MA Sports Journalism: Week 1

Now that I’m officially enrolled and teaching has begun, I thought I would record a few thoughts about my first week as a Sports Journalism student at St Mary’s. 

Looking past the horror of rising at 5.30 AM four mornings a week, and the fight through the chaos of London’s public transport network, the start has been a very positive one. Each of the course units provide knowledge and insight into areas of journalism that will be vital to have an understanding of to succeed in the trade, and whilst Public Affairs has been earmarked as the one that’ll provide the most tedium by many, I think I’ll even enjoy that as a former History student with an interest in Politics.

One of the most important selling points of this course is the opportunity to work with, and learn from, former and current industry professionals. This not only allows us to pick up useful skills, but tricks of the trade that they had to learn the hard way. Without wishing to give too much away, as I’m paying a not-inconsiderable amount of money in tuition fees for this opportunity, I certainly learned more about conducting an interview in the two minutes spent discussing how to deal with interviewees, than I ever could watching hours and hours of polished interview footage on television.

The ultimate goal when undertaking post-graduate study is traditionally to pass exams, complete a dissertation, and walk away with a Masters in the subject of choice. Whilst all this is available, and the academic target, the style and design of this course is such that, it has been possible for students to walk away without a formal qualification and still consider their time at St Mary’s a success. Whilst I will certainly look to gain the Masters, even if only out of vanity, and to get the opportunity to moan my way through another dissertation project, I know that the course is adaptable, and that the final aim is really employment.

Aside from the make-up of the course, some interesting observations have been made. As one individual pointed out, there is a very wide mix of experiences and interests within the group, and this will not only make for interesting discussions in classes, but will also result in a wide range of topics covered on our online magazine, The Sports Gazette. Another observation shared by many of us was that it feels more like school than university. This is born out of the size of the group (19), and the fact we spend the whole timetabled day with the same group of people, rather than taking separate units, or dipping in and out of the university throughout the day.

The general consensus throughout the group has been one of excitement, and whilst this year promises to be hard work, at least it’s not accountancy.

Pure FM: My Time enjoying the Portsmouth University Radio Experience.

I uploaded the last of my radio shows from my time at Pure FM a couple of weeks ago, and as I listened in briefly to their Breakfast Show, live from The Freshers Fayre this morning, I realised that I had intended to write something for my blog about my first few months with the station, but never got round to it. I’ll try and put this oversight down to business rather than forgetfulness, but I’m not sure if anyone is being fooled.

Pure FM is the student led radio station at the University of Portsmouth, and my only regret about my experience is not joining sooner. In the course of my third year I was able to present two shows, host quizzes, compile stories and reviews for the news programme and report on sporting fixtures as part of the large-scale coverage of the Portsmouth v Southampton Varsity match. As well as the clichéd positive of allowing me to make (and in some cases invent) new friends, I also walked away with experiences that have helped shape career ambitions and a couple of awards.

My first attempt at broadcasting, The Pure Sport Show, saw me combining with another keen sports fan, and existing presenter at Pure, Curtis, and whilst at times we allowed strange tangents to develop during the show, we quickly developed a format for a show that was repeatable and increasingly professional. Even with limited and fluctuating listener numbers, the opportunity for a platform to discuss and analyse sporting incident was an enjoyable one, and along with guests, we enjoyed well-reasoned and often humorous debates. As well as a huge enjoyment factor, we also attempted to focus on the serious area of promoting and discussing minority sports at the University, including Tchoukball, a handball sport, and Roller Hockey, whose president joined us in the studio to promote and discuss the sport she loved.

This experience made us perfectly positioned to take part in Pure’s coverage of Varsity later in the academic year. Here, through match reporting, I was able to focus on more traditional journalistic skills in terms of recording scores and key match details before creating a precise report, that allowed me to be part of a very professional coverage, something that everyone at the station was proud of.

In the second semester of the year, Pure’s broadcasting schedule was restricted by events outside of the stations control, and this meant finding a slot for The Pure Sports Show was not possible, so Curtis and I moved into the world of breakfast radio to make sure we had the opportunity to broadcast. Beginning as the second best scenario to continuing our sports show, Wake Up With Richard & Curtis quickly became great fun, and the ideal opportunity to mix great passion for radio, with the urge to be as random and silly as possible. You can listen to all of these shows by following the link to my MixCloud page below, and if you do you will note our extravagant range of characters, features and the reoccurring organised chaos that were our extensively prepared for shows.

I like to think that these shows highlight the full range of opportunities available through student radio. It offers a platform to work hard at presenting skills and to experiment with creating professional and clever production. Through Pure, there was also the opportunity to broadcast on local commercial radio, allowing experience in a different setting and in broadcasting to a larger audience. The other thing student radio offers, is the opportunity to have a lot of fun, and ultimately that was what myself and Curtis were doing every time we planned another game or feature or sat in the studio for hours at a time recording strange ‘adverts’ or songs. This chaos won our show the award for Best Branded Show at the Pure FM awards, so we were clearly doing something right.

The message is clear… Whether you see a serious career ahead in broadcasting, or just want to do something fun and experimental I’d wholeheartedly recommend student radio, and Portsmouth’s Pure FM. 

Listen to my Pure FM and Express FM shows here: http://www.mixcloud.com/richardjude17/

England 3-0 Australia: Some Reflections

For the first time since 1977 Australia have failed to win an Ashes test, and whilst the ICCs regulations, and cricket in general, has invited ridicule and criticism in the manor that England were denied a forth win of the series, 3-0 is still an emphatic result. An emphatic 3-0 Ashes victory is always a positive, and the way England’s players celebrated as the 5^th Test draw was confirmed only goes to show that they are proud of the result and enjoyed the series victory.

I fully intended to analyses the series as it progressed on my blog, but having discussed the role of reporting, analysis and opinion with the director of the Sports Journalism course I start in September, I later decided it might be prudent to debate, discuss and learn more first. What I will do though is make some clear observations about this series, and the impacts it may have on the one that follows in 3 months down-under.

Touted as the worst Australia side ever to tour England, this touring side was supposed to rollover without challenging, and whilst a 3-0 score line may suggest this prediction came true, but it most certainly did not. Inconsistency of individual performance, most notably amongst batsman, and the losing of key sessions led to defeats in this series from a position of ascendency. A more accurate prediction was the one given by myself an many others that there would be a battle between bowling attacks, and that it would be the batting line-up who contended best that would lead their team to victory. Whilst Australia twice posted scores near or over 500 that led to declarations, they also folded at Trent Bridge, Lords and in the second innings at Durham. An Ian Bell led England batting line-up did not manage to post any huge totals, but was able, through contributions at different stages of the series by all, to find a level of consistency beyond Australia.

All of this took place on pitches forged from a hot and dry summer, and designed to aid Graeme Swann, and this led batting to be difficult at times, and the fast bowlers left frustrated by a lack of bounce and carry. In Australia this won’t be the case as the Sky punditry team were at pains to point out, and this should lead to batsman being able to score quickly when playing well, and bowlers being able to cause them problems when they find rhythm themselves.

Going forward, England know that they will have to score more runs to repeat their victory in Australia, and that will require Cook and Trott rediscovering their form from the last away Ashes series. Known as batsmen who score big runs when they are in, they were both uncharacteristically struggling to convert starts this summer, and this led to the reliance on Bell. However, the man labelled the Sherminator by Shane Warne has gone on to be the scourge of the Aussies, and he’ll also relish the opportunity to bat in more friendly conditions this winter, against an attack he’s got to know very well over the last 6 weeks.  

United v Real... Considered Conclusions

I do not wish to be, to quote Jose Mourinho, “one of the bottle”. This evening’s football match, and particularly one decision, has of course sent Pundits, Broadcasters, Twitter and the world into a frenzy. I don’t wish to be yet another person castigating the decision and the punditry, but for what it is worth, here is my reasoned response, unrestricted by 140 character limits.

At the time of the red card incident, United were 1-0 up on the night, and therefore led 2-1 on aggregate. Whilst Real Madrid were pressing, they had not scored, and they were not creating clear-cut opening at the rate they were able to after the sending off. United were defending deep, getting 10 men behind the ball and closing down as a team, this proved impossible with a player short against world class opposition. Therefore conclusion 1 is this: The game was changed by the decision, and whilst United were by no means home and dry at 1-0, by the time they were down to 10 men with over half an hour to go, the game was over as a contest. Those watching the game were deprived of an even contest, and United were deprived of a chance to progress.

The challenge itself wasn’t even something I would describe as a challenge. As Nani watched the ball drop over his shoulder he naively raised his foot to control the ball, not once looking at his opponent. The foul was made as Arbeloa got to the ball first, leaving Nani’s trailing leg to catch him in the chest. As a challenge in the truest sense was not made, this rules out excessive force. Therefore, the referee, or whichever official led in the decision making process, has chosen to deem Nani’s high foot as being dangerous to Arbeloa’s safety. Several things lead me to believe this was not the case. On a regular basis, very similar challenges are punished with yellow cards in which the officials deem the foul to be serious, but not dangerous. During the same game, challenges by Arbeloa and Ramos could equally have been deemed dangerous by the same officials, Arbeloa for leading with his studs in a challenge on Evra’s thigh, and Ramos who was penalised for a foul with his forearm against Van Persie. I must also make it clear that I don’t think either of these were dangerous enough to receive red cards, but the nature of the challenges, Arbeloa leading with studs, and Ramous catching Van Persie on the head, could be deemed equally as dangerous as Nani hanging a leg out in an attempt to control the ball. Furthermore, the rules should always be applied with common sense. Whilst Roy Keane refused to accept this point, Nani was not attempting to challenge Arbeloa, it was simply a reckless attempt to control the ball. From this evidence I make conclusion number 2, the red card was incorrectly given as the collision was accidental and not forceful enough to seriously threaten the opponent.

Combining these 2 conclusions together I feel this is a reasonable conclusion to come to: This evening’s football match was ruined by the referee’s decision to wrongly send off Nani. This decision led to Real Madrid running away with victory despite a great effort from United’s 10 men and a cracking response from the crowd who have every right to feel an official’s decision has seen them waste the time, money and effort they spent going to the game tonight.

Football is a contact sport. It is a competitive sport. And it is a spectator sport. It’s also about the footballers and not the referee, if only he’d considered that at the time.

2013... It may be time to start writing again.

It would seem that once again I have neglected my blog for two months, and more importantly I’ve neglected to put anything about my own life for even longer. October’s posts included a review of Michael McIntyre, my delayed appreciation of London 2012 and a theory about human hibernation that I still believe has mileage.

During the intervening period, much has happened, both productive and relatively pointless. Speaking of Pointless I have continued to arrogantly provide pointless answers when watching the show, and went on an impressive run of getting 4 pointless answers in 4 consecutive final rounds, albeit in celebrity versions of the show in which achieving this feat is less challenging. I have also spent a few days getting to know Football Manager 2013 and have added a couple of trophies to my FM resume.

I have also continued to follow the ridiculous sporting year of 2012. After the exciting summer that lived up to all my expectations, the action just kept coming. European Ryder cup success, after trailing 10-4 was a particular highlight of the autumn, and the Premier League has thrown up exciting match after exciting match, with defenders taking a sabbatical allowing for all sorts of goal scoring chaos.

On a personal note, I am half way through my final year at University and a third of the way through my dissertation, and whilst the workload is continuing to increase, and I continue to fight the urge to sleep far too much, I’m not yet entirely sick of my chosen topic, Nazism and the Holocaust. Contrary to this, I am actually reading Ben Elton’s, Two Brothers, a new novel set during the period. I have also been actively involved at Pure FM, the University radio station, preparing pieces for the news team, joining in marketing meetings, and hosting my own sports-based show. 

The radio exploits will all be explained and described in much more elaborate detail in a following blog, so all that is left to do here is to wish a happy new year to all, and point to the excitement ahead, particularly in the sporting arena once more, as Philip Douglas Taylor has begun 2013 by winning his SIXTEENTH World Title.

Hibernation...?

For a quite some time I have been under the impression that I am entirely useless after 9pm. However, with the nights drawing in and the clocks rather unhelpfully going back, I may have to revise this theory. Unlike many of my fellow students, I rarely find myself working late into the night on the eve of a deadline. I would love to suggest this is because I am wonderfully organised and complete every essay early, but the reality is this; if I did attempt to complete the work by staying up late, the quality of writing produced would be comparative to my creative writing task of 14 years ago in which much of it was written in an invented language of Martian space-bears, and the plot was harshly criticised by my teacher. This has resulted in the tactic of setting an alarm for about 5 o'clock and giving myself a few hours to complete the job in the morning, which has no doubt meant better marks than my Year 1 story received.

Returning to my quandary, I fear I my 9pm estimation may have to be re-evaluated. Allowing 1 hour for the clocks changing, and another hour for the depths of winter into which we are plunging, and my daily shelf-life expires at about 7 in the evening. Considering this logically, I look to the animal kingdom for some sound advice!

Wikipedia helpfully informs me that various species of bats, birds, bears and squirrels all have a similar problem. Clearly disgruntled by the drop in light and temperature they aren't keen on winter, like myself. I imagine that having come to this conclusion, the bear, bat and other animal communities had a bit of a chat, and like the Spanish, organised a time in which sleep will be had, and life won’t suffer because of this. (The Spanish call this a siesta, when discussing animals we tend to use the word hibernation.)

So, people of this cold, dark, wintery world, I put to you this. If we move Christmas, New Years Day and the associated gluttony, presents and laziness, and shut down the worlds stock exchanges, economic hubs and political organisations, human hibernation could work. We could simply finish October, baton down the hatches, and emerge from our duvet-cocoons at the end of February, knowing that everybody else had done the same, we’d avoided a load of rubbish weather, and DFS would still have a sale on.

As I really can’t pick any holes in the idea, and know that my winter will be about as productive as an afternoon in a Virgin Media call centre, I don’t see why we can’t role out this plan regionally in the very near future.

Michael McIntyre Review

On the 30^th September 2012, Michael McIntyre performed for the 5^th time in as many nights at London’s O2 Arena, and the biggest compliment I can pay him is that the audience was made to feel as special, as if this had been the only date on the tour. He was energetic, warm and showed all of the qualities that have seen him sell millions of DVDs over the last 5 years, and earn his own BBC series, Michael McIntyre’s Comedy Road Show.

McIntyre is a comedian that seems to split opinion more than most, receiving criticism from his peers and the public for his style of humour, but the fact remains that he sells out arenas and there are a lot of people who find him hilarious. Separated by an interval, the 90 minute show kept the diverse audience entertained throughout, as he backed up his previous tour, Hello Wembley, with another dose of his observational wit. More than any other comedian, he is capable of making people of all ages and backgrounds believe he is describing an instance from their lives, and this show was no exception. He focussed on topical events such as The Olympic Games, as well as classic subjects like health care.

Unlike comedians such as Jimmy Carr, McIntyre does not focus on audience participation, but this did not detract from the performance as he delivered a range of new material, most of which he has been tweaking over the summer during a series of preparation shows in smaller venues. On this occasion his show culminated in a big finish which focussed upon a joke that may have annoyed his critics, as for much of it he was making noises rather than speaking, but if you have enjoyed his work previously, this show certainly will not leave you feeling let down.

Throughout the evening, images appeared on the big screen advertising the DVD of the tour, and I would unquestionably recommend buying it when released nearer to Christmas, whether you are able to see him live this year or not.