M.O.T.D. was better in the seventies

[despritdan 241]

I've been watching Match of the Day since first becoming interested in football at the start of the seventies. Then, they featured 30 minutes of the main match and twenty minutes of another match with just the goals from the other games. Since winning the contract back from ITV, they've copied the format of 'The Match', showing brief highlights of all the games played.

 

I preferred the old format because you got a better feel of the game and it was more satisfying. The present format, showing snippets of all the games is frustrating because they're over far too quickly. Does anybody else feel the old format was better?

[Happ Hazzard 10]

They still show long highlights for at least a couple of games. The pundits are a bit rubbish now though, Savage is annoying and Shearer is just really boring.

[Bypassblade 10]

I've said that for years, that's why I don't watch it Shearer has the personality of a chip, and Savage is a big head. Like Sky they think there's only the Premier League, get sick of it really.

[PRESLEY 1,224]

Savage was long forgotten until he went on a stupid poncy dancing show, this is what happens when these daft reality shows bring back the dead and buried, cannon and ball, annoying david what's his face from bucks fiz and dollar, if this carries on just about every programme on telly will be over run by these zombies.

[Mister M 1,609]

Not sure if it's MOTD but I used to find it hilarious to watch Ray Subbs and Mark Lawrenson bitching like a pair of old women

[md00071 10]

In the early days of MOTD (60s-80s) they would cover only 2-3 games each week. These were the days before outside-broadcast trucks and satellite uplinks, and the footage would be recorded onto video tape on site, and the sent via motorcycle courier to the BBC during the mid-evening after the game. (This is the reason why QPR featured a lot on MOTD.) At the BBC, the video editors wouldn't have time to make detailed edits and cuts. What they would do is follow handwritten notes from the film crews on site as to which bits of tape contained the goals, fouls, free kicks etc, usually comprising large chunks of action before a cut. In other words, they didn't show the highlights, they just removed the sections of film containing nothing vital to the game.

 

The BBC began to overdue the clever editing in the 90s, when they had the luxury of being able to edit the footage as it was being filmed due to digital editing techniques. The worst examples of this was their tendency to re-record commentary, leading to howlers like "Here comes Le Tissier, it's his kind of chance...AND IT'S HIS KIND OF GOAL!". Not only could this tampering sound false, it could also rewrite history, tailoring it's coverage to current events. For example, when West Brom lost to Woking in the FA Cup in 1991, they decided to overdub the crowd chanting "We Want Talbot Out!" throughout the game when it was shown on MOTD. Unfortunately, they overdubbed over the entire match, including when West Brom were actually in the lead!

 

Talbot was sacked the next day.

[dosxuk 10]

In the early days of MOTD (60s-80s) they would cover only 2-3 games each week. These were the days before outside-broadcast trucks and satellite uplinks, and the footage would be recorded onto video tape on site, and the sent via motorcycle courier to the BBC during the mid-evening after the game. (This is the reason why QPR featured a lot on MOTD.) At the BBC, the video editors wouldn't have time to make detailed edits and cuts. What they would do is follow handwritten notes from the film crews on site as to which bits of tape contained the goals, fouls, free kicks etc, usually comprising large chunks of action before a cut. In other words, they didn't show the highlights, they just removed the sections of film containing nothing vital to the game.

 

Basically all football matches covered by more than one camera have been done with outside broadcast trucks since television coverage of football started.

 

These trucks used to work into fixed lines provided by the Post Office, or more commonly, using microwave links back to broadcast bases - another reason why QPR matches were common - it was easy to set up a radio link between the stadium and Television Centre.

 

Regional matches would often be covered by a single camera, with the footage, as you said, delivered by motorcycle, but not directly to the BBC in London, but to one of their regional offices where it could be played "down the line" to London.

 

As you say, in those days, only a couple of matches would be filmed properly, limiting the highlights of matches that could be shown. Today all Premier League games are broadcast live and are injested immediately into the BBC's editing systems. The BBC will also know they get higher ratings by showing highlights of all that day's matches rather than just the two or three "headline" fixtures. I dread to think how many good matches they would have missed out on by only showing the "important" ones.

[md00071 10]

MOTD is still far, far better that the ITV Des Lynam-version that ran for a mercifully short time when they held the rights. The BBC have the rights now as part of an agreement with Sky. Sky have long realised that MOTD is the best advert for their coverage around.

 

Here is the classic Brian Clough interview when he slates MOTD's coverage. John Motson never came off best in a heated debate, as he found with Sir Alex years later.

 

[cressida 1,553]

I'm really fed up and bored with the pundits now - exception Andy Townsend - and I usually switch channels, I prefer to watch the match and not be influence by them

[PRESLEY 1,224]

I'm really fed up and bored with the pundits now - exception Andy Townsend - and I usually switch channels, I prefer to watch the match and not be influence by them

 

Andy Townsend, all he can say is flash it in or the side needs a change of shape, and a load of other fancy words to make him sound good, he's nearly as bad as cry baby Lawrenson , who drools that much over brazil the studio floor must be flooded when he's on.

[Supertramp 10]

Andy Townsend, all he can say is flash it in or the side needs a change of shape, and a load of other fancy words to make him sound good, he's nearly as bad as cry baby Lawrenson , who drools that much over brazil the studio floor must be flooded when he's on.

 

Townsend is the worst pundit ever. I mean ever, ITV football is terrible.

[PRESLEY 1,224]

Townsend is the worst pundit ever. I mean ever, ITV football is terrible.

 

Totally agree why do we have to listen to his rubbish all the time.