Yup, ITV's brand new time slot for the footy was beaten senseless in the ratings against Ann Harlot's Weakest Link on the Beeb.

What's the world coming to?

-- Anonymous, August 20, 2001

Answers

Awfully Predictable I'm afraid.

-- Anonymous, August 20, 2001

It was reported on the BBC this morning that the evening program had 28 minutes of football 25 mins of analysis and 17mins of ads ... or summatt like that

-- Anonymous, August 20, 2001

I thought it was quite good. Much preferered to Match of the day, I used to fall asleep during MOTD as it was on at a stupid time.

I didn't think much of Venables's prozone, and also thought that it would attract a larger audiance if there were say 7 -8 minutes from EVERY game . This was the problem with MOTD, some games were compressed to less than a minute of highlights, and it looks like "the premiership" is going down the same route.

-- Anonymous, August 20, 2001

Yup it was full of ads but I was still quite impressed with it...you've got to remember that people like me (pissheads!) haven't seen match of the day in years!! it was always at a shite time on a saturday night and too early on a sunday....

The whole Andy Townsend bit was a bit naff but they'll get there....

-- Anonymous, August 20, 2001

I enjoyed it the ads were abit too frequent, that'll get irritating but there were some good ones I hadn't seen before on Saturday. I much prefer the new time. I was always in a drunken stupour by the time MOTD came on...............Just thought I'd say that before Jay or any of my house guests from last season's match at Leicester are lurking. I am usually the perfect hostess honest ;-)

-- Anonymous, August 20, 2001

What do you mean MOTD was on at a shite time? It was perfect - gave fans a chance to have a drink AND get back to watch the highlights and didn't clash with just about every phone in radio show.

The only advantage I could see was that it generously showed us dominating Saturday's match.

ml3

-- Anonymous, August 20, 2001

Match of the day was at a crap time on a saturday night! too late to watch before you go out and too early to watch when you get in....well for me anyway....

-- Anonymous, August 20, 2001

Aye ML-3 It did appear to be more one-sided than the Five Live commentators had me believe !

I'm obviously getting old.......either that or I drink too much too soon! I almost always had to be woken up for MOTD

-- Anonymous, August 20, 2001

With MOTD, you used to wait up till 11.30 just to see a thirty second sumary, If Newcastle's highlight was after 11.30, the beer would have knocked me out. Atleat at 7.30 I'll be relatively sober.

-- Anonymous, August 20, 2001

I used to love staggering in pissed with a half eaten pizza and pass out trying to watch it. Even better was waking up with the Teletubbies on wondering who had come in and put the volume way up there, let alone opened a can of your beer and left it by the sofa with barely a sip out of it and just who had dropped the pizza down the back of the cushions??? Fortunately the MotD theme tune would startle you into wakefulness and they would show you where you had been the day before. Now you have to leave the match straight away with only one pint (hah!) or somehow work out how to set a video when you get in (psfstt! Probably easier than when you are sober mind).

-- Anonymous, August 20, 2001

Didn't your missus carry you up to bed then Softie?

It's the way of things up here in geordieland, that's the reason we get married ........ isn't it?

-- Anonymous, August 20, 2001

BTW, shall we gan and break into Nick Callaghans house this week, seeing as he's on holiday like.

-- Anonymous, August 20, 2001

Did you ever notice that either Newcastle or Sunderland were ALWAYS last shown on MOTD? Playing on fan loyalty for extra viewers is disgraceful in my opinion. More often than not I would miss MOTD and watch the Sky Goals on Sunday which has much much longer highlights than the BBC (or ITV now for that matter)

-- Anonymous, August 20, 2001

Paul - sorry if I'm wrong, but I thought Auntie's policy was (apart from the headliner matches) to show the games with the most goals first. Could go a long way to explaining why Toon and the Makems were shown later in the scedules.

-- Anonymous, August 20, 2001

Schhhhhhhhhhhhhhedules.

-- Anonymous, August 20, 2001

Not always Screacher, I remember the 8-0 match with Shearer's 5 goal rally and that was shown third last. You can't seriously be suggesting that there were more goals in some of the games that day?

It might be based on goals, but Newcastle always seemed to come near the end, and we got beaten by a canny few goals on more than a few occasions.

-- Anonymous, August 20, 2001