UTV & BBC & RTE & TV3

[BennyCake]

portadown scored 11 goals yesterday ! Apparently we have to be amazed by that !

How many did Brian Mallon get?

[Any craic]

I just watched BBCNI Newsline Sport from tonight on the iPlayer. The content was:- NI v Portugal soccer report, a quick mention of RoI/Trap, 16 goals from 6 Irish League games (already shown on Saturday), Ulster rugby action from Friday & go karting. Oh and the All Ireland Hurling Final - don't be silly, not a mention! Some things don't change.

[Syferus]

I just watched BBCNI Newsline Sport from tonight on the iPlayer. The content was:- NI v Portugal soccer report, a quick mention of RoI/Trap, 16 goals from 6 Irish League games (already shown on Saturday), Ulster rugby action from Friday & go karting. Oh and the All Ireland Hurling Final - don't be silly, not a mention! Some things don't change.

Definitely a Westminster ploy to force the north to remain partitioned. Sure everyone in NI loves stick fighting and whacking people with shite, nevermind flag waving.

[BennyCake]

I just watched BBCNI Newsline Sport from tonight on the iPlayer. The content was:- NI v Portugal soccer report, a quick mention of RoI/Trap, 16 goals from 6 Irish League games (already shown on Saturday), Ulster rugby action from Friday & go karting. Oh and the All Ireland Hurling Final - don't be silly, not a mention! Some things don't change.

Go karting? F**king go karting!?

Did they not show cheese rolling championships too? Or have Sky bought the rights to that?

[Any craic]

Yes, KARTING! I just checked again and here's what they said to finish: 'Finally congratulations to Charlie Eastwood who is now the European karting champion'. See for yourself here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b039rndx/BBC_Newsline_09_09_2013/

[Feckitt]

Maybe 'Any Craic' could confirm this, but I once heard that for every complaint the BBC get about not covering GAA, they get about 10 complaints for when they do cover it!

[Any craic]

No that's not true Feckitt. It's hard to explain their 'logic' and indeed this example may cloud the area even more, but one time the current Head of Sport said he got letters from Irish League fans as if this justified their blanket coverage of the Irish League. It was in answer to me asking why he refused to allow Sigerson Cup QF on a Friday afternoon at Queens onto that evening's Newsline sport. 'It's not senior sport', he said. 'Irish League is senior sport and that's only colleges. What do I say to the letters I get from irish League fans if I put that on'. When he then went on to compare Sigerson to Collingwood, I realised there was a serious mindset issue that is clearly still there.

[Feckitt]

OK thanks, I have regularly posted on this thread for years, and am not slow to point out the failings of the BBC and others.  A couple of weeks ago, i posted on this thread about how the Brolly/Cavanagh issue had brought the GAA out of the sports desk and onto the news desk for the first time ever when discussing a purely GAA subject.  But now we are back to the biggest day in Irish sport not even getting a mention.  Quite depressing.

[armaghniac]

Maybe 'Any Craic' could confirm this, but I once heard that for every complaint the BBC get about not covering GAA, they get about 10 complaints for when they do cover it!

People don't expect them to cover it, so don't complain.

[Feckitt]

I sent an email once to the BBC about them only putting up league results on their website for Ulster counties.  example Donegal bt Cork, Down lost to Mayo, Tyrone drew with Laois, but god knows what happened between Dublin & Kerry.  It wouldn't kill them to put all results up.  I think I told them either to put up all the results or don't bother putting any up.

The next day I got an email from Mark Sidebottom going f**king mad, fucked me off for being so cheeky, talked about the 5 hour show they had on Radio Ulster, all the work they were doing etc,etc. 

[Feckitt]

Ulster Champs Crossmaglen Rangers played Pearse Og of Armagh last night in front of an attendance of over 4000+.  BBC website? not a dickybird.

Meanwhile today the NI soccer league will throw up some hotly anticipated encounters like Glenavon v Ards and Warrenpoint Town v Crusaders.  BBC website?  Yes there will be reports on all matches, a full days coverage on Radio Ulster (FM), and TV highlights of all the goals at 6 o'clock.

Now I know that attendances at Irish league matches are the most closely guarded secret in Irish sport, but I suspect that most teams will not get close to a 4000+ attendance all season, and that a lot of teams may not have had a 4000+ attendance ever in the last 30 years!

In a previous post 'Any Craic' talked about a serious mindset issue when it comes to Gaelic Games.  They still think that coverage of Glenavon, Linfield, Glentoran, Portadown etc, is the soccer equivalent of Derry, Tyrone, Donegal, Armagh etc,    And for years they still got better coverage than county teams.  When is someone at BBC or UTV going to realise, ah yez know what I mean.

[thewobbler]

Some people just don't want to understand that BBC NI is a regional broadcaster.

Armagh club championships are local sport, not regional sport. The only justification for featuring local sport is when it has a regional impact. For example if Crossmaglen were knocked out, I'd expect it mentioned for it matters than the regional champions are gone.

All Ireland Hurling finals are national sport, not regional. With no Ulster teams involved, there's no more reason to discuss it than there is Andy Murray or Lewis Hamilton's successes.

While if you can't understand that discussing the outcome of every inter varsity match in a week would double the length of the programme, then BBC really have no chance.

The real problem is some people want personal broadcasters.

[ONeill]

Well said Wobbler.

Reporting on the Cross game would be like the Co Fermanagh road bowls game between Belcoo and Belleek getting a quare write up.

[rodney trotter]

 Wobbler is right,If it was Antrim Hurlers in the All Ireland Senior final they would get a mention. The BBC obviously only cares about team in  Ulster (6 counties mainly). They showed the All Ireland Semi between Tyrone and Mayo. But not a word the following week when the Dubs and Kerry were playing.

[Any craic]

I don't agree with the regional/national argument. To me, it's just an excuse for not covering. The BBC have always used things like that to conveniently not do as much GAA as they should. It's like they are happy that it falls between two stools.

For example, I remember a radio producer (who had been an official at Linfield before then) arguing in the early 90s that BBC Radio Ulster couldn't cover Ulster SFC games because the BBC didn't have facilities in the grounds for commentary, like they did in all of the Irish League grounds. He couldn't understand why the GAA couldn't use the same venues all the time and have their games at set times, like soccer every Saturday at 3 O'Clock. These were the days when the BBC TV Championship programme was well underway and very popular. The result was that all of the Ulster SFC games were on BBC TV but Radio Ulster was not even doing commentary! Some time later, the same radio producer was informed that his TV colleagues were able to provide him with a free line back to Belfast to broadcast radio commentary live from every venue! The fact was that he just didn't want to know and that's exactly the case these days too. The BBC has gone back to the bad old days in many ways. 

Put it like this, if a sporting event is getting 4000 in your area, then it should be covered, end of. It means there is a significant audience attending and there will be significant interest among people not attending, no matter whether it's local, regional, etc. GAA fans are always interested in games in other counties, as we all know. Our games are uniquely Irish and local, grass roots is our strength, which deserves to be acknowledged and appreciated. Instead, the BBC compare us with international games like rugby and football, which is unfair, but they make out that we are lesser because of that, when the opposite should be the case. If they wanted to know, if they appreciated the interest in strength of our unique games, they would so something about it.

But it's not just a matter of numbers, it's also a question of balance and perception. How can a game with that much interest get absolutely ignored by a company that has outlets in radio, TV, online, etc? Did they care to mention the game or any other clubs games anywhere on their Friday evening wrap on radio or TV? Did it get mentioned anywhere on Saturday? No, because they conveniently let it slip between the stools again. Surely the great BBC in this day and age should have some way of at least acknowledging a game like this, but of course they did away with their Sunday Sportsound GAA programme 5/6 years ago, which means they have no obvious outlet for club GAA. They argue it the other way on Saturdays, ie, that it isn't a GAA show either. Like I say, too many arguments that have the same result.