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Re: Kelli Underwood as a footballer caller?
Righto.
Because if a man says that she isn't up to it as a caller, it has to be because shes a woman and we're all chauvanistic pigs. It couldnt possibly be that she just wasnt very good, not at all.
What a load of crap.
Interesting article ... Interesting comments from the General Public as well
Game still blokey
Trevor Grant | February 24, 2009 12:00am
NOT so long ago, footy had no idea what to do about women. The dilemma was perfectly encapsulated by Allan McAlister's gesture to place his hand over the eyes of a young female reporter who had somehow found her way into the Collingwood dressingroom after a game.
The Collingwood president (from 1986-1995) no doubt thought he was being chivalrous, protecting her from the sight of all those naked male bodies cavorting in the showers.
Really, though, he was reflecting the struggle a male-dominated sport was having in recognising that women had a part to play in the game.
We now live in more enlightened times, where football embraces the intrinsic value of women.
Deep-seated male fears about a female presence outside the grandstand appear to belong to the past.
Not, though, if you assess reaction to the debut of Kelli Underwood as a Channel 10 commentator on Saturday.
"Nervous", "didn't work", "plucky", "OK", were some of the comments written by (male) critics.
Her (male) boss at Ten, David Barham, said that though she was promising, there was no plan to use her again this year.
It could be summed up this way: nice try, girl, but, even though you can do the job, it's a blokes' world.
So if you sit in the corner and be a good girl, you might get another shot one day.
The example of Kate Fitzpatrick's failed stint on Channel 9's cricket coverage 25 years ago was trotted out to explain how tough it is for a female commentator - a ridiculous comparison.
Fitzpatrick was a good-looking actor with an interest in cricket and cricketers. Underwood is an experienced football journalist who knows as much about the game as most of her male counterparts.
Fitzpatrick was a dud because she was there for entertainment value.
Underwood knows her stuff, and, as she showed, has the makings of a high-class caller who should be in the box for the 2009 season; which no doubt she would be, if she was a male.
While her understandable nerves were forensically examined by critics, several qualities were overlooked.
First, she bothered to identify the players with the ball, something you might think was an unwritten basic for a commentator.
Not so these days, though, when you have so many callers hell-bent on doing the job of the "special comments" people alongside them.
It was refreshing to listen to Underwood engage the "special comments" men by posing questions rather than trying to air her opinions - a sign of professionalism not always evident in a few of her male counterparts.
If nothing else, Underwood's understated delivery provides a welcome point of difference. There's been an over-supply of testosterone for too long.
Too many young men now compete for the title of Tarzan of the airwaves in the belief that loudest is best.
Rex Hunt has a lot to answer for.
One critic said Underwood clearly follows and understands the game.
Did he expect her to be a soccer fanatic or Shakespeare devotee improvising on the night?
Nothing like a good dose of the patronising male to kick off the footy season.
Game still blokey
Trevor Grant | February 24, 2009 12:00am
NOT so long ago, footy had no idea what to do about women. The dilemma was perfectly encapsulated by Allan McAlister's gesture to place his hand over the eyes of a young female reporter who had somehow found her way into the Collingwood dressingroom after a game.
The Collingwood president (from 1986-1995) no doubt thought he was being chivalrous, protecting her from the sight of all those naked male bodies cavorting in the showers.
Really, though, he was reflecting the struggle a male-dominated sport was having in recognising that women had a part to play in the game.
We now live in more enlightened times, where football embraces the intrinsic value of women.
Deep-seated male fears about a female presence outside the grandstand appear to belong to the past.
Not, though, if you assess reaction to the debut of Kelli Underwood as a Channel 10 commentator on Saturday.
"Nervous", "didn't work", "plucky", "OK", were some of the comments written by (male) critics.
Her (male) boss at Ten, David Barham, said that though she was promising, there was no plan to use her again this year.
It could be summed up this way: nice try, girl, but, even though you can do the job, it's a blokes' world.
So if you sit in the corner and be a good girl, you might get another shot one day.
The example of Kate Fitzpatrick's failed stint on Channel 9's cricket coverage 25 years ago was trotted out to explain how tough it is for a female commentator - a ridiculous comparison.
Fitzpatrick was a good-looking actor with an interest in cricket and cricketers. Underwood is an experienced football journalist who knows as much about the game as most of her male counterparts.
Fitzpatrick was a dud because she was there for entertainment value.
Underwood knows her stuff, and, as she showed, has the makings of a high-class caller who should be in the box for the 2009 season; which no doubt she would be, if she was a male.
While her understandable nerves were forensically examined by critics, several qualities were overlooked.
First, she bothered to identify the players with the ball, something you might think was an unwritten basic for a commentator.
Not so these days, though, when you have so many callers hell-bent on doing the job of the "special comments" people alongside them.
It was refreshing to listen to Underwood engage the "special comments" men by posing questions rather than trying to air her opinions - a sign of professionalism not always evident in a few of her male counterparts.
If nothing else, Underwood's understated delivery provides a welcome point of difference. There's been an over-supply of testosterone for too long.
Too many young men now compete for the title of Tarzan of the airwaves in the belief that loudest is best.
Rex Hunt has a lot to answer for.
One critic said Underwood clearly follows and understands the game.
Did he expect her to be a soccer fanatic or Shakespeare devotee improvising on the night?
Nothing like a good dose of the patronising male to kick off the footy season.
Because if a man says that she isn't up to it as a caller, it has to be because shes a woman and we're all chauvanistic pigs. It couldnt possibly be that she just wasnt very good, not at all.
What a load of crap.
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