![]() I love bringing a historical perspective. I'm looking at storylines for every player and at interesting statistics. I have my own system for players, and it's a painstaking process to put together. I've got Norwich this weekend, however, and I haven't seen them for a while. With the really big teams-the likes of City, Liverpool, Chelsea, Arsenal and United-you cover them so much you get an innate sense of what's going on. I also watch games of the teams who'll be playing in the game ahead. I chat to people on the phone, read papers and scour the Internet. Each one is the biggest we've had.ī/R: How do you prepare for commentary duties?ĪW: I tend to lock myself away from Tuesday onward. Every weekend there seems to be a massive match. You got a sense, but you couldn't imagine the stories we've had. I don't think we could have predicted how special this season would be, though there were hints something would unfold with Sir Alex Ferguson's retirement bringing in a new era. Both of those are great at what they do.ī/R: It's NBC's first season of Premier League coverage in the U.S., and it's worked out rather well in terms of the narrative, wouldn't you say?ĪW: It's fallen beautifully for us. You have to mention guys like Martin Tyler and Clive Tyldesley as well. He actually brought these beautifully presented, handwritten notes with him. There were hours of broadcasting around the game, and Barry was alongside me. In my role at 5 Live, I remember doing an FA Cup semi-final weekend. ![]() You'd hear him at Wimbledon, at the Olympics and covering football too. I was stunned to be offered a six-month deal soon after.ī/R: Who are the commentators you most admire or have influenced you the most?ĪW: Mottie was great, but I always loved Barry Davies for the fact he was a multi-sports man. I used all that experience and applied to BBC Radio 5 Live when I returned to England. I also picked up some writing stuff there. I collected all the tapes together, then I went travelling to Australia and got a job on radio there-a voluntary gig. He gave me a job covering non-league football, and I would commentate on teams like Alfreton Town. The legendary John 'Mottie' Motson Stu Forster/Getty Imagesī/R: How did you get your first break in the business?ĪW: I was given an opportunity at BBC Radio Derby by a guy called Colin Gibson, who now works for Derby County.
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