From the Sidelines (From Richmond and Twickenham Times)

From the Sidelines

5:43pm Friday 14th November 2008 in

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For all those Brentford fans expecting their television hoodoo to continue at Havant & Waterlooville on Sunday there was more than one pleasant surprise.

There may have been a few edgy moments after the team who gave Liverpool such a scare last season pulled a goal back, with keeper Ben Hamer making a couple of wonder saves.

But, in truth, over the 90 minutes Brentford were good value for their 3-1 win.

What was even more surprising, however, than the Bees actually winning on the box was the fact that ITV took the game so seriously.

Remember, this is the channel that a decade ago would only show live Football League matches on a regional basis.

The Midlands had a regular weekly live match, but if you lived elsewhere in the country it was pot luck whether you got a match or not. Even if your team was being shown in another part of the country.

There were more than one or two murmurs of discontent when BBC and Sky lost coverage of the FA Cup to ITV and Setanta for this season.

The fact is I would have a celebratory pint if the BBC lost all of its remaining football coverage – not that there is much left.

The smug-fest of the likes of Lineker, Lawrenson, Hansen and Shearer has taken their coverage to an all-time low.

They seem to have a monopoly on most self-obsessed commentators and the least insightful pundits. And they still persist with Garth Crooks.

In contrast, I thought ITV’s coverage last Sunday was really rather impressive.

They dragged their crack commentary team of Clive Tyldesley and David Pleat to the match.

In the humble surrounds of West Leigh Park, Tyldesley could not even find an excuse to mention Manchester United and ‘that night in Barcelona’...

They also got a really worthwhile studio expert in Bees legend Martin Allen.

However, I wasn’t too sure about the Setanta-style interviews with the Havant manager and a substituted player during the match.

I got the impression they would have got short shrift had they tried to get Bees manager Andy Scott in on that act.

It was noticeable on Setanta the next night that the professionals of Wycombe Wanderers also saved their comments until after the match, while nothing about their hosts, AFC Wimbledon, was sacred.

Once again the professionals left their talking until after the match. And they won.