredivisie 10 TUR Süper Lig 11 MEX Liga MX 12 BRA Campeonato Brasileiro Série A 13 SCO Scottish Premiership SUMMER 14 ARG Liga Profesional de Fútbol / SAF 15 AUT Fußball-Bundesliga 16 UKR Українська Прем’єр-Лі́га 17 USA Major League Soccer SUMMER 18 SUI Super League 19 DEN Superligaen SUMMER 20 CRO Prva Liga 21 GRE Ελληνική Σούπερ Λίγκα 22 ENG EFL Championship 23 SRB Суперлига Србије 24 SWE Allsvenskan 25 CZE 1. Česká Fotbalová Liga 26 CYP Παγκύπριο Πρωτάθλημα Α΄ Κατηγορίας 27 KSA دوري المحترفين السعودي 28 NOR Eliteserien SUMMER 29 ISR ליגת העל 30 CHN 中国足球协会超级联赛 SUMMER 31 POL Ekstraklasa 32 JPN J1リーグ SUMMER 33 COL Categoría Primera A 34 BUL Първа Лига 35 HUN Nemzeti Bajnokság 36 ROU Liga I 37 QAT دوري نجوم قطر 38 PAR División de Honor 39 GER 2. Bundesliga 40 FRA Ligue 2 41 ESP LaLiga2 42 ITA Serie B 43 SVK Superliga 44 CRC Liga FPD 45 AZE Premyer Liqası 46 KOR K리그-클래식 SUMMER 47 IRN یگ برتر خلیج فارس 48 HON Liga Nacional 49 EGY الدوري المصري الممتاز 50 TUN الرابطة المحترفة الأولى لكرة القدم 51 UAE دوري الخليج العربي 52 KAZ Қазақстан Премьер Лигасы 53 SVN PrvaLiga 54 BLR Вышэйшая Ліга 55 URU Campeonato Uruguayo 56 CHI Primera División de Chile 57 AUS A-League SUMMER 58 PAN Liga Panameña de Fútbol 59 IRQ دوري الممتاز العراقي 60 RSA Premier Soccer League 61 MAR Botola Pro 1 / البطولة 62 ALG الرابطة الجزائرية المحترفة الأولى لكرة القدم 63 PHI Philippines Football League 64 COD Linafoot 65 NGA Nigerian Professional Football League 66 GUI Guinée Championnat National 67 ZAM Zambia Super League 68 RUS Футбольная Национальная Лига 69 POR Liga Portugal 2 70 ANG Girabola 71 NZL Premiership 72 ECU Serie A de Ecuador 73 BOL Liga de Fútbol Profesional Boliviano 8 out of the top 73 Leagues are Summer Leagues Only 5 Summer Leagues are over 20 degrees Average Temperature Australia is the hottest Summer League in the world
Waz
Roar Rookie
Get Mr Hill in. And John Aloisi - one of the best commentators in the game.
Stuart Thomas
Expert
For a minute there I thought we had entered an alternate universe.
Stuart Thomas
Expert
A woman from the cast died just a few days back I believe. I'm not too sure of the character names, sorry, can't help there.
TheSecretScout
Roar Guru
And why the decisions were reversed in the corresponding fixture in nsw
Winter A League is Awesome
Guest
Yeah the NZ commentary on the last game was great. One of them nailed the voice inflexion on the goals in real time.