non-football rights holders still want to focus on football reporting especially in a place like Melbourne.
For many years, Rob Astbury was a leading and award-winning football reporter at Ten and later at Nine, when neither network was a VFL/AFL broadcaster.
The Nine Network created and had success with The Footy Show for years before it had AFL rights.
Not being a rights holder does not preclude other networks from taking an interest or focus.
Thatās a fair take, might be a successful move given how GTVās rating at the moment, weāll find out. I think the public perception of Tom wonāt affect them too much, just as long as heās credible.
I donāt know why, but the crosses to him so far always feel so awkward.
Ten have Rob Waters as their Chief Football reporter
Tom Steinfort is back in Melbourne tonight after being unwell for 2 days
I wonder since when Michelle Tapper has been with Nine?
Last I saw her on television, she was the Queensland correspondent on Sunrise back in 2016, though I think I saw her freelancing on that show in 2019.
Michelle has just started this month at QTQ part-time it seems.
26-27/1/2024 Jayne Azzopardi presenting in Sydney this weekend.
Where is Mark Burrows? He hasnāt presented much this summer.
Iām guessing heās on holidayā¦
Dougal Beatty presenting in Melbourne this weekend. Not going to lie it does feel like Peter Hitchener has fully retired now. I expected for him to return last weekend.
I am guessing he has not āfully retiredā
What a bizzare take.
He hasnāt. He hasnāt mentioned when he will be back. He read weekends 2 and 3 last month which was completely unexpected as he always goes on holidays over summer from the last week of November until the 2nd week of January.
Maybe but that was when he was fulltime - perhaps with the the luxury of not being expected back in mid-Jan for Nineās new season/Australian Open synergy heās taken a different break this year.
Meanwhile in Perth, where journalists blatantly attempt to gaslight their audience. Itās a good thing no one is watching them.
https://twitter.com/6NewsAU/status/1751101650994069804
https://twitter.com/6NewsAU/status/1751140605433135488
If Nine had any spine theyād sack Genovese.
I might get stick for this.
But I actually think the context fits - and makes a lot more sense as to why heād say it.
The news being shortened and shifted tonight in Perth to a different time (after the final), is something that Basil would have been used to dealing with at 7 in Perth hence his conversation with Genovese.
Itās a slightly odd turn of phrase (perhaps āsecond-stringā or similar would have worked) but in the sense itās the not the marquee event that news usually is, being bang on 6pm and instead waiting for another event to finish, I can understand it.
Plus isnāt Tracy Vo weekend presenter, not Michael so the comment the reserve game as in the backup presenter is in also fits. Plus it was Basil who said the moment, Michael was just saying heās presenting the news.
https://x.com/6newsau/status/1751149088886943817?s=46
This makes it pretty clear what heās talking about.
When Tom Steinfort and Alicia Loxley were first announced as the new weeknight presenters on the 18th of November last year the article said Peter Hitchener would start anchoring weekends in January. Well that didnāt end up happening lol