Footy Show brawl
By Peter Badel
May 15, 2005
LEAGUE legends Paul Vautin and Peter Sterling were last night seething at moves to inject fresh talent on The Footy Show as rugby league's leading media personalities collided.
The heart and soul of the program for a decade, the duo admitted they were shocked by Channel 9's plan to add radio king Ray Hadley and The Sunday Telegraph columnist Rebecca Wilson to the panel.
The proposed overhaul came in the wake of last Thursday night's show, which recorded its worst ratings of the year.
Speaking with The Sunday Telegraph yesterday, Eels great Sterling denied he and Vautin would quit the show in response to the changes.
But he admitted the pair had a frosty relationship with Hadley and Wilson, who have been strident critics of the program.
"To be truthful, we don't get on with them," Sterling said.
They aren't part of our lives. They have been critical of us and the show in the past.
"It has never really concerned us because on a day-to-day basis it means nothing to us.
"Ray Hadley and Rebecca have been critical, but we've never really cared. There is a care factor of zero.
"I must say I find it hard to fathom how this is front-page news. It must be a quiet day in the Middle East."
Vautin refused to lash out last night, saying: "I don't know anything about what's going on. The first I've heard of it is what I've read in the paper [yesterday]."
In a day of drama at Nine on Friday, program director Michael Healy moved to sign Hadley and Wilson. Healy also called in rugby league boss Steve Crawley to take charge of the show from long-time employee Glenn Pallister, who has been moved to another role.
But Sterling stood by The Footy Show's content and insinuated that any potential move to oust Vautin would prove catastrophic for the program.
"We are very proud of what we've achieved," Sterling said.
"One thing I want to say is that Paul Vautin is The Footy Show. That has never changed. That has never wavered.
"Paul's popularity is a constant and he is the absolute essence of the show. I think it's an exaggeration to say we're facing a ratings slide.
"We'd like our audience to be higher but our show is not too dissimilar to other shows on the network."
Sterling said he first heard of a potential shake-up on Friday morning.
"We did hear they were looking at alternatives and heard some names mentioned," Sterling said. "All I know is that I'll be turning up on Thursday and doing another show with 'Fatty' [Vautin] and a fantastic team of blokes."
