Off To A Flying Start - BT Sport Rugby

I think it is fair for me to say that many people had a few concerns when BT Sport won the rights to the Aviva Premiership and Top 14 Rugby. What would the quality of the coverage be like? Would the presenting team provide the level of insight and expertise required? Despite these reservations the mass switching occurred during the off season and before we knew it Round 1 was upon us. After 4 Rounds of Aviva Premiership Rugby and 8 Rounds of the Top 14 the reported viewing figures are up 130% and here's my view on why that is... 

Firstly the team... ITV4 isn’t exactly a mainstream channel but throughout the 2012/13 season the Sunday Aviva Premiership Highlights Show regularly clocked up millions viewers. The rugby played a part in this however the anchors Craig Doyle and Martin Bayfield supported by Sarra Elgan should also take a lot of the credit. Their strong rugby knowledge delivered with easy banter was a delight to watch for an hour every Sunday night.  Equally EPSN also got their mix of 'talent' right with Ben Kay and Austin Healey working brilliantly together to provide opinions galore sprinkled with their personal love/hate relationship from the highly glamourous burger van. Therefore is absolutely no surprise at all that these individuals are at the heart of the BT Sport Team and when you add in the gorgeous new studio and the new recruits Lawrence Dallaglio and Matt Dawson that is where the winning formulation comes together.

Next let’s look to the coverage itself specifically the Aviva Premiership fixtures. The format is simple yet effective; Rugby Tonight kick starts the week on a Wednesday, the Friday Night Lights Fixture, the big Saturday Fixture and the Sunday fixture. The new features; cameras in the changing rooms, pre-match interviews with players during the warm up and mid-half interviews with coaches, all provide huge insight into the games at hand. This style of coverage brings viewers much closer to the action, from the comfort of their own sofa or pub, than ever before. I know that some argue that this style is far too intrusive, however at the end of the day the players are professionals and a 2 minute chat before they start their team warm up is not going to derail them in the slightest. Nick Mullins, the voice of Premiership Rugby, is a hugely experienced and knowledgeable commentator who leads proceedings during the game brilliantly, providing great insight and some absolute gems akin to the “giraffe on steroids” comment of last season. The social media element, obviously close to my heart, brings things bang up to date and allows even more discussion and insight into our fabulous game. Yes there was one blip on the radar… that iffy 'Football' Saturday (you know the one that I mean) however it was quickly dealt with and rectified. All in all I’d say a big tick in the box from a coverage front. 

Finally Rugby Tonight... Rugby Tonight was perhaps the most hotly anticipated part of the BT Sport Coverage; you could almost feel the competitive spirit and rivalry with Rugby Club before a single show was even aired. What is clear is that the two couldn’t be more different if they tried... Rugby Club now feels quite dated compared to the new Wednesday Night bundle of energy that is Rugby Tonight.

Reviewing the best of the action from the Aviva Premiership and Top 14 is the formal objective, having a great laugh with a live studio audience and a weekly guest is the informal one. The 'Smash-O-Meter', live rugby demos, 'The Memorabilia Wall' and 'Team Challenges' all form part of the billing. Why does it work? Well again it is the mixture of the information and rugby knowledge put together with the fun and vivacity that you get from combining friends, ex-players and some great ideas. Rugby Tonight takes it's rugby seriously but itself less so… the  “punch Austin” challenge (which was superb to see live I must say) is a prime example of that and this is why it has endeared itself to the rugby world after only 4 shows. With 36 more to go I’m sure there is a lot more in the pipeline, the ‘Top Gear esque’ format allows for so much fun and hilarity that the sky is the limit.... and as long as the rugby expertise remains at its heart, I don’t think that much can possibly go wrong. 

So all in all I’d say it’s been a superb start for our new friends at BT Sport, don’t be surprised when you see some of their features turning up on the forthcoming Sky Sports coverage of the Heineken Cup… the fresh take on the Top 14 and Aviva Premiership has certainly made a lot of people sit up and take note, for all of the right reasons.

Yes I’m sure you’ll say that I am biased as I have been part of the BT Sport Team… however what I’d like to say to that is that even if I had never set foot into the BT Sport Studio I would be saying exactly the same thing. In just a few weeks the BT Sport team have done wonders to breathe new life into our beloved game and personally I can’t wait for the rest of the season, because I'm certain that there is much, much more to come.