Soccer Night
Encyclopedia
Soccer Night was a regional television football programme on independent television
in United Kingdom
between the 1990s and 2008.
in the north-west England. Granada Soccer Night, which was shown late on a weekday night, was presented by Elton Welsby
. It showed highlights of recent matches, particularity mid-week League Cup
games and often had notable north-west players and managers as studio guests. The show's iconic theme tune was "Shall We Take A Trip" by Manchester band, Northside
.
By 2004 following multiple mergers and the formation of ITV plc
, versions of the original programme were developed for all ITV regions in England
and Wales
- a late night magazine show, focusing on Football League clubs, was introduced for the 2004-05 season to replace the long-standing Sunday afternoon highlights programmes owing to cutbacks at ITV plc.
) was axed in December 2005 in response to high viewer demand for the return of a full highlights programme on Sundays as opposed to the magazine-based format on late Thursday nights. Soccer Sunday returned on 15 January 2006 with extended highlights of Cardiff
, Swansea
and Wrexham matches, presented by Jonny Owen (a local actor and assistant producer at ITV Wales
) with match commentary provided by Bob Symonds and Phil Duffell.
The programme was extended to an hour in February 2007 and incorporated goals from all other Football League games. ITV West
sports editor Jed Pitman presented the newly expanded programme. The new format was dropped at the end of the 2006/7 season and Soccer Sunday returned to its original format. Pitman left the programme at the end of the year and was replaced by Jonny Owen.
ITV Wales lost the rights to show highlights of Wrexham's matches when the club was relegated to the Blue Square Premier
league at the end of the 2007/8 season (a result of Setanta Sports
possessing exclusive rights to the Football Conference
leagues). In September 2008, BBC Wales
gained secondary rights to screen highlights of Wrexham matches for their now-defunct Saturday afternoon results programme, Wales on Saturday.
's studios in Birmingham and presented by Nick Hancock & Sarah Jane Mee
.
The programme was axed during the 2007/8 season and replaced by a revival of Central Soccer Night in the Midlands. ITV London
chose not to produce a replacement programme.
and Swansea City
for the first half of the 2008/9 season, but the programme was axed in December 2008. At the end of the season, ITV lost the rights to show Football League highlights to the BBC.
ITV
ITV is the major commercial public service TV network in the United Kingdom. Launched in 1955 under the auspices of the Independent Television Authority to provide competition to the BBC, it is also the oldest commercial network in the UK...
in United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
between the 1990s and 2008.
History
The programme concept began began in the early 1990s on Granada TelevisionGranada Television
Granada Television is the ITV contractor for North West England. Based in Manchester since its inception, it is the only surviving original ITA franchisee from 1954 and is ITV's most successful....
in the north-west England. Granada Soccer Night, which was shown late on a weekday night, was presented by Elton Welsby
Elton Welsby
Roger Elton Welsby is an English television sports presenter.-Education:Welsby was educated at the independent school Liverpool College in the city of Liverpool in Merseyside....
. It showed highlights of recent matches, particularity mid-week League Cup
Football League Cup
The Football League Cup, commonly known as the League Cup or, from current sponsorship, the Carling Cup, is an English association football competition. Like the FA Cup, it is played on a knockout basis...
games and often had notable north-west players and managers as studio guests. The show's iconic theme tune was "Shall We Take A Trip" by Manchester band, Northside
Northside (band)
Northside are a British band from Blackley and Moston, Manchester, England. Formed in 1989, they released their only album Chicken Rhythms on Factory Records in 1991...
.
By 2004 following multiple mergers and the formation of ITV plc
ITV plc
ITV plc is a British media company that operates 12 of the 15 regional television broadcasters that make up the ITV Network, the oldest and largest commercial terrestrial television network in the United Kingdom...
, versions of the original programme were developed for all ITV regions in England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
and Wales
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
- a late night magazine show, focusing on Football League clubs, was introduced for the 2004-05 season to replace the long-standing Sunday afternoon highlights programmes owing to cutbacks at ITV plc.
Soccer Night (2004-2008)
| Region | Presenters |
|---|---|
| Anglia Anglia Television Anglia Television is the ITV franchise holder for the East Anglia franchise region. Although Anglia Television takes its name from East Anglia, its transmission coverage extends beyond the generally accepted boundaries of that region. The station is based at Anglia House in Norwich, with regional... |
Kevin Piper |
| Tyne Tees Tyne Tees Television Tyne Tees Television is the ITV television franchise for North East England and parts of North Yorkshire. As of 2009, it forms part of a non-franchise ITV Tyne Tees & Border region, shared with the ITV Border region... N.B. Also shown on Border Border Television Border Television is the ITV franchise holder for the Border region, spanning the England/Scotland border and covering Dumfries & Galloway region, a small part of the south-west area of Ayrshire, the Scottish Borders, parts of north and west Northumberland and the majority of Cumbria... . |
Roger Tames |
| Central Central Independent Television Central Independent Television, more commonly known as Central is the Independent Television contractor for the Midlands, created following the restructuring of ATV and commencing broadcast on 1 January 1982. The station is owned and operated by ITV plc, under the licensee of ITV Broadcasting... |
Stan Collymore Stan Collymore Stanley Victor "Stan" Collymore is an English football pundit and former footballer, who played from 1990 until 2001. He held the British transfer record when he moved from Nottingham Forest to Liverpool for £8.5 million in 1995 and was capped three times at senior level by the England... Sarah Jane Mee Sarah Jane Mee Sarah-Jane Mee is a British sports presenter for Sky News and is also part of Sky Sports' UEFA Champions League broadcasting team on Wednesday evening.... (2004–08) |
| Meridian Meridian Broadcasting Meridian Broadcasting is the holder of the ITV franchise for the South and South East of England. The station is owned and operated by ITV plc, under the licensee of ITV Broadcasting Limited.... |
Andy Steggall Andy Steggall Andy Steggall is a television sports presenter, producer and filmmaker. He currently produces the South and West edition of the BBC regional football show Late Kick Off and has been working for Sky on several other projects. He runs two television production companies specialising in sport –... |
| Granada Granada Television Granada Television is the ITV contractor for North West England. Based in Manchester since its inception, it is the only surviving original ITA franchisee from 1954 and is ITV's most successful.... |
Matt Smith Matt Smith (broadcaster) Matt Smith is a British broadcaster, and currently one of ITV Sport's main presenters.-Early life:Matt is a Modern Languages and Political Studies graduate from Sheffield City Polytechnic, where he studied from 1985-89. During that time he spent a year in Italy as part of his studies... Alistair Mann Alistair Mann Alistair Mann is a BBC football commentator. He trained as a journalist at the department of Journalism, Media and Communication, University of Central Lancashire. Since 2006 he has been a regular on the BBC's flagship Match of the Day programme, mainly covering matches in the North of England... (2004–05) |
| West HTV HTV, now legally known as ITV Wales & West, is the ITV contractor for Wales and the West of England, which operated from studios in Cardiff and Bristol. The company provided commercial television for the dual-region 'Wales and West' franchise, which it won from TWW in 1968... |
Jed Pitman |
| Westcountry Westcountry Television Westcountry Television, is the ITV franchise holder in the South West of England, replacing its predecessor, TSW , from the 1 January 1993... |
Mark Tyler Jeff Welch |
| Yorkshire Yorkshire Television Yorkshire Television, now officially known as ITV Yorkshire and sometimes unofficially abbreviated to YTV, is a British television broadcaster and the contractor for the Yorkshire franchise area on the ITV network... |
Andy Townsend Andy Townsend Andrew "Andy" David Townsend is a former professional footballer, who played in two World Cups for the Republic of Ireland and is now a television and radio pundit.... John Shires (stand-in) Peter Beagrie Peter Beagrie Peter Sidney Beagrie is a former English footballer who played as a left-winger. He played for ten different clubs at professional level notably Everton, Manchester City, Bradford City and Scunthorpe United... |
| London ITV London ITV London is the on-air brand name used by ITV Broadcasting Limited for the two Channel 3 broadcast franchises, Carlton Television and London Weekend Television in the London ITV region.-History:... N.B. Axed after the 2005-06 season. |
Tony Francis |
| Wales N.B. Axed in December 2005. |
Sam Lloyd Jonny Owen (stand-in) David Giles (analyst) |
Wales Soccer Night/Soccer Sunday
Wales Soccer Night (produced by ITV WalesHTV
HTV, now legally known as ITV Wales & West, is the ITV contractor for Wales and the West of England, which operated from studios in Cardiff and Bristol. The company provided commercial television for the dual-region 'Wales and West' franchise, which it won from TWW in 1968...
) was axed in December 2005 in response to high viewer demand for the return of a full highlights programme on Sundays as opposed to the magazine-based format on late Thursday nights. Soccer Sunday returned on 15 January 2006 with extended highlights of Cardiff
Cardiff City F.C.
Cardiff City Football Club are a Welsh professional football club based in Cardiff, Wales. The club competes in the English football pyramid and is currently playing in the Football League Championship. Cardiff City is the best supported football club in Wales, averaging approximately 22,500 for...
, Swansea
Swansea City A.F.C.
Swansea City Association Football Club are a Welsh professional football club based in Swansea, Wales. One of the most successful clubs in Welsh football, it has won 10 Welsh Cups and led the English Football League First Division in December 1981, before finishing the season in 6th position...
and Wrexham matches, presented by Jonny Owen (a local actor and assistant producer at ITV Wales
HTV
HTV, now legally known as ITV Wales & West, is the ITV contractor for Wales and the West of England, which operated from studios in Cardiff and Bristol. The company provided commercial television for the dual-region 'Wales and West' franchise, which it won from TWW in 1968...
) with match commentary provided by Bob Symonds and Phil Duffell.
The programme was extended to an hour in February 2007 and incorporated goals from all other Football League games. ITV West
HTV
HTV, now legally known as ITV Wales & West, is the ITV contractor for Wales and the West of England, which operated from studios in Cardiff and Bristol. The company provided commercial television for the dual-region 'Wales and West' franchise, which it won from TWW in 1968...
sports editor Jed Pitman presented the newly expanded programme. The new format was dropped at the end of the 2006/7 season and Soccer Sunday returned to its original format. Pitman left the programme at the end of the year and was replaced by Jonny Owen.
ITV Wales lost the rights to show highlights of Wrexham's matches when the club was relegated to the Blue Square Premier
Conference National
Conference National is the top division of the Football Conference in England. It is the highest level of the National League System and fifth highest of the overall English football league system...
league at the end of the 2007/8 season (a result of Setanta Sports
Setanta Sports
Setanta Sports is an international sports broadcaster based in Dublin, Ireland. Setanta Sports was formed in 1990 to facilitate the broadcasting of Irish sporting events...
possessing exclusive rights to the Football Conference
Football Conference
The Football Conference is a football league in England which consists of three divisions called Conference National, Conference North, and Conference South. Some Football Conference clubs are fully professional, such as Luton Town, but most of them are semi-professional...
leagues). In September 2008, BBC Wales
BBC Wales
BBC Cymru Wales is a division of the British Broadcasting Corporation for Wales. Based at Broadcasting House in the Llandaff area of Cardiff, it directly employs over 1200 people, and produces a broad range of television, radio and online services in both the Welsh and English languages.Outside...
gained secondary rights to screen highlights of Wrexham matches for their now-defunct Saturday afternoon results programme, Wales on Saturday.
Hancock's Half Time
Central Soccer Night and London Soccer Night were replaced in 2006 by Hancock's Half Time, a pan-regional show produced from CentralCentral Independent Television
Central Independent Television, more commonly known as Central is the Independent Television contractor for the Midlands, created following the restructuring of ATV and commencing broadcast on 1 January 1982. The station is owned and operated by ITV plc, under the licensee of ITV Broadcasting...
's studios in Birmingham and presented by Nick Hancock & Sarah Jane Mee
Sarah Jane Mee
Sarah-Jane Mee is a British sports presenter for Sky News and is also part of Sky Sports' UEFA Champions League broadcasting team on Wednesday evening....
.
The programme was axed during the 2007/8 season and replaced by a revival of Central Soccer Night in the Midlands. ITV London
ITV London
ITV London is the on-air brand name used by ITV Broadcasting Limited for the two Channel 3 broadcast franchises, Carlton Television and London Weekend Television in the London ITV region.-History:...
chose not to produce a replacement programme.
End
All Soccer Night programmes in England were axed in May 2008 as part of further cutbacks in ITV's regional output. The Welsh Soccer Sunday continued for a further six months with coverage of Cardiff CityCardiff City F.C.
Cardiff City Football Club are a Welsh professional football club based in Cardiff, Wales. The club competes in the English football pyramid and is currently playing in the Football League Championship. Cardiff City is the best supported football club in Wales, averaging approximately 22,500 for...
and Swansea City
Swansea City A.F.C.
Swansea City Association Football Club are a Welsh professional football club based in Swansea, Wales. One of the most successful clubs in Welsh football, it has won 10 Welsh Cups and led the English Football League First Division in December 1981, before finishing the season in 6th position...
for the first half of the 2008/9 season, but the programme was axed in December 2008. At the end of the season, ITV lost the rights to show Football League highlights to the BBC.