Football Daily - The Commentators' View: Ashes special with Aggers

Episode Date: November 21, 2025

John Murray & Ali Bruce-Ball are joined by Jonathan Agnew to discuss commentating on cricket. He talks about his journey from lorry driver to broadcaster. Aggers reveals how much prep he does and his commentary top tips. And suggestions always welcome for our Great Glossary of Football Commentary and unintended pub names from commentary - WhatsApp voicenotes to 08000 289 369 & emails to [e-mail]03:55 Jonathan Agnew joins the pod 08:45 From archery & dressage to Ben Stokes in 2019 12:45 What prep Aggers does for cricket? 18:00 From lorry driver to broadcaster 23:10 Aggers’ Ashes memories down under 32:00 How to follow the Ashes on the BBC 35:25 Unintended pub names 39:30 Jonathan’s favourite commentators’ view 45:25 Great Glossary of Football Commentary 55:30 Jonathan on commentating on a replay!5 Live / BBC Sounds Premier League commentaries: Sat 1500 Liverpool v Forest, Sat 1500 Fulham v Sunderland on Sports Extra, Sat 1730 Newcastle v Man City, Sun 1400 Leeds v Aston Villa, Sun 1630 Arsenal v Tottenham, Tue 2000 Chelsea v Barcelona, Tue 2000 Man City v Bayer Leverkusen on Sports Extra, Wed 2000 Arsenal v Bayern Munich, Wed 2000 PSG v Tottenham on Sports Extra,Glossary so far (in alphabetical order):DIVISION ONE Bosman, Couldn’t sort their feet out, Cruyff Turn, Dead-ball specialist, Fox in the box, Giving the goalkeeper the eyes, Head tennis, Hibs it, In a good moment, Johnny on the spot, The Maradona, Olimpico, Onion bag, Panenka, Rabona, Scorpion kick, Spursy, Tiki-taka, Where the kookaburra sleeps, Where the owl sleeps, Where the spiders sleep.DIVISION TWO Ball stays hit, Business end, Came down with snow on it, Catching practice, Cauldron atmosphere Coat is on a shoogly peg, Come back to haunt them, Corridor of uncertainty, Easy tap-in, Daisy-cutter, First cab off the rank, Good leave, Has that in his locker, High wide and not very handsome, Howler, Leading the line, Nutmeg, One for the cameras, One for the purists, Played us off the park, Purple patch, Put their laces through it, Rolls Royce, Root and branch review, Row Z, Screamer, Seats on the plane, Show across the bows, Stramash, Taking one for the team, That’s great… (football), Thunderous strike.UNSORTED 2-0 is a dangerous score, After you Claude, All-Premier League affair, Aplomb, Bag/box of tricks, Brace, Brandished, Bread and butter, Breaking the deadlock, Bundled over the line, Champions elect / champions apparent, Clinical finish, Commentator’s curse, Coupon buster, Cultured/Educated left foot, Denied by the woodwork, Draught excluder, Elimination line, Fellow countryman, Foot race, Formerly of this parish, Free hit, Goalkeepers’ Union, Goalmouth scramble, Good touch for a big man, Honeymoon Period, In and around, In the shop window, Keeping ball under their spell, Keystone Cops defending, Languishing, Loitering with intent, Marching orders, Nestle in the bottom corner, Numbered derbies, Opposite number, Park the bus, PK for penalty-kick, Postage stamp, Put it in the mixer, Rasping shot, Red wine not white wine, Relegation six-pointer, Rooted at the bottom, Route One, Roy of the Rovers stuff, Sending the goalkeeper the wrong way, Shooting boots, Sleeping giants, Slide rule pass, Small matter of, Spiders web, Stayed hit, Steepling, Stinging the palms, Stonewall penalty, Straight off the training ground, Taking one for the team, Team that likes to play football, Throw their cap on it, Thruppenny bit head / 50p head, Towering header, Two good feet, Turning into a basketball match, Turning into a cricket score, Usher/Shepherd the ball out of play, Walking a disciplinary tightrope, Wand of a left foot, We’ve got a cup tie on our hands, Winger in their pocket, Wrap foot around it, Your De Bruynes, your Gundogans etc.

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You cannot see. what is happening in your value chain, and you cannot surface data to address it. I'm Vijay Sharma, a special host of Resilient Edge, a business vitality podcast, paid and presented by Deloitte. Learn how geospatial intelligence and AI are transforming supply chain resilience. Available now, wherever you listen to podcasts. The commentators view on the Football Daily with Alistair Bruce Ball, John Murray, and Ian Dennis. Hello, welcome to the Football Daily. I'm Alastair Bruce Ball, and this is the commentator's view where we five live commentators

talk about the games we've seen, the places we've been, the language we've used to describe it all, and sometimes we dip into other sports as well. More on that in a moment, but first of all, a warm hello to the BBC's football correspondent, John Murray, who we still find in the capital of Albania, Tirana this morning, John, and you had the privilege of commentating on the internet. international goal that took Harry Kane past Pele. I did. Yeah, hello from Tirana, the capital of Albania,

which is my first visit here, as discussed on last week's podcast. And it's been a very interesting trip so far. I was fascinated to come here, and I've been fascinated by what I've seen so far. And before I go home, I'm going to have a little more of a look around this place. But just to give you a flavor of where we are, we're in an old style. Tirana Hotel and the feature of this edition of the commentator's view is this.

Have a listen to this. Creaky seat. That's the wooden Albanian chair that I'm sitting on. And in this hotel this morning, I woke up to be informed that there was no water in the hotel. So that was a little bit of a crisis. But not even cold water? There's no water at all. no water but I'm pleased to report that the water has been restored and I have just stepped out of the shower to come to you

good good you look fresh and fine John very quickly on on England John an incredibly impressive qualification campaign so eight wins out of eight no goals conceded Harry Kane at it again it won't matter a hill of beans will it if if England don't go well in the World Cup next summer but it does bode well I mean, the sort of equivalent is of England doing what they've done in this World Cup qualifying campaign, winning all eight matches, that's what Roy Hodgson's England did. They won 10 out of 10 in qualifying for Euro 2016 when they eventually were then knocked out by Iceland in the last 16. So, you know, it is an important landmark and a milestone and it makes, I think, the other country sit up and take notice and think. Well, England must be a serious outfit now, but that doesn't take away from the fact that they still have to deliver when it comes to the biggest stage of all. Right. Let's get straight into some TCV correspondence. So emails always welcome. TCV at BBC.co.com. WhatsApp and voice notes. The number to dial is 08,289-369, the number to use. Leslie and Chorley, can I make a plea for a cricket commentary special?

Tom in North Hance says, I really enjoyed the tennis and golf crossover podcasts and wondered if there were any plans for a cricket one, maybe a pre-Asher special with Jonathan Agnew. John in London, as a great cricket fan, can you get Jonathan Agnew on one episode? Rick in Solford says, you all cover other sports,

but is TMS a closed shop? Or are you just not cricket lovers? That's where my original love of sports commentary started. Christopher's a Newcastle United fan. He says, I have a suggestion of a commentator you should invite onto the pod. Jonathan Agnew from Test Match Special, in brackets, really don't need to say anymore.

The bloke is the best in cricket commentary. So, the people have spoken. We have listened. And it's a very warm welcome to the commentator's view to Test Match Special's Jonathan Agnew, who is speaking to us live from Perth ahead of the ashes, Jonathan. Well, I'm a bit embarrassed.

I mean, you know how to butter me up, don't you? I have to say, I never thought I'd appear on a football podcast. So that's a great honour. I mean, I have to be honest, football's not really my sport. I mean, I do dabble in various others. But I went to a school where football was never played. It was rugby and hockey. I lived in an area, part of the world, where there really weren't any football teams.

Until I moved to Leicester, of course. But it's too late by then. And it's a shame. I feel I've missed out, really, because it is the national conversation, isn't it? I mean, even when the ashes are on, football will still be what most people are talking about when they're propping up the bar. And I just feel that I've missed out on that a little bit, but hey, there you go. Yes, although I suspect you know a little bit more than you let on. No, when it comes to football, I can promise you I don't.

And I had to cut my teeth on my very early days of broadcasting by being the sports producer at BBC Radio Lester. So therefore, to go down to Filbert Street as it was then and interview the manager on Fridays was terrifying. nothing about it. Brian Hamilton, what a lovely man. He was manager of Lester at the time. He looked after me so well. And when he left, I was distraught, really devastated. I thought, how am I going to survive? Up comes David Pleat. Lovely man, loves his cricket. And so between those two, they got me through that terrifying business of having to, I mean, I'm glad I wasn't working for Nottingham with Brian Clough up the road. Those two were just so So kind.

That might have finished you off before you started. I think it would. So kind and helpful. And that really, if I'm honest, I've never commentated on football. I really wouldn't know where to start. I mean, I've heard you interview football guests on view from the boundary.

And, you know, sometimes that's actually when you are, when you don't perhaps know as much, sometimes that makes a better interview, isn't it? Oh, I think so. because often you ask quite a silly question, which they have, I mean, Roy Hodgson, you just mentioned him earlier on, didn't you? I remember interviewing him on a very hot day at the Oval,

and I think he thought it was going to be a quick five-minute knock-off. And in fact, we were sitting in the blazing sun for about 35 minutes, and poor old Roy was soldiering on, and he was just dabbing his burning head with his forehead. He was delightful. I mean, he was there genuinely as a cricket fan. you know there are there are plenty actually who we bump into around the place

I mean well Gary Linnaker I used to play cricket with at Leicester of course he was very much a contemporary of mine and he was a decent cricketer but it doesn't seem to be quite that volume of crossover between footballers and cricketers as there was rugby and cricketers I don't know why that should be necessarily I think Steve Bruce is out here

in fact I think John if you listen in I think I might be interviewing him doing this test match but there you go well I certainly be listening in and uh i mean i have to give me some clues i don't i don't know much about it i just given the name absolutely you will be fine with steve bruce i could guarantee you that it's one of you know one one of the things that i'm so looking forward to and i think it's one of the great joys of and i've said to you as i've said to you many many times over the years you know test might special has been a massive influence on me in the way that i broadcast and i

It must be the program, the radio program, that I've listened to more hours of than anything else, probably because of the sheer number of hours that you actually broadcast for. We do talk at a lot. Well, exactly. But I think particularly when it's the, whether it's New Zealand or Australia or actually any of the Asian venues, that whole thing of when you, so I very often will leave the commentary on during the night, and then you wake up. and it's that brilliant anticipation of waiting for you to drop in the details.

So have they still not lost a wicket? Are they eight down? Sometimes you have to wait half an hour before we bother to give the score, which has been very infuriating. But let's make one thing clear. You two have both commentated with me on Test Match Special. You both did a very good job at it. So you're coming from a position of having had that crossover. And it's really nice to hear you say that it's kind of had some sort of influence

on the way you broadcast because I think in many ways cricket commentary is quite unique in the terms of the pace and that's why I know I would struggle doing I think I would struggle doing quicker sports I mean I'm always amazed by

the horse racing commentators how they do it gazing through binoculars and telescopes and mud and fog and then they do one race and then 15 minutes as another I don't know how they do it when I have done I've done two

slow sports outside of my company zone. I'll challenge you to do either of these on the radio frankly. I'll give you archery. Challenging. Challenging on the radio. That was the 2012 Olympics.

You sort of get a bit of a twang and then there's a silence and a thud in the distance and someone shouts out seven or something. And of course equestionism and I'll offer you dressage. I'll off your dressage on the radio. But I think the reason I was given it was because we are used to certainly in test cricket

talking at that much slower pace. And it's really important that you do that if you come on and and gabble it's quite a hard listen and part of what I really try and do is to bring people listening to where I am and that is often simply by letting the crowd speak you know if you if you listen to the Ben Stokes 2019 at Headingleaves a beautiful day big crowd and the tension you actually didn't have to commentate very much because all of that and the noise of the crowd and just the counting down the runs that one wicket you really didn't have to say anything

you could leave big long gaps between what happened describing the ball and you can imagine people fiddling with their radios and drawing in what's going to happen next you know and that all adds I think that's a technique that does add to tension certainly in cricket

here's Cummins, Bowles and it's short and very well played Snow's going for the run through they come England can't lose The ashes are alive. What do you do in the field now? Well played Jack Leach. And he's going to give Stokes a little tap of the gloves.

Stokes is on strike. England need one to win. They can't lose. 358 for 9. Stokes on strike. Ingle need one to win. And in comes Pat Cummins from the far end. He bowls to Stokes, who hammers it for four.

It stands there with a bat raised. I can't believe we've seen that. That is the most extraordinary innings. ever, ever been played by an Englishman. He punches the air, his helmet's off. He was hit on that helmet this morning. Bits flew off all over the place. And he slumped to his knees.

I mean, here's a great example of the power of radio and the power of sport on the radio. I had finished commentating on a Bournemouth game. There must have been crossover between cricket and football at that point. We were late in the summer early in the football season. And they'd kicked everyone out of the stadium. And I couldn't move. I could not move.

So I was sitting on my own in the stadium in Bournemouth, listening to the end of that. And exactly what you say about the crowd noise, because when he, as you say, hammers that last ball for four, you almost can't hear your words because the crowd are basically telling you what's happened. But it was just an explosion of noise and amazing. Yeah, and it's all my favourite moments. Because you don't say anything because you've said it hopefully quite succinctly is what's happened. And then, I mean, not only the crowd going up, but of course the listeners are all going up. There were those amazing videos sent in of people.

There were a lot on beaches. I mean, it was a lovely day. And there was this lovely video sent in to us about these sort of pockets of people dotted along the beach. We obviously didn't know each other. They weren't actually listening to each other's radios. But they also shot up at the same time along this beach. You know, people and little huddles listening to the same thing.

And that, yeah, I mean, you just let it, you just let it happen, don't you? And then you haven't got to say anything. In fact, it rather spoils it if you do. Can I ask as well, Jonathan, in terms of getting ready for the start of a test series particularly an Ashes series and particularly away from home when you turn up on the first morning

of any test what do you need in place to feel comfortable and confident and ready to go in terms of prep you've done and what has to be there for you to be able to stand there, sit there and think right, I'm ready, let's go I think it's just getting in your own place

I mean I'll be honest I do very little sitting down number crunching and data crunching I don't, because actually I actually find it quite dull anyway. When I played, I wasn't really interested in figures and stats. I just wasn't. I went out and played. And we have someone who's employed to do it. So I just think if you prepare stuff, you've spent hours in your hotel room

where it is writing out notes and stuff, well, because you've done all the hard work, you're going to read it out, aren't you? You're going to read it. I've done all this work, so you're going to hear it. that's just not my style I mean it's some people's style but it's just not my style I'd much rather

you know paint the picture I know that's a bit of an old cliche but do that and bring people to where you are because the most important thing about commentary is that you are the eyes of those people who aren't there

people on the road in gardens at home or wherever they may be and so you your job is actually to bring them to you and to share what you can see the excitement, the tension, the dullness sometimes of it, but you are bringing them to you and therefore you have to again let the atmosphere speak and it's you kind of, I also try very hard to set my voice level and pitch against the

sound of the crowd and I know it sounds silly but actually crowds do have a pitch and I always think of the crowd as the orchestra and you are the social. and therefore you try and make your voice fit musically almost with that ambient sound of the background if that makes sense and so and so it's actually hopefully a sort of pleasant listen it's not it's not discordant it's not out of tune it's not hard it's not forcing it just sits above that noise and you know it's nice obviously when you do have a crowd to do it against it's harder when you haven't but that's what I do try to do it so that whole thing I try and create to bring people and want to be there I want to know what's going on and as you know one of the key aspects of being a commentator is earning people's trust people have to believe what you're saying yeah if you're one-eyed cool I don't know how England lost by an innings and 200 runs there they were robbed you know there's no point there's no point being a one-eyed commentator you got you got to be honest people have to

trust you because because you are their eyes And so there's all these little elements come into it, don't they? And then, of course, on TMS, you've got the time to have a bit of banter and have a bit of fun, and there are people who that works with better than others. It's so many different things that when it works, it all fits. Sometimes it doesn't. Sometimes, you're not in any job. You're not quite up for it or whatever.

But usually when you sit down, headphones on, and you hear the music, I think that's what really, you know, that that TMS theme that kind of it's funny when I speak so where they play it as a sort of an intro or something my immediate reaction is you know go to work oh you know it feels like it sort of jolts you out of

you know that sort of thing and you switch on and so all of those things together kind of I think but in terms of reams of preparation that just doesn't that doesn't work for me I sometimes wish we would have an

Andy Saltsman Ali someone who did you exactly so you have to do it when I was doing my dressage and and so on you know I didn't have an Andy Zaltzwood so I think I think actually we're very

spoiled to have a statistic and it is hard work I can tell you it takes well yeah and it takes all that stuff off you so actually I think it's not lazy it's just there's a chap there whose job it is to do it

and to make it interesting as Andy does what I was going to say to you was I think you are clearly fundamentally different from me and Ali because and I think Ali it's fair to say

that both of us knew at a very young age early days of our interest in sport and maybe vaguely thinking that we might make a career in this that you and I

realised that you know we There was no way that we were going to be professional sportsmen when we grew up because, you know, we both recognized that. So therefore, always probably had a bit of an eye that this might be something that we'd move into. Jonathan, you're completely different because you obviously were a top class sportsman and international sportsmen. So at what point was it that you thought you might be able to make a career in what you do now? Very good question. I mean, I was lucky.

So being a professional cricketer when I was in the 80s, it was a tricky career because you only worked between April and September. You got your P60 and September and a reporting date for April the 3rd or something. And that was it. And off you went. You had to find work. And so after a few, I don't know, I drove a lorry for a couple of winters and made windows in a window factory. Actually, with someone who you know very well.

Yeah. Oh, don't believe, I'll tell you, those windows would not have seen out their guarantee period. and actually the lorriard drove was for an asbestos company and I'd rather regret that now as well but there you go but anyway thankfully one the end of one summer someone who you both know very well called john rawling came up to be and he said what are you doing this winter then jonathan i said i've got no idea and he of course was the sports producer at bbc radio lester who i knew pretty well and he said come and work well come and give it a go you know i think i think you'll like it and you know i think it would be okay I think just just try it and so I said yeah okay I will and I started off doing the

sort of the breakfast program sports desks you know and I just fell in love with radio I just I just really loved it and the people involved in radio too I mean the breakfast program people are mad let's be honest I mean they're up god knows what they got they what beans they're on but they're on something you know but they are and it was just such good fun and but also to get that communication and the contact and the company that radio is and i think on local radio you really feel that don't you you know it is community radio in a way and radio lester was a terrific place i mean is you know the number of sports people have gone through radio lester is remarkable really because they got everything go football rugby cricket and so that you know that was that was

where i was talking earlier on about my brian hamilton and david pleats because john quickly went on to bigger things in in london with terrific athletics commentator boxing of course And so his seat became vacant. And so for the next three winters, while I was still a professional cricketer, I was the main sportsman at Radio Leicester, which did not, and I didn't tell a lie at my interview with the BBC, but I didn't actually tell the truth either, that I didn't tell them that actually I wasn't the person out with the stopwatch

and doing the commentary. I was actually the person in the studio playing records, often at the wrong speed, and asking them what the score was down the line. but I just I don't know I just I just really felt radio was just a wonderful thing and it is I mean I know we're biased but there's no other

medium like radio is I mean it just and bear in mind that Buggles was busily singing about video killing the radio star at the time but no that's how it began and I sort of moved around a bit and I worked for the today newspaper

for a couple of years on and off and they were great, they used to send me off to go and do all sorts of weird and wonderful sports, but I was, amongst other things, the number two rugby writer, which was a new experience, so I sent off because the number one went to do the England Games. Number two

was sent off, had a great trip actually, every other week where it was in those days, you know, Cardiff Arms Park, Wales against France, off I'd go, wonderful atmosphere, incredible singing, I'd sit there and love it, watch the game, not really knowing what a clue was going on, go off to the press

conference afterwards with my recording machine, get a few quotes. Have a good night out. Next morning, by the Sunday Times, read the match report, cobble together a few paragraphs for today, stick some quotes in from the afternoon before and that was it. Go back again in a couple of weeks' time. You know, that was an interesting experience. If we spin it all the way forward, Jonathan, back to the present day and what you're about to commentate on. So another Ashes series down under. In terms of your trips over there,

what's the most thrilling cricket you've had to describe Ashes-wise in Australia? There's one moment that comes to mind for me in particular, but I'm not going to say it. Oh, well, that's challenging me, because we'll probably have different ones. I think the most thrilling cricket I've watched was Mitchell Johnson bowling. And I'll have these arguments with Alistair Cook

regularly about fast bowling because he argues people run faster, throw further, all that stuff. Therefore people must bowl faster now, i.e. when he was playing, then back at the date, when I was playing, it's a sort of a silly debate that goes on. And I'd let Graham Gooch loose on him one time after I'd had enough of that. But anyway, Mitchell Johnson in that series, I don't think I've ever seen anybody bowl faster or more horribly. And by that, I mean left arm, quite a low arm, nasty angle. That was thrilling cricket. But of course, England winning the ashes here in 10-11

was very emotional for me because this is, and you'll feel the same, I know you will. Our jobs are very selfish and that you are away from home a long time. There's a lot of commitment and people will talk about the best jobs in the world. Yeah, they're wonderful jobs. I don't know how long most people would do it for.

I don't think I'd do it for 35 years, missing every other Christmas, missing most children's birthdays, going away for months at a time, which is what we do. And so therefore, we're just about to win the Ashes in Melbourne in 2011. And Emma was there. I don't know how I got her into the comedy box, but I did. And we just got this newfangled kit, which had enabled us to go out onto the ground

and interview the players at the end. And so Ashes won, and I've got this kit getting it lined up, and I saw a spare ground pass and Lanyard, on the table so I stuck it around Emma's neck and she came out with me into the middle of the MCG but was just rocking with Barmy army and as I walked out well I didn't have to say it really but this is this is why I do this job this is it this is why I do it and she was there and she wandered around the sprinkler was going at the far end in front of the Barmeys all that stuff and that

was a that was a really yeah it's a lovely thing to be able to do that I mean she's a journalist so she knows she knows a situation but it's not easy you know I talk about the commitment of going away actually the commitment of being at home is difficult as well and so that was one way to be able to show her why I did it if you want the most dramatic thing I think I've commentated on and I have to challenge you here Alistair because they'll probably be different I think this is going to be it Steve War yes yes yes okay so Steve War with and this is again with a bit of preamble Steve War Australia's captain coming towards the end

And for some reason, I know Steve quite a long time, but the ABC radio, and we, Jim and I, as you'll discover during this winter, we swap box to box to box. So I'm on the BBC one minute, then I go next door and commentate on the ABC to Australia. So, but the ABC did not send a reporter to any of the preview days of the test matches that year. I don't know why. So I would always interview Steve Waugh as well, as well as the England captain, who was NASA. And so I got quite close with Steve. And we got to Sydney, his home ground. And clearly, the sights are trained on him.

He was struggling, and the knives were out. He was going to be finished. And I interviewed him the day before, this funny little concrete room with no windows. And you could see, actually, even for Steve, he was actually quite emotional about this. And he's not a very emotional man at all. So out he goes.

He goes out into bat the first day. And I've done my switch onto ABC. And he was about 88 not out, I think. And the ground was sort of buzzing. but there was 20 minutes to go he wasn't he wasn't going to get a hundred he was just going to play well suddenly boom boom boom and as we know

with with with one ball remaining Gilchrist had pushed a single Steve Wars on strike on 99 not out all this back story going on end of career end of captaincy all that stuff the SCG just absolutely rocking and dear old Richard Dawson bowled that ball right about the off stump and war

gave us a little bit of room boom and eased it for through the covers and that was extraordinarily emotional for someone let's face it we're all supposed to hate Steve War you know he was just one of those who God he annoyed us didn't he? All of us England cricket supporters

but to commentate on the ABC for that moment was really special and the messages that came in and it connects it just shows the connection of ABC with this vast country the stuff because it covers the whole country the ABC is the only network that covers

the whole country. And these messages are coming in from farmers who had pulled up their yute up by a billabong under gum trees listening and all that stuff. You just felt that incredible connection with with Australia. So well I mean was that the same one? Was that the moment you're thinking of? Yeah. Yeah. It had everything. As a commentator you want emotion, don't you? And you want to be involved. Funny enough, Michael Clark, four years later, Ricky Ponting was injured and Michael Clark was captain. And so I interviewed Michael Clark. we went to the same room and he sat down in the chair and I said Michael just to let you know

four years ago Steve War sat in that chair Clark quickly got up we were very superstitious he got up boom sat in the other chair just because of War and got 100 having sat in that chair having talked I mean it's ridiculous isn't it but it didn't work for him anyway

but yeah there you go that was quite something one thing you said there Jonathan that struck a chord with me and as you mentioned earlier Ali and I have both dipped into cricket commentary and it's the lifestyle. That's the thing that I found was perhaps not quite what I expected. And as I've said to you before, and Ali knows, you know, cricket is my favourite sport.

And to commentate on Test Match Special for me was absolute broadcasting dream to do that. You came to Sri Lanka, didn't you? Shalanka. Yeah. To work on Test Match Special on an England tour was for me it was a lifetime achievement fulfilled and I loved every minute of it it was terrific and that was 2003 I think but what I found was and at that time I was already quite established as a five-life football commentator and there was a question of whether that would be a cross roads and whether I might go down the cricket route but I found from a lifestyle point of view that was a really short tour I think it was only like four four or five weeks something like that right and I just felt like my life had had to be put on hold for five weeks for a short tour

and you're away for such a long time and listen we we travel away a lot I'm speaking to from Tarana for goodness sake you know and that's a real you know there'll be Tarana that they'll be belgrade in a couple of weeks you know and then you'll be somewhere else but it is short it they are short trips away, you're up, you're away at your back, you're away at your back. And there is a bit of normal life there. But for you, you've done it for decades. And they're normally disrupted life. Well, they're shorter now. They were. My first tour here in 1990 was, I think, 135 days. And that was it. There was no question of family coming out or my kids are younger and so on. Yeah, it is a selfish job. And you have to have things organized at home.

there's a lot of divorces in this in this job in 1990 yeah I was divorced from my wife of the time and it happens a lot I mean it goes in cycles I think you often get a reporter who comes a correspondent who's you know mid-20s 20 to 30 or so and he's young and excited and everything's great and he gets a girlfriend girlfriend comes out wow this is fantastic it's marvelous to get married couple of years everything's great young child comes along boom that is it and you either give up and have to go and do something else because obviously the young child

don't come out on tours like this or you just soldier on by yourself and hoping that things are all right at home they're not as long now as they were and in a way it's a shame because those tours you actually see much more of the country

we'd come here to West Australia would start we've got to Geraldton go and play the country 11 play West Australia here you go to Adelaide you go up to Port Period playing against the farmers you come down and play South Australia and you actually saw much more of the country

than you do now I mean it just goes bang bang bang bang bang test batches and out but even so it's still going to be I think it's 75 days or something this one which is must be the shortest Ashes tour has ever been but it's great fun

I mean touring places like how many people get to go to Pakistan you know and I've been there what three times the last four years it's just such a friendly welcoming place that people happily say order to go to Pakistan. It's fantastic when you go and experience places like that. We are extremely lucky to do that and to travel as we have. It does help when you win.

I'll be honest. So I'm a little bit anxious, although not quite as anxious now as I was a week ago. There's injuries here and Australians I think are definitely wobbly. So looking forward to Friday with great anticipation. when this podcast comes out the first Ashes test will already be up and running because we come out on a Friday so you'll need to get yourself

you'll have to find a window to listen to this but you'll need to get yourself over to Sports Extra and BBC Sounds so Of course. Oh yeah exactly so the Test Match special daily podcast will be there throughout the Ashes on the BBC Sounds app on air from 1.30 in the morning

on Sports Extra and BBC Sounds in the early hours over here play running until about 10 o'clock in the morning video clips and highlights during play on the BBC Sport website and app and there's a highlight show on the eye player as well but as John always says and you always say this John you cannot beat live sport on the radio so get yourself up and get listening and actually my job for me but it's a good this is also a great opportunity you know you know parents grandparents listening to this this is a great opportunity to introduce

your children, your grandchildren to how sport works on the radio. In terms of the football coming this weekend, we have plenty. This is what Jonathan's going to be blissfully in a while. Can I go now? Well, I'll rattle through this, Jonathan,

and then we'll get to a couple of other features on the pod, and then we'll let you get away. So, plenty of football, of course, coming because the domestic action is back at the weekend. Our Saturday 3 o'clock commentary on 5 Live is Liverpool against Nottingham Forest. Ian Dennis and Paul Robinson will be there. You can listen to Fulham Sunderland on Sports Extra.

Saturday 5.30, we've got Newcastle against Manchester City. John, you and I are in action on Sunday. So at 2 o'clock on Sunday, I'm alongside Stephen Warnock for Leeds, Aston Villa. And actually, you've got Arsenal Tottenham, which is, well, that is the game of the weekend, isn't it, alongside Clinton Morrison. That'll be interesting. That'll be a good game. Yeah, really looking forward to that. And plus the fact, if Manchester City are able to win at Newcastle on the Saturday,

night, that means Manchester City are going to be back breathing right down the next of Arsenal at the top of the table. So this pressure thing that I feel like I'm speaking about every week that Arsenal are going to have to deal with this pressure. And that's the absolute every top level sports person, sports team has to deal with pressure. But the pressure that is likely to be exerted on Arsenal over the course of the coming months is one of the things that I think we're going to be talking about a lot. And before you hear the next commentator's view episode, there'll be Champions League commentaries as well.

So they're coming next week. Tuesday night, Chelsea, Barcelona. Manchester City, Baye-Lavikuzon will be on Sports Extra on Tuesday. And then John will be doing Arsenal against Bayern Munich on the Wednesday. Paris Sangerama against Tottenham will be on Sports Extra. So we've got it all covered. Welcome to the team behind the team. A new podcast series in partnership.

with the Open University, where we'll be showcasing the people, the tools, and the techniques that help athletes and teams reach elite level. Like all elite sports, it's a pyramid and everybody's trying to get to the top. It's not just my vision. It's a shared vision amongst the team.

What is this? This is not the way I see the game. The team behind the team with Katie Smith. In partnership with the Open University. Listen on BBC Sounds. Bring more gear. Carry more passengers, face greater challenges. Welcome to the world of Defender, with seating up to eight, ample cargo space, and legendary off-road capability. It's built to make the most of every adventure.

Learn more at landrover.ca. The commentator's view on the Football Daily. Listen on BBC Sounds. Jonathan, we've got some regular pod business to introduce you to now. A few features we have on this podcast that we'll need you to adjudicate. So first of all is our unintended pub names, Jonathan. So this was picked up by Paul Robinson, who's a former England goalkeeper,

who was commentating alongside John Murray a couple of months ago. And it's where... Can you remember what the original one was, John? It's something that a commentator says that could make a pub name, but it's done unintentionally. Yeah, we were sitting on the gantry at Ellen Road, Leeds United, and I'm just commentating away on Leeds. And Paul suddenly starts sort of...

His shoulders are going up and down, and he's giggling to himself and i said what are you laughing at and he said he said you've just come out with a couple of pub names unintended pub names and um they've got a couple of defenders called bogel and rodon and in quick succession i mentioned the bearded bogel and the hopping rodon and he said they could both be pub names yeah and he said you should introduce that on the podcast which we did and i thought well this'll last you know we'll do this it'll be a couple of a week. And it's honestly, it has grown legs.

We've had people sending in pictures of the pub sign. And, you know, these are from any type of sports commentary that people hear what could be a pub then. Yeah. And in Test Match Special commentary, they will feature all the time. So as you're listening to the test series, then get in touch with us and we'll pass them on to the team. That's TCV at BBC.

I was thinking of a couple off top of my head. I mean, the Golden Duck, that's an obvious point. name, isn't it? That's an easy one. Can I introduce the leg over? I'd like to see the pub sign for that. A famous one, absolutely. I could see that. I could absolutely see that. Yeah, so last week's highlights were the Mozambique nutmeg. That's quite niche. The bootless Bowen, which I could definitely see somewhere,

and the Phantom Whistler, which was another very good one. David in Lags Bay, South Australia, in fact, says, watching an English Premier League highlights package on local streaming in a West Ham match, I heard the flying Sochek. Perhaps that would be a bar at an airport, but also one to be dodged. And Ian in Exmouth says, how about a division two for pub names not heard in football commentary? I was listening to the cricket women's World Cup a few weeks back

and heard a whole chain of pubs, the diving night, the falling night and the sprawling night. That's good. Mike in Halesow, in Dear TCV, watching the rugby this afternoon, I heard a possible nomination. Ben Earl, having been sent off for 10 minutes, was described as sitting on the naughty chair. The naughty chair.

And Leeds fan Callum says, a lengthy email this one. I do enjoy listening to the podcast's regular feature about potential pub names unearthed from the commentary box. Some real gems crop up, don't they? But it strikes me, perhaps one of the finest pub names, has been staring us in the face all along, perfectly obvious and utterly apt.

the commentator's view. It wouldn't be one of those grand affairs, not by a long chalk, but it would have a certain, well, a certain something, tucked in there quite companionably, among the lovely russet colours of autumn, right next to the village pitch where the lads and lasses kick about. You can sit outside, weather permitting, with your pint, a good, honest pint, mind you, and you can't help but offer your two penneth on the game. You might mutter to yourself, He shouldn't have passed it there, should he? Or they couldn't have buried that where the owl sleeps. It's a quiet sort of pleasure, this,

watching the world go by and feeling quite put out if they somehow managed to miss the easy tap-in. A slice of life perfectly framed, if you ask me, all are welcome for a peaceful retreat in the commentator's view. P.S., I have attached the AI image of the pub sign for this idyllic boozer. and there it is he sent the picture alley yeah very good

given the podcast name and that pub name now Jonathan that leads to an obvious question cricket commentary positions what is the best commentator's view for a cricket commentator in World Creek where's your favourite spot

what where you mean yeah yeah well they're dwindling because the ideal position I don't know how you are with your sport but it's not to be too high. But with the new stands that are being built, you go up and up and up,

and you end up as looking down on people's caps and hats. So identification is quite hard. And also, the higher you go, the more difficult it is to judge the carry of a catch. You're looking down on something. So rather than a slip catch, if you're in it, you can actually see, you can gauge the height and the carry much more easily, although it all happens very quickly.

so flanneling around the answer to that I mean Lord's is I mean Lord's is high but it's a wonderful to open the window and get that Lord's noise I talked about the noise earlier on and the orchestra

you get that at Lords and you can have it the wind's got to be blowing in the right direction otherwise Andy Zaltzman's papers blow everywhere but when it's when it's perfect and you're looking down and you've got the pavilion and all the history you can just feel coming through the window as well.

You're not going to beat that. Is that a better view than it was when you were in the pavilion? No. I know what you mean, but no, because that was lower. And then you had the old-fashioned window that you sort of put all your weight on and wound down. And you also got the smell of Nancy's cooking coming up from the floor below into the commentary box. It was Brian Johnston's sandwiches, roast beef. And so you'd notice coming to lunch because the smell were just coming through those open windows.

but now that was interesting because you would actually go through the pavilion to go to work but I know what you're saying because because you know that that pavilion is iconic and you look at that and you don't you know you get that now whereas we didn't have it before but actually to be in that and at that particular height again you somehow you feel you're more in the game I think when you're at sort of second floor I think is ideal then you then you're looking into faces and you can really see what's going on Edgebaston, the great Andrew Flintov over at Ricky Ponting. That was the old commentary box there, and I was commentating, and you were at that level.

You could almost reach out and touch Flintov, and you could see Ponting's face. You could see all the expressions, and you could see the nick at the end, all that stuff. You know, that was, again, a large part of that was because of the height that you were and how, so within, almost within touching distance of the game you were. One of the things that I appreciate now, as you say, Jonathan, in my time, our football country positions seem to have got further and further away from the action because stadiums get bigger and the positions, yeah, are just built right at the back for various reasons. And last night in Albania, as I'm speaking now, was a great position, a smallish stadium

we were on the upper tier and very close to the action and you can't beat that. And one of the things that I, as a commentator, I don't like, you have to do it because we'll almost always have TV screens next to our commentary position. And I hate having to just sort of glance at that. You know, you want to do it with the naked eye, don't you? Rather than, rather than need to have that TV screen as a backup. Yeah, yeah. The worst, by the way, square leg in a day-night game in Napier behind smokeglass windows.

That was an absolute nightmare. Couldn't see the ball, couldn't see anything. basically made it up and it was a last ball tie and the poor local commentator was on who was I think a rugby man usually and I mean he still doesn't know what happened I don't think no no no listener would have done either that's a shambles in terms actually Jonathan I mean in terms of the view uh for the first test of this series obviously we're not at the whacker are we we're at the opta stadium so this is the first ashes test that we played at played at this stadium yeah I've done a I've done a one day here um the world T20 was here

England played one match it's a bowl you know the Wacker used to have such character I don't want to sound like an old fuddy-duddy but you know as a commentator again as you go back to the start of this you're looking for those things to talk about and the Wacker just had so much the beautiful gardens

the Queen's Gardens outside it the grassy banks or the trotting track in the distance Gloucester Park where the lights would come on towards the end of a day and you see the trotters going round and around around you know it's just all of that you'd be high up in the Maldi marsh stand and you can just feel the history of that place and this is new this is a bowl most Australian cricket grounds are now that I mean Sydney is a

bit of a hot pot just got some history obviously with the two pavilions Adelaide's a lovely ground and they've managed to retain some of its charm despite the fact that they've extended one side that still does have a hill it still has an Australian Pucker Australian scoreboard a big thing with all the information on it but the Gabber and here and Melbourne they didn't big, big bowls. Right, I've got some good news for the pair of you. We are giving Clash of the Commentators

arrest this week, so we were going to have Correspondent against Correspondent. That's good news, Jonathan. Yeah, we see, John's at Anorak, I think. It's good news of all right. I've already given away the fact that I don't know any answers to any of these things. Well, we haven't got time for that.

That is going to come back. Can I just say, before you went on, before you and on here, I heard the countdown music. I thought, oh, God, that's ominous. There's something horrible is going to. happen here. Yeah. Well, this now qualifies for an unintended pub name because I think you and I, Jonathan, we've just had a pint in The Lucky Escape.

Right. I'll second that. Okay, we're going to finish instead. Well, the answer is just to keep talking. See, I've talked so much. There isn't time for it, which suits me. We're going to finish instead with our... I think Jonathan will enjoy this. This is our great glossary of football commentary. But obviously, I mean, cricky, I mean, the great glossary cricket commentary. That's just another tome altogether. But this is where we had listener

suggestions of commentary terms and phrases to our collection. So Division 1 is for football exclusive terms. You will only hear them in football commentary and nowhere else. And Division 2 is for terms used in football commentary, but also used in other sports and elsewhere. For example, last week, head

tennis and Dead Bull specialists passed the test and made it into Division 1. We decided to leave leading the line in Division 1, but there's been a bit of debate about whether it's used in other sports. So Lydia says, leading the line definitely needs to go into Division 2. I'm an avid hockey player and we use it for that. My team is currently top of the Northwest Div 2 North League.

Thanks for asking. We, like many of the phrases in Div 2, are hoping for a big promotion party to Div 1 come March, keep up the good work, love the pod. Leading the line, Jonathan, you wouldn't use that in, you lead an attack. I don't lead the line in cricket, do you? I don't know what it means. Good, done, excellent. It's funny, isn't it?

How often hockey does actually use the same phrases. Tim says, Greetings from Beautiful British Columbia. Your recent glossary edition of leading the line must definitely be a Division 2 because it's an expression used in ice hockey. Okay, a couple that did make it into Division 2, and I think these could be used

in cricket but Jonathan will tell us came down with snow on it so a high ball that's coming down out of the sky in football Oh I've heard that used yep yep yep that's definitely yes And also

ahead of let's say ahead of an ashes tour when you're talking about selection and players sort of battling for places in the squad in football sometimes they'll say looking to get their seats on the plane would you ever say that Jonathan for a tour away personally I wouldn't

I can imagine perhaps one or two might ahead of a tour. Where does nutmeg see? Because I have used expression nutmeg in cricket. Have you? Meaning what's in cricket, John? Well, it can either happen

when somebody's fielding and they have a bit of a nightmare and miss it and the ball goes through the legs. And it can happen batting as well. So I have definitely used nutmeging which I think would be usually associated with football, wouldn't it? Well, that, John, is interesting

because I think Nutmeg has been in Division 1 for us, so that's definitely now that's relegation. Yeah. So that would be where you get an inside edge, as a batsman, inside edge, and it goes through the legs, it was nutmeg dim and down to find a leg for a single, yeah. Yeah, yeah. Or the long barrier comes down, oh dear, a bit of a dodgy bounce goes straight through his legs as nutmeg him.

But here's a good one, because this is a term that is used it in both sports. And sort of means the same thing, but this is Hales Owen town fan, Domu, who gets in touch. Following on from last week's discussion about the bomb squad, So I was talking about the bomb squad, meaning different things in rugby and football. In rugby, it's bringing on five subs in the second half, all fresh to crash on and win the game. In football, if you're in the bomb squad, you're in the subs, you're in the reserves. The manager doesn't want you. You're not playing.

Another one of these, says Dom, is the corridor of uncertainty in football and cricket. So football, it's when the ball is whipped into the box where defenders and the goalkeeper are not sure who should attack the ball. And Dom says in cricket, it's that space just outside. the batter's off stump where it's hard to decide whether to hit or leave the ball. Well, you see, who are you crediting with that expression? That's Geoffrey Boycott, isn't it? Correct. Boycott came up with that. I mean, some years ago now, but that is a totally Jeffrey Boycott creation.

So that's been used as well in football. I mean, he'll be very happy with that. But yeah, that corridor of uncertainty out there, good length, just outside the off stump. But it does, it absolutely kind of sums it up, doesn't it? It's perfect. And actually, just going back to the bomb squad, this has been a little bit of a feature of the past week with Thomas Tuchel as the England manager bringing on substitutes to good effect. It's actually been used with reference to the England team, and with it being England, it's been referred to, I think, in the tabloids probably as the POM squad, as opposed to the bomb squad.

So there's been for you as well. Ashley from Milton Keynes, I've got a suggestion for the football glossary, catching practice. There's a cricket link here. This would be on the cusp of Division I, but most likely Division 2, as I can see this mentioned in cricket with the wicketkeeper, maybe when they're collecting balls from the bowler. But I see in terms of football, what they're talking about there is a shot that is so tame, it's catching practice for the goalkeeper.

It would be used differently. Yeah, when catching practice is a discipline. You'll watch the England players go through. every morning. You know, be it slip-catching practice. The wonderful catches they do on the boundary now, which would never even be thought of when I was playing, the wonderful athletic stuff where you keep the ball in play, you run over the boundary edge yourself. They practice those, they're not flukes anymore, but that is definitely catching practice. Voice notes on WhatsApp to 08,289-369, for example, let's hear from Paul in Swansea. My offering is

when a player has got a knack for arriving in the box, right place at the right time, and he's known as Johnny on the Spot. Just interested to know what you guys think. Love in the pod and keep up the good work. Cheers, guys. It's a real old-fashioned one, that, isn't it? Johnny on the sport, I think,

derived from the early days of football commentary. And I remember, even when I was first starting out using that phrase and thinking, You know, this is like probably 30 years ago, thinking, I've said, Johnny on the spot, that sounds really old-fashioned. So that's probably even more old-fashioned now. Yep, you'll be right. Yeah, and I'm not sure what the original derivation of that is either.

So I'm not sure you'd necessarily get that in cricket, would you? No, I don't think, John, you're on the spot. No, I don't think that's, I got, maybe Brian Johnston might have come out with something sort of along those lines, but I don't know. No, I don't know. I don't know. We've got time for just a couple more. We're not going to get them all in.

We've got so much, so many emails in, which is fantastic. We will get back to these in other pods. TCV at BBC.co.com. UK is the address to get in touch. Spotted a couple I liked, just because of the football cricket thing. Robin Farnham. Hi, gents. I've loved the show this season.

I always look forward to Fridays. I'm fairly sure we've not had this one before, but how about when someone scores a screamer? I don't think I've ever heard of someone. potting a screamer in snooker or a batsman hitting a screamer in cricket. I hope it gets in can you take a screamer of a catch

though? Oh yeah yeah absolutely and he might hit a screamer possibly but definitely a screamer of a catch yeah absolutely that question yeah okay Division two. Worldie seems to have taken over from it but it certainly has been them yeah not one of my favourites Worldie Jonathan has

as I've occasionally said on here Richard from Stockport I've been toying with a possible glossary entry for a while, I'd like to submit they couldn't sort their feet out. For me, this is absolutely a football phrase, although I'm sure I've occasionally heard it used in cricket when a field has messed up a catch in the deep. I look forward to hearing your thoughts. So in football, that is striker getting into position ready to shoot and then the ball gets caught under his feet and he can't quite get his feet in the right place at the

right time to strike. What about in cricket, Jonathan? No, I don't think I've heard that. I mean, you can get tangled up with your footwork a bit when you're batting if it's coming down the pitch and into mum. Mulhack famously did so at Heddingley one time. It went down like a felled elephant. But, no, that's not really a cricketing term. Okay. John, do you want to do one last one?

Do you want to take your pick from that list? How about Srinath from Mumbai City in India says, I enjoy listening to your anecdotes, which gives us a glimpse into the life of football commentators and the preparation that goes behind the scenes. Please, can you discuss whether this word from cricket can be added to football as well, albeit in a different context, good leave and well left. So the football scenario, says Srinath, if, say, player A puts in a cross or a pass,

which player B can get to, touch, but chooses not to, and instead allows the ball to reach player C, since he sees player C who is beyond him or ahead of him in a better position to score a goal. If his action results in a goal, can we say, well left player B, or that was a good leave by player B. What do you say? Can this be included in the football glossary? I do quite like it when a goalkeeper will go for a ball

that has been played through and then leaves it. And I do quite like to say that Jordan Pickford let that one go outside the off stump. I do quite like using that myself. Yeah. Yeah, no, I think I've heard you say that, John.

I think that works. Right, that's it for me. Street Nuth as well. Yes. Yeah, very much. Absolutely. So we've done loads there. Mainly Division 2. Leading the line, Nutmeg, Corridor of Uncertainty, well-played Geoffrey, catching practice, screamer and good leave,

all going into Division 2, into the hallowed ranks of Division 1. Are we adding Johnny on the spot? You can have it. Thank you, Jonathan. And they couldn't sort their feet out. And the last thing we've got to do is go back to a conversation

we had a few pods ago about the perils and Jonathan I know you've had to you've had to do this we've certainly had to do this and it's an absolute nightmare commentating for radio off television pictures and how you can get it's a horror show isn't it

it can be it can be it is we had to do it during COVID when we couldn't go to Sri Lanka but we had the rights and so it It wasn't actually, it's a very clever piece of kit that BBC had, where you weren't actually doing it off television, but you were doing it off a computer screen.

And so you could commentate off it, whether you were, I think we had Eisha here in Australia, and I was in Milton Mowbray, and it all looked the same. It's very clever. There's no delay, in other words. But, no, I fell foul twice of commentating on action replays and a bit stitched up, because when they went to adverts, when a wicket fell,

I mean, we had a blank screen, in this case, the most famous case, one of the Sri Lanka bats had a terrible shot and was caught off Jack Leach by Joe Root at Slip, brilliant catch. And then they went to an advert and it was just a boat bobbing around on the ocean. And suddenly it's back.

And they played, well, they played a ball at normal pace. And so immediately, of course, I think this is live. I haven't seen what's happening. I haven't seen the new batsman arrive. And it's an incredibly similar shot and another brilliant catch by Joe Root. which of course I commentated on my work.

Can you believe it? This Sri Lankan bats when he's played a terrible shot. What another amazing catch by Joe Root. And all I could hear in the lines was Phil Tuftnall laughing from London because he realized it was a replay. But I didn't know. They played this replay. I suppose to show what a brilliant catch it was by Root

who would do it at the normal speed. But it completely stitched me up. Jonathan, just for you, this is a bit like, this is your commentary life. That very incident, that instance you've described, We've got it for you to hear now. Ingo's Leighamara, who is caught? Is he brilliantly caught by a Root?

He is. What a good catch. Turned, Hazaranger, went to drive it. Here's Leach bowling and the new bats. Edged it. Has Root called him again? It was a sponsor out of the rough. He has.

Another brilliant catch. It's like an action replay. Exactly the same. And I don't know what Pereira was doing there, really, to his first ball, apart from his eyes lighting up. Or, it was a replay. It was a replay. God,

I'm sorry. That's very cruel, you two. Oh, dear. It goes to lead to falls. And that's dropped, I think, in the gallery. There's only so many three clocks a man can see. Oh, well. Let's keep going.

It's first time I've heard that. Really? But the thing is, because you say it shows you're on it, it's like an action replay. It wasn't, you know. And what makes it even better is the best person to be alongside you for that because the best laughing that is toughers, isn't it? It's just mischievous tougher.

And I think just to add to the picture, I think we had been going up at three commentating. I think I was actually in my dressing gown and pyjamas commentating at the time in the dark in my attic in Melton Mowbrose. So anyway, but I thank you gentlemen very much indeed for reminding me of that.

Sorry. Well, their book for the grace of God go with that. And that's why it's so important to be actually on site. Jonathan, thank you so much for taking the time to chat to us on the commentator's view. And have a great tool. Thank you very much indeed. There's a lot of fun.

I hope people enjoyed listening to it. And yeah, fingers crossed. Fingers crossed for Friday and the rest of the series. Talk to you soon. Cheers, Jonathan. Have a great tour. Cannot wait every ball with the Test Match special team. Jonathan Agnew leading the commentary on Radio 5 Sports Extra and BBC Sounds.

But I'm sure you'll be delighted to it. I'm sure Ian Dennis will be back at some point again this season because he's now. missed he's missed the last two so hopefully we'll have deno back next week but enjoy the ashes and obviously enjoy the football coming up over the weekend keep the glossary suggestions coming in remember if you hear those unintended pub names in a commentary send them in to tcv at bbccc co.com. I'd love some ashes ones. I'd love it if there are some ashes ones in there. Please listen out for those and the voice notes on WhatsApp to 08,289-389-369. That is it for this episode of the football daily. Remember you can find each and every episode of the commentator's view

by scrolling down your football daily feed. So, John, what's the plan in Tirana? I am now going to either the Museum of the Secret Police or the Museum of the Nuclear Bunker. Okay. Spinning a coin? Full of joys. Yeah, exactly.

Well, I think we'd like to, well, I certainly would like to go to the Secret Police Museum, but we're getting mixed messages and it might be shut on a Monday. day but is it a secret maybe it's a secret it's not keeping that close to their chest welcome to the brand new podcast series rugby league top 10 with me mark chapman it's where john wilkin brian noble and jamie peacock will discuss debate and argue over lists of the best players games finals iconic moments and plenty of other categories that will no doubt leave you screaming at your device the most entertaining parts of our sport are these the jeopardy the moments he made rugby league look cool Yeah, I mean, that's the difficult thing to do, I think.

It is really, is. Yeah, no. I think we've all managed to carry that bathroom. Rugby League top 10. Listen on BBC Sounds.