Basil interviews Leon Cameron

[The 747]

People have brain farts from time to time. I think Basil lost his words rather than not actually knowing. Mistakes happen, just his was on national telly

Sure but it's not the first time, he makes mistakes all the time; gets basic things wrong. And it's because they don't do their research and don't prepare properly.

 

[Bulldog1954]

How Peter Donegan never got a gig commentating AFL games, I'll never know. It's hardly like there were loads of quality callers keeping him out.

It's because he has he the nerve to actually tell you what's happening instead of carrying on like a moron.

 

[MinerBoy]

Hopefully Dennis is seeing what the future of commentating is going to be and reconsiders his retirement.

Dennis can be the vin scully of the AFL & just keep going (although vin is retiring this year too)

Dennis is just as bad. Took him quite a few weeks to work out Sicily was a right footer.

 

[radiojake]

When I first read the OP I thought it was satire or something... that footage is classic! I think I occasionally get confused with which Scott brother coaches Geelong/North Melbourne, but then again I'm not paid to know this shit...

So extraordinarily bad

I think what's even worse is that he isn't the first to do it. The one and only Dwayne Russell loves nothing more than spending a good 5 minutes discussing a player's background and family. In between all his bullshit catchphrases of course.

How good is footy on mute?

Dwayne Russell also likes bringing up any connection, however minor, that anyone has with Port Adelaide...

"He once stepped foot in the Alberton Club rooms as a 7 year old, when his family's car broke down out the front and they needed to use a phone to call roadside assistance"

not an actual quote, but sometimes it would be just as ridiculous

 

[Hoooops]

The only bearable TV footy commentator at the moment is Anthony Hudson, in my opinion. He makes the game exciting (like BT tries to) but actually commentates (not barracks) and knows what he's talking about. Most other callers, on TV at least, either try too hard to hype up the game (*cough* BT *cough*) or are so boring/Captain Obvious that I automatically tune out whenever they start speaking.

I would still prefer to see the FTA rights in the hands of Channel 10 - their commentary was great when they had Hudson and Underwood on the team. Sure, they might not return if 10 bought back the broadcast rights, but hopefully the people at Ten would make better decisions than Seven have when it comes to... Well, everything.

Anyway, rant over.

 

[walshy93]

The only bearable TV footy commentator at the moment is Anthony Hudson, in my opinion. He makes the game exciting (like BT tries to) but actually commentates (not barracks) and knows what he's talking about. Most other callers, on TV at least, either try too hard to hype up the game (*cough* BT *cough*) or are so boring/Captain Obvious that I automatically tune out whenever they start speaking.

I would still prefer to see the FTA rights in the hands of Channel 10 - their commentary was great when they had Hudson and Underwood on the team. Sure, they might not return if 10 bought back the broadcast rights, but hopefully the people at Ten would make better decisions than Seven have when it comes to... Well, everything.

Anyway, rant over.

Michael Christian was always pretty good for 10 as well. Never saw the appeal of Underwood.

 

[Saint12]

What a T*****. Constantly F**** up the names of the Saints players when commentating our games.

 

[Saint12]

Danny Frawlry once interviewed Don Pyke on MMM, when Pyke was Asst Coach at the Crows a few years ago. Crows were playing Eagles and every question Spud asked was about how the Eagles would structure up. Pyke had to remind him halfway through the inverview that he worked for the Crows.

HaHa Frawley is an embarrassment to us Saints.
Especially on the Bounce.

 

[Saint12]

Someone had to do it...

Hilarious

 

[Elite Master]

Michael Christian was always pretty good for 10 as well. Never saw the appeal of Underwood.

Tim Lame and Quarterbrain also look so much better now compared to the team at 7. I actually miss them.

 

[Hoooops]

Tim Lame and Quarterbrain also look so much better now compared to the team at 7. I actually miss them.

You miss Quartermain?
I don't.

 

[NarklesHelmet]

How Peter Donegan never got a gig commentating AFL games, I'll never know. It's hardly like there were loads of quality callers keeping him out.

I just don't get it. Donegan is just in the wrong country I think. I watch a lot of football in England and the lower leagues there and the commentators are just ordinary guys who know their stuff. Yes they have special comments men and panels at half/full-time that are ex-players but for the actual calling there are a few different blokes who, of course you recognise their voice but, besides one or two have no idea what they look like.

Donegan is in that mould. He knows his stuff, calls the game well and doesn't go over the top unless it is called for. He'd do well anywhere else except Australia with it's weird boys club mentality when it comes to commentators. Fans want and crave accuracy in their commentator , not in-jokes, blokey humour and over-the-top, contrived emotion. On that front it is really only Anthony Hudson that does the job properly here (Dennis was good but became a parody of himself).

Which brings us back to the train-wreck that is Basil. He has nothing he can hang his hat on as a commentator. Amazingly, he has LESS accuracy than even the thickest special comments ex-players on the commentator lists (think Shaw, Johnson). He didn't play the game at the highest level. His "humour" is forced. Seriously the bloke has nothing to offer and how he has a job is one of the great mysteries of our time.

 

[Tas]

I want to press Blue for Tim Lane and Robert Walls Carlton commentary, the knives that came out when the Blues were losing badly was top shelf comedy. That was the big loss from C10 not broadcasting footy any longer.

 

[Sam The Doc]

I know he's from Perth but his commentary is about 2 hours behind play.

i have noticed that. you go grab a drink after a goal and he's still calling the same goal.
If it's not delayed calling, it's him talking about Ryders sister who like vegemite on her bread.
quite funny actually.

 

[Sam The Doc]

I want to press Blue for Tim Lane and Robert Walls Carlton commentary, the knives that came out when the Blues were losing badly was top shelf comedy. That was the big loss from C10 not broadcasting footy any longer.

i want to press blue to hear 5 mins of whatever the hell Brad Scott is on about whenever he coaches. The other night you got a 50 metre penalty to put you in front of goal and he was going mental.

 

[Doss]

Ian Robertson was an interesting one from the 90s. He often sounded like he had some money riding on things within games; there was one particular goal in the 2000 preliminary final that he called with a gusto that sounded very much like he had an ulterior motive to be happy that the particular player (Blake Caracella from memory) who'd just goaled had done so.

But, he clearly actually enjoyed the game; he was far from wooden.

On a negative note, as much joy as I obviously get watching a replay of the 1993 grand final, it's tempered slightly by Ian Roberton consistently (and I mean all day) putting ridiculous emphasis on the 'mer' in Mark Mercuri's name- it was almost like he thought there was a hyphen between 'mer' and 'curi'. Just grating.

 

[Tas]

i want to press blue to hear 5 mins of whatever the hell Brad Scott is on about whenever he coaches. The other night you got a 50 metre penalty to put you in front of goal and he was going mental.

Brad is high-strung.

 

[dean33]

Bulldogs get a goal.
Basil Zempalis: "we now cross to the Bulldogs coach Leon Cameron, Leon that was a good settler for you guys"
Leon Cameron (GWS coach): um, no, not a great settler for us Basil....

God help us if 7 think Basil and Rompingwins are the future of commentary. With Den retiring this year and Bruce presumably not long after, this is the time for 7 to start blooding some new commentators in preperation.

Anyway, anyone got any other horribly awkward footy commentary memories?

Zempalis is the worst going around bar none, if he's nose isn't dribbling he's tripping over his tongue. How he managed to snag his wife is one of the great mysteries of our generation.

 

[schmuttt]

I want to press Blue for Tim Lane and Robert Walls Carlton commentary, the knives that came out when the Blues were losing badly was top shelf comedy. That was the big loss from C10 not broadcasting footy any longer.

Thank you so much for reminding me of this



Walls sounds like he is about to cry LOL

edit - added more walls/lane bleating plus bonus andy maher crying. Skip to 5 min for the best bit

 

[PP34]

Seriously commentates like he's high or something.

Awful delivery, comes up with horrible lines and constantly stuffs things up. I know he's live on air but he's just another example of how rubbish the AFL media industry tends to be in general, particularly when it comes to TV personalities. Seven has it so that focusing on the game is rarely required, bringing up absolute garbage stories about a player's mother and her job or something similar is a must and to top things off you must be loud when it isn't necessary while carrying on with the other commentators like you're down at the local sinking pints watching the game.

I always have considered a job in the AFL media (not too seriously, but it's a bit of a dream), but it's blatantly obvious how garbage the industry is and how it simply is all about your footy history or people you know. Barely any new fresh personalities have popped up in the past five years outside of retired AFL players and the majority of them have shocking voices, cannot explain what they see properly when trying to analyse and wouldn't get near the TV if they didn't play AFL.

I genuinely feel for the small amount out there who would be putting a ton of effort into trying to break into this industry, only to see bogans like Dermie, elitist flogs like Hamish and then dimwits like Zempilas just sliding into the industry.

Just look at the Herald Sun and how far their sports section has fallen. Robbo is the chief footy writer there, and reading half of his stuff you seriously have to wonder if he even did Year 12 English.

 

[Pie eyed]

Bruce is retiring soon.
Best news I've had in decades.

 

[Sedat!]

Saw an old 2011 match last week featuring BT commentating on Foxtel - it is like a different person to what he has become on Ch 7. He was restrained, but not to the point of lacking excitement. There was no hand candy, no Calder Cannons footy factory, no weapon, no human meatball, not so much as a boy oh boy wowee in sight.

I am convinced that Ch 7 senior execs deliberately instruct all of their commentators to ham it up and become a caricature in some horribly misguided belief that it creates some sort of personality that is relatable to audiences. This is the crux of everything wrong with Ch 7 - they think of the commentators as the stars, not the players. These execs will simply point to the ratings as some sort of validation for their modus operandi - the truth is that the ratings would be just as big if the footy was on any other channel. McAveney and Cometti were supreme professionals back 15+ years ago, when their focus was solely on the job of play-by-play commentary - they suffer today because of the hammed up manufactured personalities created by their bosses. Ditto BT. Even the special comments guys are now performing seals and have identifiable 'personalities'.

Foxtel commentators have their own annoying traits but they never take away from the fact that the players are the stars of the show, and they try to remain fixed on the game and away from irrelevant diversions (or at least the diversions take place during a break in play). In short they take footy commentary and analysis seriously, whereas Ch 7 treat the footy as another one of their shitty light entertainment star vehicles for their commentators.

I despise Ch 7 - they are a s**tstain on sports broadcasting.

 

[T2B_]

I'd prefer Kellie Underwood over him, even if her excited voice sounds like her voice box is being forced into a vice and smashed with a hammer, at least she has knowledge.

 

[Elite Master]

You miss Quartermain?
I don't.

He might only have a quarter brain, but that's still more than Hame and Bazz.

 

[Le Grille]

Why the **** are they interviewing coaches during a game?
What value does it add?

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Imagine Denis Pagan. Baz: So Denis what did you tell the boys at three quarter time?, Den: Go **** yourself Basil