Dear Sky Sports... Tezza and Bazza

[Barry Badrinath]

20 minutes ago, GeordieSaint said:

We don’t have many articulate ones...

Thats why everyone went apeshit about Jon Wilkin the other week, he was saying the same old , but it sounded slightly more impressive,  and it was new.

[Big Ask]

2 minutes ago, Barry Badrinath said:

Thats why everyone went apeshit about Jon Wilkin the other week, he was saying the same old , but it sounded slightly more impressive,  and it was new.

Hands down better than Baz and Tez

[Graham]

The commentary teams and studio talk around the games in the NRL is good.

Andrew Voss is the benchmark for me.

As for a recent ex player who is good behind the microphone... Michael Ennis. He has good well reasoned comments. (Used to dislike him when he played!) 

When it comes to humour though as in the magazine shows in Oz, they leave me cold.

 

[meast]

42 minutes ago, DavidM said:

Quality stat

Quality int he?

[DavidM]

Blocker Roach is a bit baz n tez mind . Hearing him say names is a good laugh 

[DavidM]

3 minutes ago, meast said:

Quality int he?

Good , great , outstanding , amazing , fabulous 

[DavidM]

9 minutes ago, Graham said:

The commentary teams and studio talk around the games in the NRL is good.

Andrew Voss is the benchmark for me.

As for a recent ex player who is good behind the microphone... Michael Ennis. He has good well reasoned comments. (Used to dislike him when he played!) 

When it comes to humour though as in the magazine shows in Oz, they leave me cold.

 

I do wish Warren Smith would stop saying ‘ the kick is too big ‘ . Talk proper fella

[Industria ditat]

I wish they would stop showing a close up of Phil Clarke when the game is going on in the background - Sky should know better than that

[Toby Chopra]

2 hours ago, Neutralfan7 said:

He's going back to Oz to commentate for the NRL isnt he? 

I didn't know that, but if so it doesn't surprise me at all. 

[Father Ted]

SKY had Offiah on a couple of weeks ago and he was excellent. Wilkin was good too and if anyone listened to his chat with Dave Woods on the BBC blog would appreciate he's intelligent and articulate. Bin Barry and Terry and replace them with Offiah and Wilkin. When he's not playing and available Shenton is very good too.

SKY need to change personnel to improve their coverage. McDermott, O'Connor to be replaced by Offiah and Wilkin. The summerisers will be good then.       

[Dunbar]

20 minutes ago, Father Ted said:

SKY had Offiah on a couple of weeks ago and he was excellent. Wilkin was good too and if anyone listened to his chat with Dave Woods on the BBC blog would appreciate he's intelligent and articulate. Bin Barry and Terry and replace them with Offiah and Wilkin. When he's not playing and available Shenton is very good too.

SKY need to change personnel to improve their coverage. McDermott, O'Connor to be replaced by Offiah and Wilkin. The summerisers will be good then.       

I must be the only person who doesn't rate Offiah as a pundit... i find him quite awkward when he speaks and not particularly insightful.  

I think Wilkin is good though.

[Rupert Prince]

2 hours ago, Industria ditat said:

I wish they would stop showing a close up of Phil Clarke when the game is going on in the background - Sky should know better than that

They could not afford Henry Paul.

[TBone]

I thought that the live sky commentary team had run out of any original irrelevant ###### to talk about during the game when, during the Sts games the main commentator suddelnly started talking about the cost of a pint of milk in 1970-something! I don’t pay to listen to this drivel. I much prefer the Aus commentary where at leat 90% of what is said has at least some relevance to the game. And what is it with Sky and showing shots of one or other coach doing nothing of any interest to anyone when the bloody game is still in flow?

A long while back I used to watch Sky with the radio commentary on \but the satelliite signal is so delayed now that it just doesn’t sync anymore

 

[silverback]

17 minutes ago, Rupert Prince said:

They could not afford Henry Paul.

Think it were robbie paul in his crombie hes had 15 years that used to appear and tell us what we had just seen,i turn volume down as baz n tez are a joke with all the rampin it up and stay on island or you will be stood under the Hs.i always like sam burgess when he popped in box now and again.wilkins fine too.

[Wiltshire Warrior Dragon]

I am intrigued how threads on here about Sky coverage almost always concentrate on the commentary.  Barry and Terry may not be the best, but I am not as irritated by them or the commentators (though the latter's player recognition is still a bit rusty) as I am by some of the producer's choices of what to show when.

There is an obsession with showing instantly, while play continues, a comparatively trivial moment like a lost possession.  Perhaps the producer had his professional upbringing on the dark side, where the chance to show reply after replay is a godsend as a set scrum collapses for the umpteenth time, but our game just doesn't have those interminable breaks in play.  Today, we didn't see how Wigan regained possession for their penultimate try because we were watching a replay of a fairly minor incident.

My starting point would be to consider what the spectator at the ground (in 'normal' time!) sees, and only deviate from that very rarely, and wait for breaks in play to do so.  We also do not need to see a coach every time he is mentioned by the commentators; how many times did we see a glum looking Chris Chester yesterday, I wonder.  I lost count!

The views into random fans living rooms add nothing for me and become an actual irritant when, yet again, they are an interruption to play that is actually going on.

I watched a little NRL before Super League resumed and liked the way they sometimes show an action replay while still showing what is actually happening in a box in the corner (though I would actually show the action replay in the box and I think it is the other way round)  The only visually tiresome thing with the NRL coverage for me was the frequent repetition of pictures of the commentary team members with, in the case of ex-players, various statistics from their playing or coaching days.

[lsharp91]

I half agree with this. I think they're great blokes with a lot to offer, but when you compare the standard of commentary and punditry in other top flight sports, we fall way short of the mark. NRL commentators bring so much excitement and humour to the game and really know how to work an audience.

[Tex Evans Thigh]

Funny enough I saw an old facebook memory from 2014 where I was complaining about how bad Tez was as a commentator, he's probably gotten worse. Baz is ok for a bit of humour but there is no need for the two of them, replacing Tez with someone younger and more articulate would be a good move.

I've really enjoyed Danny McGuire since he joined, very knowledgeable and considered comments. Comes across very well and maybe he would be a good long term addition.

[lsharp91]

How about bringing Dave Woods over from the BBC?

[Bedfordshire Bronco]

6 hours ago, Toby Chopra said:

I like Phil, you never know what he's going to say, do - or wear - next!

But I'm afraid the other two just don't add anything any more.

Not everyone needs to be a smooth talker, but it's mostly clichés from them now. There must be a younger recently retired player with some personality who can add a bit of edge to it, surely?

Jammer could move straight into that role but looks like he fancies another year or two on the pitch, now he's stepped down a level. 

Phil needs to stay. 

RL needs to appeal to the ladies on all levels 

[nadera78]

Stuart Pyke has a weird voice, so add him to the list.

I know Neville Smith left SKY a year or so back but they seem to be continuing with his approach to covering RL. It portrays our sport as a bit of a joke, and the weird thing is I'm not sure any other sport either experiences it or would put up with it. I'd be including stuff like this in the negotiations for the next TV deal. 

[Harry Stottle]

12 hours ago, Neutralfan7 said:

Haha thats true mate! But I could imagine players like Sinfield, Sculthorpe, Peacock, Long to name a few would be better than the current lot! Even if they just done it occasionally 

Sinfield and Peacock have been used previously, that they are not utilised now says enough.

[Harry Stottle]

12 hours ago, Number 16 said:

I did in the original to Sky. 

Can you supply me with an email address please.

Did you recieve any replies?

[gingerjon]

3 hours ago, nadera78 said:

Stuart Pyke has a weird voice, so add him to the list.

I know Neville Smith left SKY a year or so back but they seem to be continuing with his approach to covering RL. It portrays our sport as a bit of a joke, and the weird thing is I'm not sure any other sport either experiences it or would put up with it. I'd be including stuff like this in the negotiations for the next TV deal. 

Quite often their cricket commentary drifts into 'banter' (oddly Shane Warne always manages to steer the conversation around to hair) but that's balanced by the in depth discussions they have that can be genuinely insightful plus cricket, like football, gets an hour long 'debate' where people talk - and the attrition rate is very high. You don't get to stick around in the latter because you're funny, a bit of a character or, even, were a good player.

We have all of the banter but none of the depth. The only time I can remember Sky consistently allowing for the fact that rugby league has tactics and teams that exploit them was when they allowed Tony Rea time to explain what was going on occasionally. I think Jon Wells could do that but he's usually given about thirty seconds to run though how six first half tries were scored...

[Harry Stottle]

Recent players who have been very good include Luke Robinson, JJB, Kevin Brown and Danny McGuire

[Wolford6]

4 minutes ago, Harry Stottle said:

Recent players who have been very good include Luke Robinson, JJB, Kevin Brown and Danny McGuire

3 x Yorkshire and 1 x Lancashire.

You're definitely on to something there, Harry.