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Rob Houwing’s ‘Tops on the Telly’ column
I got the feeling, while watching Monday Night Football on SS3 earlier this week, that they are trying to be a bit broader in their examination of European soccer.
In other words, that their once-customary, heavy focus on the English Premiership is being broken down a bit to take in more analysis of, for instance, La Liga, Serie A, the Bundesliga and the French league.
The problem: that is quite a lot of extra stuff to have to fit into what is usually an hour’s slot (often ahead of live coverage of the Monday “leftover” game in the Premiership, of course).
So roughly the first half of the show, anchored ever-entertainingly by Neil Andrews, saw Andre Arendse and Bradley Carnell (the defender boasts several years in the Bundesliga) doing their best to sum up highlights of French weekend activity while trying hard to sound authoritative on several players and teams they probably barely knew.
Yes, I’m not too clued-up on current wooden-spoonists Dijon, either, and I half-expected sharp-witted Neil to chip in with a “not cutting the mustard” sort of comment by way of relief from the tricky task at hand.
With half an hour to go, Carnell made way in the studio for the veteran Terry Paine, as attention switched to England and the phone-in lines, not too surprisingly, belatedly started buzzing to discuss flashpoints (the dodgy, stringbean new Manchester United ‘keeper David de Gea, the various Joey Barton flare-ups in the Toon-Gunners game etc, etc).
I try not to be the parochial type but unapologetically favour the Premiership for my soccer thrills and spills fix: it’s the best-balanced and most competitive of the top Euro leagues - La Liga, for example, tends to be just too heavily dominated by the big two of Barcelona and Real Madrid, however stellar the names on these clubs’ books.
So I can’t help wondering whether MNF, whose inclusive, fan-friendly format I have thoroughly enjoyed for several seasons, may run the risk of losing some viewership if it tries to be too all-embracing.
The programme is always swamped by callers referring to the Premiership, and a poll we have up on Sport24 at present boasts 61% preference for that league by our readers.
Next up, with 19%, comes our own PSL, whilst La Liga earns only 14% and Serie A and the Bundesliga secure a flimsy 2% each!
Methinks MNF should largely stick to fishing where the fish are ...
Rob’s awesome foursome
1. Western Province v Lions, Absa Currie Cup rugby
Cape Town, Friday 19:00, SS1, CSN & SHD
I scratched my head long and hard before submitting my SuperBru tip for this one ... eventually opting for Province on the grounds that they really shouldn’t lose three times on the trot! But there’s no special conviction behind my theory: the Lions could just as easily extend their unbeaten run to six matches. Their team looks admirably cohesive right now, and the pack could give them an edge in possession and “go forward”. But just maybe Bok backliners Gio Aplon and Juan de Jongh will come off the bench at just the right time to narrowly tilt the scales the hometown way?
2. Arsenal v Liverpool, English Premiership soccer
London, Saturday 13:45, SS3, SHD3 & Maximo
On paper, this is always an appealing fixture – even if you sometimes suspect it commands that status for “heritage” reasons rather than necessarily the modern competence of the combatants! Both teams are already under a morsel of pressure after being held to draws in the opening round, the Gunners in a stormy match at Newcastle and ‘Pool at home to Sunderland after squandering both the lead and a penalty. Many critics tip the Anfielders, beefed by a few fairly decent signings, to end above Arsenal this season – in the last campaign the Gunners (fourth) were 10 comfortable points clear of the Reds in sixth. A hunch tells me Arsene Wenger’s team will sneak this one, though.
3. South Africa v New Zealand, Castle Tri-Nations rugby
Port Elizabeth, Saturday 17:05, M-Net, SS1 & SHD
It’s a sign of slightly grim times that you can’t even safely back a near full-strength Springbok side to see off a clearly more second-string All Black line-up, isn’t it? Personally, I’m leaning reluctantly toward the visitors, even while acknowledging at the same time that if the Boks hit their straps a heartening, clear-cut result in their favour is also quite possible. My scoreline pessimism is based around a suspicion that, as evidenced against the Wallabies in Durban, several Springbok players are “building” toward full match fitness and may be panting all over again in the last 20 minutes at Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium. And that’s when the ever-slick tourists may pounce ...
4. Kaizer Chiefs v Ajax Cape Town, MTN8 semi-final (1st leg) soccer
Johannesburg, Saturday 20:15, SABC1, SS4 & SHD
This encounter in the lucrative MTN8 arguably comes at a bad time for Ajax, last season’s luckless PSL runners-up after bossing the league for so long until their final-day heartbreak. They have made a decidedly iffy start to the 2011/12 campaign, gaining only one point from six thus far under new coach Maarten Stekelenburg. Chiefs, on the other hand, are flying, with two wins from two (Cosmos and Swallows) which have them second on the table only on goal difference from Bloemfontein Celtic. So you’d expect them to make the return trip to Cape Town a goal or two to the good.
I got the feeling, while watching Monday Night Football on SS3 earlier this week, that they are trying to be a bit broader in their examination of European soccer.
In other words, that their once-customary, heavy focus on the English Premiership is being broken down a bit to take in more analysis of, for instance, La Liga, Serie A, the Bundesliga and the French league.
The problem: that is quite a lot of extra stuff to have to fit into what is usually an hour’s slot (often ahead of live coverage of the Monday “leftover” game in the Premiership, of course).
So roughly the first half of the show, anchored ever-entertainingly by Neil Andrews, saw Andre Arendse and Bradley Carnell (the defender boasts several years in the Bundesliga) doing their best to sum up highlights of French weekend activity while trying hard to sound authoritative on several players and teams they probably barely knew.
Yes, I’m not too clued-up on current wooden-spoonists Dijon, either, and I half-expected sharp-witted Neil to chip in with a “not cutting the mustard” sort of comment by way of relief from the tricky task at hand.
With half an hour to go, Carnell made way in the studio for the veteran Terry Paine, as attention switched to England and the phone-in lines, not too surprisingly, belatedly started buzzing to discuss flashpoints (the dodgy, stringbean new Manchester United ‘keeper David de Gea, the various Joey Barton flare-ups in the Toon-Gunners game etc, etc).
I try not to be the parochial type but unapologetically favour the Premiership for my soccer thrills and spills fix: it’s the best-balanced and most competitive of the top Euro leagues - La Liga, for example, tends to be just too heavily dominated by the big two of Barcelona and Real Madrid, however stellar the names on these clubs’ books.
So I can’t help wondering whether MNF, whose inclusive, fan-friendly format I have thoroughly enjoyed for several seasons, may run the risk of losing some viewership if it tries to be too all-embracing.
The programme is always swamped by callers referring to the Premiership, and a poll we have up on Sport24 at present boasts 61% preference for that league by our readers.
Next up, with 19%, comes our own PSL, whilst La Liga earns only 14% and Serie A and the Bundesliga secure a flimsy 2% each!
Methinks MNF should largely stick to fishing where the fish are ...
Rob’s awesome foursome
1. Western Province v Lions, Absa Currie Cup rugby
Cape Town, Friday 19:00, SS1, CSN & SHD
I scratched my head long and hard before submitting my SuperBru tip for this one ... eventually opting for Province on the grounds that they really shouldn’t lose three times on the trot! But there’s no special conviction behind my theory: the Lions could just as easily extend their unbeaten run to six matches. Their team looks admirably cohesive right now, and the pack could give them an edge in possession and “go forward”. But just maybe Bok backliners Gio Aplon and Juan de Jongh will come off the bench at just the right time to narrowly tilt the scales the hometown way?
2. Arsenal v Liverpool, English Premiership soccer
London, Saturday 13:45, SS3, SHD3 & Maximo
On paper, this is always an appealing fixture – even if you sometimes suspect it commands that status for “heritage” reasons rather than necessarily the modern competence of the combatants! Both teams are already under a morsel of pressure after being held to draws in the opening round, the Gunners in a stormy match at Newcastle and ‘Pool at home to Sunderland after squandering both the lead and a penalty. Many critics tip the Anfielders, beefed by a few fairly decent signings, to end above Arsenal this season – in the last campaign the Gunners (fourth) were 10 comfortable points clear of the Reds in sixth. A hunch tells me Arsene Wenger’s team will sneak this one, though.
3. South Africa v New Zealand, Castle Tri-Nations rugby
Port Elizabeth, Saturday 17:05, M-Net, SS1 & SHD
It’s a sign of slightly grim times that you can’t even safely back a near full-strength Springbok side to see off a clearly more second-string All Black line-up, isn’t it? Personally, I’m leaning reluctantly toward the visitors, even while acknowledging at the same time that if the Boks hit their straps a heartening, clear-cut result in their favour is also quite possible. My scoreline pessimism is based around a suspicion that, as evidenced against the Wallabies in Durban, several Springbok players are “building” toward full match fitness and may be panting all over again in the last 20 minutes at Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium. And that’s when the ever-slick tourists may pounce ...
4. Kaizer Chiefs v Ajax Cape Town, MTN8 semi-final (1st leg) soccer
Johannesburg, Saturday 20:15, SABC1, SS4 & SHD
This encounter in the lucrative MTN8 arguably comes at a bad time for Ajax, last season’s luckless PSL runners-up after bossing the league for so long until their final-day heartbreak. They have made a decidedly iffy start to the 2011/12 campaign, gaining only one point from six thus far under new coach Maarten Stekelenburg. Chiefs, on the other hand, are flying, with two wins from two (Cosmos and Swallows) which have them second on the table only on goal difference from Bloemfontein Celtic. So you’d expect them to make the return trip to Cape Town a goal or two to the good.
