The thing with the old roast was Voss and Gus. Someone made the point in another forum about the amount of ex players getting media gigs. Some blokes, like Sterlo, had the talent to make a go in the media. Most havent. Voss was not an ex player - so he has the talent for media presentation at a level that is acceptable for TV. I imagine Voss would be an excellent MC, and is also a keen observer of the game. Hadley would be too if he didnt think the world celebrated Christmas to honour his birthday.
Gus the ex coach - these guys usually have a fantastic insight into the science of football. The Wok is the same, so was Brian Smith.
They needed to replace Voss and Gus with another professional presenter and another ex coach. Round it out with a few players with a bit of entertainment value and you have a formula.
Throwing 4 nuffies who are mates with the boss aint the way to go.
I still reckon Doug Mulray will be a star in this role. Or HG Nelson.
Good old Uncle Doug. Although he maybe a bit old now (wonder what he's doing nowdays), I do remember that episode of TFS he hosted back in 1997 IIRC when Geoff Toovey was also on the panel. Did a fantastic Tommy Raudonikis impersonation. Generally speaking, he hosted the show very well that night he was filling in for Fatty. I'd be happy to see him back on TFS.
Voss has the talent because he studied media at university and also had years of training. Most of these ex-players (whom as I said in another thread, in Australia, we have a fixation for shoving ex-players in front of a camera, not just in rugby league) have had absolutely no media training or communication skills other than the odd interview they've had to do during their playing career.
Someone else also mentioned how articulate the AFL players are on their Footy Show. I 100% agree with that. I believe that their players have to undergo media training IIRC. The NRL should also adapt a similar initiative, rather than just shoving random nuffies infront of a camera who cannot go more than a few words without saying "Ahhhhhh.....ummmmmm..." all the time.
You cannot have a panel that is exclusively ex-players (e.g. cricket commentary), and neither can you have a panel that is exclusively journos (as you will eventually see that everyone will be outdoing everyone else in trying to make a name for themselves). IMO, you need to have the right balance of ex-players and journos.
Coaches like Brian Smith were very good in commentary. I remember a few games he did on ABC radio back in 2001 and he was very insightful. The coach that has really caught my attention in recent times (mainly attributed to seeing him more on tv) is Matt Elliott. I'm very impressed with him. I didn't think much of him when he was coaching at the Raiders and the Panthers but since he left the Panthers, I've come to realise that he has an outstanding knowledge and understanding of the game, and he'd be useful to have on a Footy show panel or commentary team.
