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Is Channel 9 the home of rugby league?

titoelcolombiano

First Grade
Messages
5,276
https://wwos.nine.com.au/afl/afl-ed...-on-nine/38c193e2-7f8b-4ae6-8154-a7658434f437

Eddie McGuire announces new AFL shows to air on Nine

http%3A%2F%2Fprod.static9.net.au%2F_%2Fmedia%2F2018%2F06%2F07%2F11%2F48%2Fmelauthor.png
By Melanie Dinjaski


McGuire has been host of the AFL Footy Show since 1994, and now Nine is set to boost its AFL coverage with a shake-up he says is prompted by Thursday night AFL games during the season as well as Nine's broadcast of the Ashes and World Cup of Cricket next year.

He said there will be an 'exciting' new offering of AFL programs, including McGuire hosting 'specials' and a new mid-week show featuring Sam Newman, who recently secured a multi-year deal with Nine.

"Very few things are the same 25 years later," McGuire exclusively told Wide World of Sports.

"There are completely different scheduling commitments with Channel Nine these days, so we're coming up with what we hope will be what people are looking for in the delivery of sports entertainment."

McGuire teased what the revamped mid-week show might look like.

"We've got the plans but we don't necessarily want to tell the world just yet what they are. We want to make the announcements in due course," McGuire said.

"We'll get some really good ideas for next year."

McGuire said they are still yet to do casting for the program, but more information would be revealed soon.

He was enthusiastic about hosting special event coverage during the season and 'loves' working with Newman.

"We found last year, with the grand final Footy Show and major events, that the Footy Show dominated the ratings and did really well so we're going to continue doing that," McGuire said.

"Sam is one of the most unique talents - a 300-game superstar, he's been a legend of television, particularly in Melbourne. And for Sam to be excited and ready to go around again and sign a new deal with Channel Nine is fantastic.

"I love working with Sam. I can't wait to get involved in some big television events with him."

Newman spoke to AFL Footy Show viewers in an emotional down-the-barrel address at the end of the season, when he was uncertain of the program's future.

Newman's emotional message

McGuire dropped the surprise show announcement news on Friday morning, also speaking on the Today show.

"We're going to change it up a bit," McGuire said.

"We had to work out just where the AFL Footy Show sat.

"Sam Newman and myself are going to host a number of specials next year which are going to be big, extravagant entertainment footy shows, just like the grand final Footy Show.

"We'll then have another show that will be on a Wednesday and Thursday night depending on what's happening in the footy world, and that will be a completely new show - new hosts, new people. Sam might be going in between both of them.

"I won't be hosting that show, but I'll be hosting the specials. And then Sam will also be involved on the extended Sunday Footy Show on the Sunday morning with some of his great head-to-head interviews.

"So a bigger Footy Show, a bigger suite of shows to give to the people who love their AFL.

"It's a huge year coming up, so trying to fit ourselves in, we think we've come up with a very elegant solution but most importantly, give people what they want, not what you think they want. And that's what we've been told, they love the big events on the Footy Show, so we're going to provide them the biggest names in sport."

Can someone at 9 justify essentially promoting a code that another channel has heavily invested in whilst the code that 9 heavily invests and delivers four of the top 10 rating programs every year, looks like getting no content outside of the actual matches next year?
 
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Stallion

First Grade
Messages
7,467
Can someone at 9 justify essentially promoting a code that another channel has heavily invested in whilst the code that 9 heavily invests and delivers four of the top 10 rating programs every year, looks like getting no content outside of the actual matches next year.

GOOD POINT! Might need a question mark at the end.
 

Vee

First Grade
Messages
5,075
Nein have only ever used RL for what it can get out of it, as opposed to Seven who have always worked collaboratively with the fumblers to promote their product to the mutual benefit of both.

I hate the game but it drives me to distraction how much better Seven have served it compared to Nein's tawdry treatment of RL.
 

Timbo

Moderator
Staff member
Messages
20,270
So now that both of the summers main sports have spent a bit of time on TV, the following two points are close to undeniable:

1 - The coverage of the cricket has been much better moving from Nine to Seven.
2 - The coverage of the tennis has been much worse moving from Seven to Nine.

Just get the NRL off of Nine for f**ks sake. The contempt they treat sport with is obvious.
 

Starkers

Bench
Messages
2,979
I think it's true though. Of the FTA coverage, Ch7 is far better. Not covering ODIs was a dumb idea, and the ratings in general are down for cricket, expecially BBL which has taken a 20% hit.

In the BBLs case, it is more to do with scheduling and added games, but in general interest has waned a bit with sandpaper-gate for cricket this summer. Test match scheduling has also thrown people with the usual Brisbane test not opening this summer.

Content-wise, much prefer Ch7 at this stage.
 

Timbo

Moderator
Staff member
Messages
20,270
Yeah but the coverage is of a much higher quality, which was the point I was driving at.

Also, do you know what other sport that's fairly popular on this forum that is partially FTA, partially behind a paywall?
 

DC_fan

Coach
Messages
11,980
Yeah but the coverage is of a much higher quality, which was the point I was driving at.

Also, do you know what other sport that's fairly popular on this forum that is partially FTA, partially behind a paywall?

NFL
 

titoelcolombiano

First Grade
Messages
5,276
7 does an amazing job with sport. Look at the coverage of the RLWC. I'm a big tennis fan and am hating it on 9. It is not just RL it is 9 sport, it just feels like they can't be f@#ked
 

Diesel

Coach
Messages
19,918
I think it's true though. Of the FTA coverage, Ch7 is far better. Not covering ODIs was a dumb idea, and the ratings in general are down for cricket, expecially BBL which has taken a 20% hit.

In the BBLs case, it is more to do with scheduling and added games, but in general interest has waned a bit with sandpaper-gate for cricket this summer. Test match scheduling has also thrown people with the usual Brisbane test not opening this summer.

Content-wise, much prefer Ch7 at this stage.
The different format this year and no ODI’s on FTA is killing cricket. If it stays behind a paywall, the crowds will drop.

Even the BBL crowds seem low this season
 

Stallion

First Grade
Messages
7,467
The different format this year and no ODI’s on FTA is killing cricket. If it stays behind a paywall, the crowds will drop.

Even the BBL crowds seem low this season

Completely agree. FREE TO AIR TV COVERAGE is vital! Looking at the World Nines in October: Surely this should be on an FTA channel as well! ? Doesn't have to be a main channel (although a final deserves such coverage). But at least a minor channel simulcast with Fox! Otherwise it will be seen by less than 30 percent of the audience in Australia. A real shame and another example of poor endeavour from administrators within rugby league. A World nines deserves better tv coverage. Great venue just poor tv servicing to the general public.
 

titoelcolombiano

First Grade
Messages
5,276
Once you've got a formula down, if it is making money why change it?

Sorry, I'm not sure if I understand the question. Do you mean 9 is making money so why would they change the way they cover sport?

what's the difference that makes their tennis coverage worse?

This is subjective, but the commentators and presenters to me are a noticeable difference. This is my complaint with 9's RL coverage too.

Also, a bit of a RL related gipe. 7 used to cross-promote the sh!t out of AFL during the coverage (planting ex-players in the crowd so that the camera could zoom in on them and give them an excuse to promote their AFL coverage, running ads throughout the tournament etc). I'm not seeing this at all from 9 for RL.
 

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