The BBC can actually f*ck off

[Barry the bird boggler]

Like Sky are any different! If they had first choice they'd show ManU, Arsenal, Chelsea and Liverpool every time.

I would agree that the choice of Man C v West Ham was a total joke esp. given the games we'd had with Spurs. Personally I may have gone for Brstol R v Fulham or Sheff Wed v Derby which may have survived the weather if they'd been scheduled for the yesterday rather than Tuesday.

No TV channel would have sellected Havant v Swansea.

[Silver Fox]

While I kind of agree with Floyd the suggestion that the beeb should televise a game between a non-lesgue side and a league 1 side on prime time as the prize is a trip to Anfield, when at the time of the decision that might not even have been the case, is a tad loopy.

It is annoying that Manyoo are on every single time but as Mr Weller said "the public wants what the public gets" and as the beeb show 2(?) other games per round and tend to cover very small teams in the first 2 rounds they're not really that bad after all.

In fact, apart from too much talk on MOTD maybe I don't really agree with Floyd at all

[papereyes]

Why are you surprised though?

There is no chance they will get anything at liverpool, or even score a goal for that matter. Competitive football is capped these days because of the money involved.
People want to see a competitive game, wigan vs chelsea is just that, and it could go either way. This will be an 8-0 liverpool with a goal coming in the first 10 minutes, no point in watching it IMO.

1) I really don't think he was talking about showing Liverpool vs Havant at all.

2) Wigan vs Chelsea - odds are that it won't be a tight game.

[papereyes]

Why televise it again?

Demand from real supporters.

1000's of United fans couldn't get their hands on tickets for the game so the BBC do the right thing in showing it.

Havant get 400 fans a game, if you're a true Havant fan then you can go. Football isn't about 'interest' it's about passion, in in letting the real fans watch their clubthe BBC have done the right thing.

UNITED>rest of england

On the one hand they bang on about the magic of the FA cup and on the other ...

You say football is about passion and then completely exclude smaller clubs from having any. And, I'll be honest, the FA Cup is about more than just the big clubs playing the other big clubs, surely. People remember the plucky underdogs getting their day in the sun far more than a repeat of the next week's Premiership matches in which nothing much happens, but at a faster pace.

[Katie Marsden]

Why televise it again?

Demand from real supporters.

1000's of United fans couldn't get their hands on tickets for the game so the BBC do the right thing in showing it.

Havant get 400 fans a game, if you're a true Havant fan then you can go. Football isn't about 'interest' it's about passion, in in letting the real fans watch their clubthe BBC have done the right thing.

UNITED>rest of england

On the one hand they bang on about the magic of the FA cup and on the other ...

You say football is about passion and then completely exclude smaller clubs from having any.

I'm not saying they don't have passion, I'm sure the Havant 400 are just as passionate as any 400 match going United fans.

The difference is scale. Only 400 people are interested in Havant where as many thousands are about United.

[TBM]

While I kind of agree with Floyd the suggestion that the beeb should televise a game between a non-lesgue side and a league 1 side on prime time as the prize is a trip to Anfield, when at the time of the decision that might not even have been the case, is a tad loopy.

It is annoying that Manyoo are on every single time but as Mr Weller said "the public wants what the public gets" and as the beeb show 2(?) other games per round and tend to cover very small teams in the first 2 rounds they're not really that bad after all.

In fact, apart from too much talk on MOTD maybe I don't really agree with Floyd at all

I agree with you Foxy!

Not having Sky i dont get to see "live" games so having footy on the BBC is a novelty for me, i'd much rather be watching the "better" teams than some shite game between a non-league and a League One side.

As for MOTD, surely this is there to just show you all the goals and the major incidents - im quite happy to sit there for an hour and a half seeing all the goals from the day than having to sit through an hour PER GAME watching Football First - that would bore me more. Granted i'd watch the Reading game on there but the rest, i'd rather just see the goals and major chances etc.

Oh and they cant give anything away for Goal of the Month due to the scandal but i've heard that it's gonna be the first one that returns when the "ban" if lifted.

[papereyes]

Demand from real supporters.

1000's of United fans couldn't get their hands on tickets for the game so the BBC do the right thing in showing it.

Havant get 400 fans a game, if you're a true Havant fan then you can go. Football isn't about 'interest' it's about passion, in in letting the real fans watch their clubthe BBC have done the right thing.

UNITED>rest of england

On the one hand they bang on about the magic of the FA cup and on the other ...

You say football is about passion and then completely exclude smaller clubs from having any.

I'm not saying they don't have passion, I'm sure the Havant 400 are just as passionate as any 400 match going United fans.

The difference is scale. Only 400 people are interested in Havant where as many thousands are about United.

Fair enough. I'm not 100 % sure that should be their criteria for showing an FA cup game.

Especially when the choice wasn't against Manchester United but against Manchester City vs West Ham and especially given that, as pointed out elsewhere, BBC do have the technology to show two games at once via BBCi.

Also, I have a feeling there'd be as much, if not more interest from neutrals (as seen on here) for the game between the minnows. I do wonder how many people actually watched the Man City game last night.

I also don't think the BBC should pander exclsuively to the Premiership, in terms of who they show in FA Cup games and think a bit of imagination in their fixture choice might be better for them.

As for United vs Villa - after 4 almost identical games, perhaps they could show something else. There's always complaints about repeats.

[Katie Marsden]

I do wonder how many people actually watched the Man City game last night.

I can't resist this one
About 27,000
MASSIVE

LOL

[papereyes]

I do wonder how many people actually watched the Man City game last night.

I can't resist this one
About 27,000
MASSIVE

LOL

Fair enough.

[davis69]

Why are you surprised though?

There is no chance they will get anything at liverpool, or even score a goal for that matter. Competitive football is capped these days because of the money involved.
People want to see a competitive game, wigan vs chelsea is just that, and it could go either way. This will be an 8-0 liverpool with a goal coming in the first 10 minutes, no point in watching it IMO.

As i've always said women know nothing about football

[The Cube]

On FA Cup 3rd round day, Football Focus went on and on and on about the magic of the cup, including having digs at Kitson and Reading.

And what did they show on the programme? The two big set-piece interviews were with Fabregas and Ronaldo. The next longest feature was an interview with Martin O'Neill. They had several items on other Premiership clubs, none of which was any different from any other Saturday.

Their concession to the FA Cup was to have brief interviews with the managers of Havant, Chasetown and Bristol City, one including a little bit about a 2nd round replay win.

Frankly, the BBC in general are heading in the same direction as the not-at-all-lamented Premiership coverage on ITV a few years ago.

[Barry the bird boggler]

But then to their credit they do bother to show live games from the 1st and 2nd rounds of the cup whereas i can't see ITV bothering or at least not outside of the TV areas the clubs come from.

[Stranded]

You are probably right but I'm sure I saw somewhere that as part of the joint ITV/Setanta deal Setanta will show some games from the qualifying rounds, certainly once the Blue Sq Prem clubs are in it.

[Y21_Royal]

Regardless of what games the beeb show, their real problem is just how awful the coverage. I still don't understand why Mark Lawrenson, John Motson and Garth Crooks are continually used, they are all terrible. Motson uses the same tired cliches every game and after 30 odd years still hasn't learned that the art of a good commentator is to shut up once in a while.
Lawrenson adds nothing. I could do his job. All his analysis ever consists of is 'lets look at Ronaldo/Berbatov/Drogba/Fabregas'. The best thing he every came out with was 'I don't know what to say' during the Croatia game, at least he was quite.
The less said about Garth Crooks the better. Which is ironic given that he doesn't seem able to say one word where he can use fifteen. Plus, his eyes scare me.

There was a piece in the paper about cricket and how the English game is suffering because the best cricketing minds are going into TV instead of coaching. I think the opposite is happening in football and we're left with the dregs.

[Dirk Gently]

There was a piece in the paper about cricket and how the English game is suffering because the best cricketing games are going to TV instead of coaching. I think the opposite is happening in football and we're left with the dregs.

Sorry, can you explain this sentence? It doesn't make sense to me.

[Y21_Royal]

There was a piece in the paper about cricket and how the English game is suffering because the best cricketing minds are going into TV instead of coaching. I think the opposite is happening in football and we're left with the dregs.

Sorry, can you explain this sentence? It doesn't make sense to me.

Oops. It's been corrected.

[Dirk Gently]

Thanks. Makes sense now, and I agree with you.

[Y21_Royal]

Thanks. Makes sense now, and I agree with you.

Everyone's a winner!

[Katie Marsden]

There was a piece in the paper about cricket and how the English game is suffering because the best cricketing minds are going into TV instead of coaching.

Good point and one I'v never thought of. Mon£y Talk$

[Rev Algenon Stickleback H]

On FA Cup 3rd round day, Football Focus went on and on and on about the magic of the cup, including having digs at Kitson and Reading.

And what did they show on the programme? The two big set-piece interviews were with Fabregas and Ronaldo. The next longest feature was an interview with Martin O'Neill. They had several items on other Premiership clubs, none of which was any different from any other Saturday.

Their concession to the FA Cup was to have brief interviews with the managers of Havant, Chasetown and Bristol City, one including a little bit about a 2nd round replay win.

Frankly, the BBC in general are heading in the same direction as the not-at-all-lamented Premiership coverage on ITV a few years ago.

what annoyed me more (as I'm sure if the BBC had been able to see into the future they might have shown either the Havant or the Newcastle games) was that even after the Man City game finished, they wasted all the remaining time talking about Keegan taking over rather than showing the goals or even bothering with the Havant tie. You just feel the BBC don't give a shit about the other teams in the cup.

When they showed the early rounds of the FA Cup, for example, not only did they shove coverage right to the end of match of the day, but the presenters seemed more interested in picking up poor play to laugh at rather than giving it any respect. They treated the early rounds with contempt as if mentioning lower division football clubs was beneath them, and having to give up part of their premiership coverage for "that" was some kind of insult that they only complied with for contractual reasons. Jeremy Paxman read out the weather on newsnight with more enthusiasm.