Newstalk part company with Off The Ball team

RayCon

Fr Tod Umptious wrote: »

I'm sure both TV3 and RTE have the know-how to take on Soccer AM,

Wow , your faith in both institutions is impressive. Im basing my opinion on my evaluation of their current programming output - I'd say they'd fail miserably.

weldoninhio

From the press release from both Newstalk and the guys, it looks like a case of the lads getting too big for their boots and walking out.

LiamoSail

TheNinthGate wrote: »

The Football Ramble. Seriously, if you don't already you should start listenng to it.

It's pretty good, and along the same irreverent lines as OTB, maybe slightly funnier - certainly more actually laugh out loud moments.

It's about an hour long, weekly.

Cheers, id forgotten about that one. I've heard it once or twice alright, must start downloading it again

weldoninhio wrote: »

From the press release from both Newstalk and the guys, it looks like a case of the lads getting too big for their boots and walking out.

I think this is an Irish thing, show a hint of ambition and you're getting too big for your boots.

They've been on a few years, they're popularity and I'd assume audience was increasing. I think it's understandable for them to have wanted to make the show bigger by moving more towards a prime time slot, and obviously having bigger ambitions for the show

speedboatchase

LiamoSail wrote: »

I think this is an Irish thing, show a hint of ambition and you're getting too big for your boots.

They've been on a few years, they're popularity and I'd assume audience was increasing. I think it's understandable for them to have wanted to make the show bigger by moving more towards a prime time slot, and obviously having bigger ambitions for the show

Apparently the "listenership on the show had fallen 20pc year-on-year" and was pulling in 39,000 listeners, compared to Hook's 133,000 in the slot that they wanted. I'm not sure they thought this one out.

http://www.independent.ie/entertainment/tv-radio/off-the-ball-team-on-sidelines-as-hopes-fade-of-quick-rte-transfer-29111796.html

Fr Tod Umptious

LiamoSail wrote: »

Cheers, id forgotten about that one. I've heard it once or twice alright, must start downloading it again



I think this is an Irish thing, show a hint of ambition and you're getting too big for your boots.

They've been on a few years, they're popularity and I'd assume audience was increasing. I think it's understandable for them to have wanted to make the show bigger by moving more towards a prime time slot, and obviously having bigger ambitions for the show

But as others have stated here a sports show is a niche market, a current affairs show like Hook's attracts a wider audience, and I'm sure attracts more listeners

Fr Tod Umptious

kfallon wrote: »

It died in the arse when he was still on it namedropping every week :rolleyes:

Anyway, the mere mention of Lovejoy is an excuse to roll out this brilliant book review

http://www.wsc.co.uk/the-archive/42-Media/145-no-love-no-joy

Another typical WSC whine about all things modern and to do with sky

Even in the latest issue there was a half baked whinge reminiscing about orange balls being used on snow covered pitches and how you don't see them any more

That's cos of under-soil heating and modern technology dumb-ass

iregk

In fairness does anyone with half a brain cell still watch Soccer AM?

LiamoSail

speedboatchase wrote: »

Apparently the "listenership on the show had fallen 20pc year-on-year" and was pulling in 39,000 listeners, compared to Hook's 133,000 in the slot that they wanted. I'm not sure they thought this one out.

http://www.independent.ie/entertainment/tv-radio/off-the-ball-team-on-sidelines-as-hopes-fade-of-quick-rte-transfer-29111796.html

Didn't realise they were loosing listeners, however I think they usually rank quiet highly on iTunes. Regarding hook, with people commuting, I'd imagine the pool is far greater during his slot. I'd be interested to see the percentage of their respective market each got

Fr Tod Umptious wrote: »

But as others have stated here a sports show is a niche market, a current affairs show like Hook's attracts a wider audience, and I'm sure attracts more listeners

True, but I don't think they were wanting to take over from hook, just take his last hour

weldoninhio

He's getting almost 100,000 more listeners than them and they want to lop an hour off his show??

Ambition?? Balls of steel to be asking for it, in my opinion.

death1234567

iregk wrote: »

In fairness does anyone with half a brain cell still watch Soccer AM?

In fairness did anyone with half a brain cell ever watch it? Terrible television. Not sure the off the ball lads could transfer to TV to be honest, radio is where they belong.

Lovely Bloke

weldoninhio wrote: »

He's getting almost 100,000 more listeners than them and they want to lop an hour off his show??

Ambition?? Balls of steel to be asking for it, in my opinion.

Right, lets dispell this nugget.

Hook has the lower numbers in relative terms - he doesn't come near Cooper on TodayFM, or Drive Time on RTE1 - he has the lowest listenership of the 4.30-7 timeslot nationally.

On the other hand, OTBs 38k listeners is the biggest listenership nationally for thier 7-10 slot.

In relative terms, OTB wipes the floor with Hook.

T-K-O

TheNinthGate wrote: »

Right, lets dispell this nugget.

Hook has the lower numbers in relative terms - he doesn't come near Cooper on TodayFM, or Drive Time on RTE1 - he has the lowest listenership of the 4.30-7 timeslot nationally.

On the other hand, OTBs 38k listeners is the biggest listenership nationally for thier 7-10 slot.

In relative terms, OTB wipes the floor with Hook.

Ah I see, so get rid of Hook and his 100k and replace him with OTB and 40k. Makes sense

T-K-O

Im sure advertising is directly linked with the number of listeners..

murpho999

Still don't see why they would resign immediately over asking for an extra hour and then being denied it.

Negotiations don't work that way.

Something more going on than is being said.

All the outcry and they only attracted 38,000 listeners so they weren't that big.

iregk

T-K-O wrote: »

Ah I see, so get rid of Hook and his 100k and replace him with OTB and 40k. Makes sense

It's not that simple. GH cards that many listeners as that is the time when people are listening into the radio. Most people by 7pm are already home, out of the car and with family so no radio.

If OTB was on during drive time, it's entirely possible they would have similar or higher listener figures than GH.

Think of it like this. If you are selling pure Angus steak for €5 outside the Aviva when there is a 5 a side game on then you're likely not going to sell many as there are not many punters about anyway. If on the other hand you're selling €5 crappy burgers during an Ireland -v- New Zealand rugby match then you'd sell thousands. Sometimes the product doesn't entirely matter it's the footfall that sells or not sells it.

T-K-O

iregk wrote: »

It's not that simple. GH cards that many listeners as that is the time when people are listening into the radio. Most people by 7pm are already home, out of the car and with family so no radio.

If OTB was on during drive time, it's entirely possible they would have similar or higher listener figures than GH.

Think of it like this. If you are selling pure Angus steak for €5 outside the Aviva when there is a 5 a side game on then you're likely not going to sell many as there are not many punters about anyway. If on the other hand you're selling €5 crappy burgers during an Ireland -v- New Zealand rugby match then you'd sell thousands. Sometimes the product doesn't entirely matter it's the footfall that sells or not sells it.

I understand the prime time slot but I can also see it from the stations point of view. Is a sports show capable of pulling 100k+ regardless of the time, most people tend to prefer a current affairs type show.

I'm actually surprised at the numbers for OTB. I'm not that surprised that the numbers are falling. I think the show has declined in recent times.

Fr Tod Umptious

Fr Tod Umptious wrote: »

But as others have stated here a sports show is a niche market, a current affairs show like Hook's attracts a wider audience, and I'm sure attracts more listeners

Most people are driving home from work when Hooks show is on whereas in alot of cases they are at home when OTB is on and their natural inclination is to probably switch on the tv

ThunbergsAreGo

iregk wrote: »

In fairness does anyone with half a brain cell still watch Soccer AM?

One of my mates told me this week he watches it all the time.... wasnt sure if he was serious or not

Fr Tod Umptious

Deleted User wrote: »

Most people are driving home from work when Hooks show is on whereas in alot of cases they are at home when OTB is on and their natural inclination is to probably switch on the tv

But I do not think that 6pm is a good time to start a show either.

By 6pm most of the news items are done with on the current affairs shows and they delve into other items, which may or may not be attractive to a diverse audience, movies, TV, sport etc
And as you say many may be at that stage watching TV news or doing something else

On Radio Kerry Terrace Talk starts at 6pm on a Monday and I rarely listen to it as I am doing something else, if it was 7pm I'd likely catch the opening segment and then continue listening if the topics were going to be of interest

Dr.Winston O'Boogie

Denis O'Brien v McDevitt:

Alias G

jmayo wrote: »

A sports show is a niche show and it would have been commerical suicide to dump one of your best primetime shows, that can basically cover any topic, to accommodate a niche show that only appeals to a certain group.
And yes it is a select group, because there are a fair amount of people who do not want to listen about sport and even within the ones that do have an interest in sport there are ones who only want to know about a particular sport.

People listen to the likes of Hook because the show can cover a multitude like sport, current affairs, movies, travel, etc.
A lot of people would tune out and listen to Drivetime or The Last Word if it was a few lads having the craic talking about sport.
BTW you may slag Hook, but IMHO the show is better than stale Drivetime or whiney Cooper.

If the scheduling argument is the reason then the lads are living in dreamland if they think any major national station will give them a prime slot.
I think there may be more to this than we are being told.

As for the show itself in it's current slot, I think it will suffer as the lads had a banter going that I think Gilroy will not be able to replicate.

To help the show I think they should start a David Brady slot where he is forced to speak in Dublinese and at the end of the show they can have the now retiring Ronan O'Gara on to send everyone to sleep.
Anything rather than 3 hours of Gilroy is preferable.

Well if you actually look at the figures for The Right Hook, you will see that listenership tails off significantly after 18.00pm as the number of people stuck in their cars reduces and by 19.00pm the the figures are approx one third of the peak figure of 130,000. Not too differant from what the Off The Ball numbers are. Its not that unusual for prime-time slots to focus to a large degree on sports in the final segments of its broadcast anyway. Perhaps a compromise of a 18.30 start might have been ideal.
As for Mr Hook himself, the less said the better. The blokes a dinosaur and totally out of touch. I would actually listen to RTE drivetime over that show and Matt Cooper is certainly a better option. His ignorant views on issues like cycling really show him up. He even managed to get out-done by that right-wing nutter Micheal Graham on a weekly basis.
Anyway, back to Off The Ball, I think the show will move on fine with Ger Gilroy at the helm even if it will be a little poorer for the loss of Mcdevvit and Early. I think the show was just quite good at the start when it was Gilroy and Early running things and I'm sure I'll still tune-in.

greendom

T-K-O wrote: »

I understand the prime time slot but I can also see it from the stations point of view. Is a sports show capable of pulling 100k+ regardless of the time, most people tend to prefer a current affairs type show.

I'm actually surprised at the numbers for OTB. I'm not that surprised that the numbers are falling. I think the show has declined in recent times.

They manage it in the UK where TalkSport is on the air 24 hours a day. It's mainly drivel too, so I see no reason why OTB couldn't match George Hook's listenership from 6pm

T-K-O

greendom wrote: »

They manage it in the UK where TalkSport is on the air 24 hours a day. It's mainly drivel too, so I see no reason why OTB couldn't match George Hook's listenership from 6pm

Is talksport a digital / internet station? Either way, you have a much bigger audience in the UK.

I just cant see the audience increasing by 50% with an extra hour, they would need 100% increase to be competitive with other stations. That is a huge risk for newstalk

mike65

If you replace apples with oranges you will get an audience reaction. 6 pm start was a stupid notion and 9 pm end was an even dumber idea.

T-K-O

Agreed. IMO the time slot was perfect. The lads are believing their own hype

quarryman

niallo24 wrote: »

Denis O'Brien v McDevitt:

Do you have the rest of that article? Important initial section left out.

Mr Whirly

mike65 wrote: »

If you replace apples with oranges you will get an audience reaction. 6 pm start was a stupid notion and 9 pm end was an even dumber idea.

No one said anything about a 9pm end?

mike65

That was the story, has it changed?

eagle eye

Listening to Talksport on the way home tonight. Its awful compared to Off the Ball with the lads but better than the boring replacement show on newstalk.:(

jack presley

I wasn't listening on Tuesday night. Was US Murph on?

born2bwild

T-K-O wrote: »

Ah I see, so get rid of Hook and his 100k and replace him with OTB and 40k. Makes sense

I would switch them on at 6 if they were on. Hook's show is geriatric and incoherent.

T-K-O

born2bwild wrote: »

I would switch them on at 6 if they were on. Hook's show is geriatric and incoherent.

Fair play to ya but that's not the point. There is no evidence that a sports show would be able to compete with a current affairs show.

ballsymchugh

jack presley wrote: »

I wasn't listening on Tuesday night. Was US Murph on?

no, he tweeted that he was going to give it a while before he decides if he goes back on again.

if there was a guaranteed listenership of over 100k for a sports show after 6, then there'd be no doubt that it would have moved. unfortunately, that's not the case. a few people here and there saying that they would've listened to it is not enough.

djPSB

The show is still pretty decent even with the lads gone.

I doubt they would have left unless there is something else in the pipeline for them.

Xavi6

It's decent now and still listenable but too straight edge. No rants, no wind ups, nothing controversial.

Haven't sniggered once all week.

eagle eye

All the lads are on garden leave at the minute so I don't think we will be hearing anything from them for a month or so. I have a feeling that we'll be hearing big news once that time is up though.

gimmick

Xavi6 wrote: »

It's decent now and still listenable but too straight edge. No rants, no wind ups, nothing controversial.

Haven't sniggered once all week.

I think it will find its feet moreso in the coming weeks. This week was not really the week for hi-jinx and tomfoolery given the circumstances of the week.

weldoninhio

weldoninhio wrote: »

From the press release from both Newstalk and the guys, it looks like a case of the lads getting too big for their boots and walking out.

The guys had a duty to do whatever they felt was the best for the show they were hired to present/research and its possible they had a better offer to present elsewhere on the table so when Newstalk didnt go with their idea they said good luck and why not

gimmick

gimmick wrote: »

I think it will find its feet moreso in the coming weeks. This week was not really the week for hi-jinx and tomfoolery given the circumstances of the week.

Gilroy is a good presenter but it wont be anything more than what we seen during last week

Mr_Roger_Bongos

I ended up cancelling the off the ball podcast. It just sounds so flat now.




Which station is most likely to snap them up?

Cantona's Collars

Anyone listen to 2fm's sport show in the evenings? Discovered it by accident last week.They had full commentary of the Barca game last night & are doing the same for Bayern v Arsenal tonight.

Love Off The Ball & it has lost something now the lads aren't on it.

Mushy

In talks with 4fm and Nova apparently. Theyve tweeted theyll be back on air soon.

RayCon

Mr_Roger_Bongos wrote: »

I ended up cancelling the off the ball podcast. It just sounds so flat now.

Ditto ... Im getting by with the Guardian Football weekly, The Football Ramble and Kicking Off ... but it isn't the same

irishgeo

Mushy wrote: »

In talks with 4fm and Nova apparently. Theyve tweeted theyll be back on air soon.

great we cant get them outside dublin:rolleyes:

Lovely Bloke

What's "Kicking Off"?

Mushy

irishgeo wrote: »

great we cant get them outside dublin:rolleyes:

Try online radio.

eagle eye

Mushy wrote: »

Try online radio.

Not much good when you are driving a car.

RayCon

TheNinthGate wrote: »

What's "Kicking Off"?

Fri night on BBC ... Colin whatshisname from MOtD2 previewing the weeked games with Pat Nevin and Perry Groves ... usually 80 - 90 mins ... good for a run on Saturday morning

Chucky the tree

Mushy wrote: »

In talks with 4fm and Nova apparently. Theyve tweeted theyll be back on air soon.

Seems like the guys were very delusional about how loved they were.

eagle eye

Chucky the tree wrote: »

Seems like the guys were very delusional about how loved they were.

I don't think they were. I'm gutted if they go to a Dublin radio station that I cannot get down the country. I want them on national media and I think there are a lot of others who do.