Referee's words drowned by droning commentator

Macaranga

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Feb 14, 2009
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Hi All,

My first post, my first new thread, all in one. How you all keeping ?

I would like to conduct a mini-survey, and if enough people agree with me, I'll take it up with the necessary crowd.

I find the referee interesting to listen to during a game, and yesterday's Sharks game was a case in point. But every time he's about to say something good, or explain his decision, the commentator drowns him out with some irrelevant garbage. It's so frustrating. I would be quite happy to have ONLY the ref's voice to listen to, so seldom do the commentators say anything that you can't see for yourself. But even if we have to have them, they should shut up when the ref is saying something useful.

What do you rugby people think ? Should I take it up with SuperSport ?

Dave.
 

Milano

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Feb 7, 2004
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Hi and welcome, yep it annoys me too. I'd prefer to hear the ref as well.
 

stoke

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Commentators have no way of knowing when the ref is going to speak.
The only way to implement this would be to :
1 - Remove commentators, and loose their ability to provide play - by - play descriptions, player history and player names.
2 - Implement technology where sound on the ref's microphone always overrides what the commentator is saying. This means that every bump and squeak and whistle blow would interrupt the commentator, which would be quite irritating.

or ...

You could ask them to force the commentators to repeat what the ref was saying, like the blokes who comment for radio 2000 do.
 

Milano

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You often have an indication that the ref is going to speak. He will call two captains over or call players over. Not saying they could get it right 100%, but they could make an effort not to speak over the ref.
 

stoke

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Oh, well, that's an OBVIOUS indiscression on the commentator's part.
For that the commentator should be fired.
I thought you were talking about normal in-the-moment ref comments.
 

Kilgore_Trout_Redux

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Sep 20, 2006
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I agree with the OP. If the commentators hear the ref start talking they should keep quiet and carry on with whatever inane prattle they were busy with once he is done.
 

MielieSpoor

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Dec 6, 2006
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You would not succeed so don't even bother wasting your time.

For one. The referees don't talk that much at all on the field and if the talk they only say what is written in the law book, so what would it help you to listen to the ref?
 

Macaranga

Active Member
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Feb 14, 2009
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30
Hi Smurfatefrog - no, that's spelled Makaranga. I just like Macaranga trees !

Stoke, your ideas are a bit drastic. We wouldn't have to go that far. All we need, as a couple of other people have suggested, is for the commentator to shut up when they hear the ref saying something. They do do it occasionally, but not nearly enough. And they couldn't repeat what the ref was saying, since they were talking while he was talking.

MielieSpoor, the ref might only be saying what's in the law book, but that's a big book. Which particular law has been infringed, and why ? You say I won't succeed. Is that because you have experience of trying something similar ?

Basically, the ref is controlling things, he's at the coal face, in the trenches, whatever metaphor you want. His words have to have more value than those of a passive commentator.

Dave.
 

MielieSpoor

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Dec 6, 2006
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MielieSpoor, the ref might only be saying what's in the law book, but that's a big book. Which particular law has been infringed, and why ? You say I won't succeed. Is that because you have experience of trying something similar ?
I haven't tried it and won't as I know I will be wasting my time. You will have silence for most part of the game as the referee do talk very little in a match and when the referee talks it is short phrases like "Red roll away!", "9 leave it!".

Take the Bulls vs Blues game for instance. Mark Lawrance called a captain (Fourie) only twice and was very brief. Infact, the second time he didn't even properly talk to the player. The first time round, he only said to Fourie that he has repeatedly penelised them at the breakdown and the next time might urn out diffirently. That took him like a few seconds. In all I think he spent about 5mins talking in the full 80min of playing time?

Do you want to watch a game in silince? If you want to, then just put the TV on mute, you'll get the same effect. If the commentators is bothering you
then simply concentrate on the game being played. I one seldomly listen to the commetry as I was a game for diffirent reasons then the average Joe.
 
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