Football Daily - The Commentators’ View: FA Cup fever & fox in the box

Episode Date: May 16, 2025

John Murray, Ian Dennis & Ali Bruce-Ball talk football, travel & language. What’s it like commentating on an FA Cup Final? Ali reveals more about last week’s Arctic expedition. The guys have their say on Goodison Park dodging the wrecking ball. Is the commentator’s blessing now a thing? Clash of the Commentators does stadia and which terms will be added to the Great Glossary of Football Commentary?WhatsApp voicenotes to 08000 289 369 Emails to [e-mail]01:00 Commentating on the FA Cup Final 08:00 Ali’s Arctic expedition 14:00 John disappointed by guard of honour ‘disrespect’ 18:00 Nothing beats a Norwegian romance 19:25 Goodison Park lives to fight another day 23:55 5 Live commentaries this weekend 27:30 Is the ‘commentator’s blessing’ now a thing? 31:15 Clash of the Commentators 39:35 Great Glossary of Football CommentaryBBC Sounds / 5 Live commentaries next weekend: Sat 1630 FA Cup Final Crystal Palace v Man City on 5 Live Sun 1330 Women’s FA Cup Final Chelsea v Man Utd on Sports Extra 3, Sun 1415 West Ham v Nottingham Forest in the Premier League on 5 Live, Sun 1500 Brentford v Fulham in the Premier League on Sports Extra 2, Sun 1630 Arsenal v Newcastle in the Premier League on 5 Live.Glossary so far: 2-0 is a dangerous score, After you Claude, All-Premier League affair, Aplomb, Brace, Brandished, Breaking the deadlock, 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, Fox in the box, Free hit, Good touch for a big man, Honeymoon Period, In and around, In the shop window, Languishing, Loitering with intent, Marching orders, Nestle in the bottom corner, Numbered derbies, Nutmeg, Opening their account, Opposite number, Park the bus, PK for penalty-kick, Postage stamp, Rasping shot, Red wine not white wine, Relegation six-pointer, Rooted at the bottom, Roy of the Rovers stuff, Sending the goalkeeper the wrong way, Sleeping giants, Slide rule pass, Small matter of, Spiders web, Stayed hit, Steepling, Stinging the palms, Stonewall penalty, Straight off the training ground, Stramash, Struck with venom, Throw their cap on it, Turning into a basketball match, Turning into a cricket score, Walking a disciplinary tightrope, Wand of a left foot, We’ve got a cup tie on our hands, Where the owl sleeps, Wrap foot around it, Your De Bruynes, your Gundogans etc.

BBC Sounds music radio podcasts. The commentators view with Alistair Bruce Ball, John Murray and Ian Dennis on the Football Daily. Hello everyone, welcome to the Football Daily. This is the commentators view where we as the five live commentators talk about the games we cover, the places we get to see, all the travel mishaps and delights along the way and crucially the words we use, the places we get to see, all the travel mishaps and delights along the way and crucially the words we use, the vocabulary of commentary. I'm Alistair Bruce Ball. In the starting line-up today we've gone with the usual three. Correspondent John Murray

is here, so is our senior football reporter Ian Dennis, both of whom, as the old song goes, are on their way to Wembley after recording this. For our FA Cup final commentary, which is coming your way on Saturday, it kicks off at half-fort at Wembley. First question to the pair of you, and I know we get into all sorts of debates, the same debates about the FA Cup, but just from the commentator's point of view, does it feel like a really special occasion to be going to? For me, yes, very much so. I always think

of Mike Ingham as well on cup final day because I know how important it was for him and equally I just think the traditions of it, it's still, I know it's a little bit unusual that we've still got the league season to be played but yes it does still always feel very very special to attend it. I was on with Tony Livesey the other night doing a floodlit fact of the day and we were talking about this very same subject. And I feel that BBC Radio commentary has got a very special relationship with the FA Cup and that's probably why it meant so much to Mike as well, you know, I would suspect. So therefore you do feel as though, you know, in broadcasting terms that it's an important part of the tradition of what we have done.

And as you say, we in the sense of BBC Radio for many, many years. So and also, as I always say with the FA Cup final, I think that even now, even with all of the other attractions that there are and all of the other football, I think your average football supporter, if their team got to Wembley and they were able to go there and witness it, I think they would think, wow, that was a great day. I also think people of our generation sort of look back nostalgically at 70s cup finals,

80s cup finals and the television coverage in the build-up from nine o'clock in the morning and all of that i do think that the joy of you know a four thirty kickoff on saturday they've cleared the decks no premier league football on saturday you know will be on air for midday you will get a sense of that build-up won't you you know a nice long

detailed build-up towards the big event. However, this should be the last game of the domestic season, you know, in terms of Premier League FA Cup and I do think it's not the same when there are Premier League matches the night before, the day after and indeed the next weekend the Premier League finishes and in a way, in a little bit of a way because it's been changed again this season, of course this is not the first time that this has been the case that the FA Cup final has been before the end of the season, but there's a

little bit of me that thinks the Premier League has got what it deserves this season because it's not dramatic, there's no dramatic relegation, the league title has been sorted out long ago there's no dramatic relegation. The league title has been sorted out long ago and you know the FA Cup should be the the climax of that domestic season in my opinion and I think you have, you know again the people who make the decisions have kind of shot themselves in the foot here. I would agree with that. The FA Cup finals should be the last match of the domestic season. As far as the top flight's concerned I know you've still got your playoff finals to take place the following week, which is always the case around the bank holiday weekend,

but I still believe that the FA Cup final should be the last game for the top flight sides. Yeah, Cup final gets played, and you have a chance after that to reflect on the season that's gone by, yes. It was you, Ian, wasn't it, who commentated on the season that's gone by. Yes. It was you Ian, wasn't it, who commentated on the Gunderwan goal a couple of years ago right at the start of that FA Cup final.

I do want to get into that as an early goals thing in a game because they're really tricky early goals, I think particularly on a big occasion when you're setting the scene, aren't you, and painting the pictures. An early goal can be a bit of a nightmare I think from memory I was still going through the the team lineup when was it De Bruyne hit the ball forward and I'd clock that it was the quickest goal in in FA Cup final history but I just had to make sure that it was Gundogan as we are about to get underway Paul Tierney his first FA Cup final get underway. Paul Tierney, his first FA Cup final, he was the assistant referee in 2010, Chelsea against Portsmouth, but it's his first Manchester derby. And we also welcome listeners to the BBC World Service here at Wembley Stadium as well as... Oh, ready! What a goal!

What a goal for Manchester City! History! It is the quickest ever goal in an FA Cup final! 14 seconds! Gundogan with a right foot in volley! And then John was pointing to the time. I erroneously told you that it was 14 seconds I think and it was 12 wasn't it? Yeah. Because if you remember the reason for that was I started my stopwatch when the referee blew his whistle but actually there was a significant delay before City actually kicked off which meant that there was a little time lapse which meant that it was 12 not 14. But I don't know about you so we're all going to do a European final over the coming weeks but it's one of those and it also when I do it with the tournament as well it's one of those

statistics that I make a point of saying what is the quickest goal so you're aware of it I mean in the Premier League it's actually in my memory it's Shane Long 7.69 seconds used to be led the lead for Tottenham at Bradford City, which was 10.06. But for a Europa League final or a Champions League final, I then looked to see what is going to be the quickest goal. It's a bit nerdy, I know, but so I'd done that for the FA Cup final and it paid off. I'm really hoping that Clash of the Commentators this week is not on quickest goals scored in various competitions otherwise I'm in real trouble. No but the point I was gonna make about it is so on Saturday this is

what made me think of it I was doing Bournemouth Aston Villa on Saturday and right at the start of the game so you know Saturday 5.30 you don't get long before you're into the game quite often Mark Chapman, it's hair Chapman, it's you know we'll hand over to you and the game is kicked off and i always like to do a bit of a a scene set if you can sort of paint a bit of a picture to try and give the listeners a feel of of what you can see and smell and hear and all that sort of thing

but right at the start of this game i think i was doing something similar and i think i was trying to rattle through the teams as quick as i could so that i could then get into the action Bournemouth kicked off and Bournemouth are quite well known now for sort of unusual strategies from kickoff and this one went back into their Half and then they just launched a massive up-and-under just a huge hoof up in the air Which was beautifully judged because it bounced on the edge of the villa box And I think they were just hoping chaos confusion it didn't come to anything but Andy Gill is our producer because I was actually sort of reading through teams I hadn't spotted quite what they were doing

until I looked up and saw the ball in the air and I was thinking what on earth is that doing up up there but it was a real lesson in actually sometimes when the game starts you're better for the first couple of minutes just to do the game just in case something dramatic happens. However by the time you got to Bournemouth you'd been to the Arctic Circle and back. In fact this time last week we were talking to you in the Arctic Circle. So I'm sure that regular listeners to the commentators view would love to know what else happened in Buda?

Buda. Buda in northern Norway. You know, I was listening to you on the train on the way back from Paris. So I was already by that stage on the East Coast mainline and most unusually in my experience, the signal was actually quite good. So I was able with my little BBC It was an FA Cup third round feel that stadium and and the atmosphere But against a much better team with respect to all the teams that Tottenham might I mean Tottenham played Tamworth didn't they? In in in the FA Cup this season on an artificial pitch it had that sort of feel to it But obviously the worry was that the Bodo Glimp to were You know with that impressive home record we're gonna cause them real problems

They didn't so the highlight of the trip really John where we left you last week I was about to head out for my hike so we'd asked the chap in the hotel if you got a few hours in Buda what do you do what's the best thing we can possibly do and he said the most famous hiking trail is the Kaiserwaden which engineer Phil Zentner and I we translated as the cheese garden it actually meant the Emperor's Cairn so we were a little way off in terms of our translation

but it was basically a two mile hike up into the hills above Buddha It wasn't that far then? No, not far, we didn't have much time John to get up and back Well that's what I was thinking, because it looked incredibly remote Yeah, well it was, it was and that's the thing because Buda is so small, it was one of those walks where we walked sort of 400 yards, we turned round and looked at the view and got the phones out, wow it's amazing and look at the mountains and the fjords and the Norwegian Sea and then you'd climb another 400 yards and you'd take exactly the same photo again

but from a slightly better view and actually you should have saved your photos right to the top but we got right to the top and passed loads of locals on the way I mean it was obviously a very popular route for tourists and locals and dog walkers got up into at one point sort of got up into the mist into the clouds so you turned and you couldn't see anything and then those were clear and you know and the view became apparent again and then as you've seen from from some of the social media stuff we did we found well we found a a Buddha glimped

flag you know planted sort of in the rock. Did Harold Amundsen put it there? Exactly and what I did like though some Tottenham fans have been up there and spelt out in stones they'd spelt out koys you know the old hashtag come on you spurs, which I thought was a good touch. So yeah, so you know John, had we, I'd love to have stayed longer and had we not been able to fit something like that into the trip it would have felt like a bit of a wasted trip, but that was a brilliant bit of advice we got from the chap behind the desk at the hotel and it was a great few hours that. Superb, and also when I was listening to you I very much enjoyed the little

Norwegian sayings that you dropped into the commentary. Yeah those were from Phil, hang on let me see if I can... Our engineer Phil. Phil, Phil Zenn... What was the one about the, was it the cheese in the middle of the... Hang on, hang on, hang on, I'm going to bring them up on email. While I do that the other thing I'm gonna tell you about is at the end of the game the the local authorities had said if Buddha got through if Bodhglim got through the the restaurants and bars would all be open till three

o'clock in the morning and honestly throughout the afternoon I got back to my hotel room after the walk and was sitting doing my notes for the game and all you could hear because it's such a small place I have my hotel you know the window in the room open all you could hear were the Budha fans warming up for the game the club song being played incessantly honestly again and again and again and again we walked out of the ground about half an hour after the game had finished and it was because you could walk everywhere there it was like a ghost town. Everyone had disappeared. There was only 400 Tottenham fans there so they weren't around but literally everyone had left the stadium,

gone home, wrapped up the flags, turned out the lights and gone to bed. There was nothing. We were just walking through a ghost town. How does the club anthem go? Yeah I can't remember it now. Did you record it? I didn't record it, no. Call yourself a radio man. Drop out a little tune now?

No, I'm not going to. I'll tell you what, I found my Norwegian football idioms. What was the one with the cheese in the middle I like? Cheese? Was it cheese in the middle? Oh no, that was the butter in the porridge. Butter in the porridge, that's the one. So to be in the middle of the butter melting in the porridge basically means to be in a great place. So I was arguing that Tottenham 3-1 up were in the butter melting in the middle of the porridge. But there was also, I could

see this one coming in handy if Tottenham had messed things up, to stand with your beard in the post box is to have ended up in a stupid situation you could have avoided. You did mention that one didn't you? Yeah I did mention that one. And the other one I should have mentioned right at the end, did you see the penalty award right at the end of the game, it was given on the pitch and then got overturned because it was one of the worst penalties given I've ever seen. Well I didn't see it but I heard you describe it.

Where's it gone? Oh yes if you want to say are you crazy, so, are you crazy in Norwegian? Have you smoked your socks? So I should have used that one. I should have used that one at the end of the game. But great additions to the glossary. If there is one thing this week that will bring a deluge of emails, it's that. And also reflection on the match that I was at last weekend, which was the Liverpool Arsenal with the booing, which obviously became, you know, has been, has been exhausted, that subject. One thing I was reflecting on, we mentioned it at the time, which I thought was disappointing. When the Arsenal team came out, as was very much flagged up that they would provide a guard of honour,

a lot of people inside Anfield booed the Arsenal team as they came out and I know that Nicolas Tettrard said things which had clearly upset Liverpool supporters but I thought that was quite churlish to boo Arsenal when they were coming out to line up to give Liverpool a guard of honor and that was kind of overlooked by everything else that happened. The guard of honor thing because I saw that at Stamford Bridge the week before and it was so sort of low key and players couldn't really be bothered and Liverpool got booed out by the Chelsea fans which was equally churlish. I don't know, I just sort of feel

either do it properly or don't do it. I think the point comes when you do actually have to show a bit of respect. Yeah. All the emails please to tcv at bbc.co.uk and the voice notes as well. I'm told we've got a really special voice note to end today's episode so stay tuned for that. I quite like the one from Luke which is coming up. I think that's quite unusual. Okay. Oh yeah, yeah, yeah Well, hang on before we get to that Let's do one of these voice notes. You can send those to us on WhatsApp oh eight thousand two eight nine three six nine

And that is what Mike in seven oaks has done. I have a chance. I very much enjoyed last week's podcast with ABB in the Arctic Circle and the week's podcast with ABB in the Arctic Circle and I was a bit bemused by the discussion around Bode vs Bode and Moby vs Moby. But in the spirit of pronunciation, I was curious to know where and when have the team approached the pronunciation of player names with most trepidation. Speaking of which, I have to congratulate John Murray on his recent trips to Paris. I thought that John's kevarit scalia seemed to roll off the tongue without too much issue whatsoever. So clearly practice makes perfect with the support of Nurse Susan

or is it Nurse Suzanne. Thank you guys for a great podcast. What Arnaz Slot would call top top top top top Up the palace. Do you know? Yeah Yes, thank you Mike I've just felt I've just gone back and found this again because when I was going to cover PSG Earlier on in the year my friend Italian based commentator Patrick Kendrick Sent me a little video of the Georgian saying his name So I'm gonna I've got it here. So I'm gonna if I can get this to play We chuck what it's real. Oh

There's all sorts of guttural noises in there. Yeah, but that was actually very very helpful I find the Georgians if you do them in international football, which I have done recently I did that did them at the Euros did them against Scotland in qualifying as well I find them difficult just because the names are so long and to actually if they're putting a move together Try and string a few of those names together, you know, mama dashvillies the goalkeeper I mean kvart kvart I'm not gonna be able to do it now Kvart Scalier we use quite a lot, don't we? We commentate on him quite a lot,

so I think that becomes a bit more familiar, but I find them hard. They are hard. I did them in the Euros, they're very difficult. And I think as well, then it becomes a thing, it stops you with your flow of the game, doesn't it? Because you're looking down to make sure you get the pronunciation correct,

whereas sometimes you just look number association, you get the player and you're quickly into a rhythm, but I agree with you, I think they can be very difficult. John, do you want to do Luke's message then? Well do you want to do it because I've got a little bit of music ready for this and I can't do both at the same time, so hang on a minute, while I start the music. Just whilst you're starting the music, we also had an email from Chris, hi guys love the pod. I'm a Spurs fan from Texas. While watching the Bodo-Glimp vs Spurs match today during the first half,

the CBS commentator described a Bodo free kick by saying that was hit with venom. There we go. Okay, here's Loseray. Are you ready? Yeah. Okay, here we go. Hello.

I'm an Aussie currently living in Oslo who is really enjoying your podcast. I've been particularly loving the musings surrounding Buda. Last week there was a quick mention of the famous Tromso vs Chelsea snow game in 1997. I was a new Chelsea fan living in London watching the game on TV wondering where on earth this place was that was full of snow in October. Two months later I met a lovely Norwegian girl in Bali on my way home to Melbourne. She was delightfully surprised when I said I knew of her hometown Tromso. We met up again in Melbourne and we got married in Tromso the following September.

We lived for a while even further north in Oxfjord for eight years before retreating to Oslo for the summers that last longer than a weekend. Thanks for helping me remember the best choice of my life and thank you for your wonderful podcast kind regards Luke from Norway formerly Melbourne Well, that's lovely isn't it that is beautiful That's one of the one that jobs we've had. Yeah, very good. Teddy what talking about that

Head Chapman read out. Did you listen to the goodbye to Goodison show on Wednesday? I did not. No, I've got it to listen to on my way to London. BBC Sounds app, that'll be there for you. It's its own pod on the BBC Sounds app, so go and find that. But Hey Chapman read out a message from, I think it was a chap called Roger, and he was talking about, so there were lots of messages coming in about the the part that goodison park had played in your life and roger clearly it had some some struggles in life and goodison park was obviously the place where he'd found his confidence it had made him

the man who he was and and formed friendships down down the years and built his relationship with his mom and he he actually described he said Sunday's game I'm gonna be there actually at goodison is gonna be described, he said Sunday's game, I'm going to be there actually at Goodison, is going to be an absolutely, he said, gut-wrenching experience for him. And it's nothing to do with the football really, much more to do with his life, the confidence that Goodison Park had given him. That show is such a good listen, but there's so many different angles that people come at that from what's going to happen on Sunday there, even though we know that Goodison Park itself is not disappearing.

The good thing is, yeah, because Roger now can still go and watch the women's game. Yeah, and actually I don't know about you guys, but for me, arriving in Stanley Park and parking up and being able to see both stadiums, I think it's going to be really important because I love that. I absolutely love that when I go to a Liverpool or Everton game. But that was a real twist in the tale, wasn wasn't it this week when it was announced at the women But it was I mean, I just assumed in fact I'm sure I've been told but it was going to be demolished

There were plans for what they were going to do with the Dixie Dean statue Do you remember and they're gonna keep the center circle, but obviously it's still going to be there By the way, there's some observations from her Chapman He still calls it the last of the Summer Wine podcast because he listened last week. He said he wouldn't be listening for a while so we will see. He says, you know regarding Race of the World or Race Around the World. Race Across the World. He admits he would struggle with the third-class rail carriages. He

says working with John he would provide the speed and I pulled him up and said why would you work with John and not with me he says because the tours will be a shambles but that will be a memorable day to be there Ali yeah no I'm looking forward to it John yeah and the game kicks off at 12 o'clock which is unusual it. It's going to be a very emotional day, definitely. Well, I went there a few weeks ago and I made a point of going there early and I was actually just stopping and I was taking photos of different angles because it is one of the great stadiums in English football, isn't it?

You think about the games that it's staged and hosted, the memories that it's created. I've got some very special memories of Goodison Park, both working and also going as a punter. So yeah, and I've got a lot of Everton friends as well. So I know a number of them will be feeling it this weekend. And as it turns out, my last experience, although I didn't know it at the time,

was when I was at the Derby match when Tarkovsky scored the late goal. So that's my last experience of Goodison Park. There's a lovely Evertonian called Rich who always greets members of the press with some Everton toffee sweets. He'll pass over. And in recent weeks or months, in fact, probably the last couple of years, he's listened to Five Live and he comes with a little goodie bag. he's brought me gifts, he's been listening to either the Tony Livesy fact of the day,

I've had a tin of carrots from him, I've had some Everton golf tees and also when De'Corey once hit the... It's like the Harvest Festival. The goal that's coming up, sweets, I said, De'Corey hit it like a rocket. He actually very kindly made me a golf towel. He hit it like a rocket in world blue and white. So I now carry that around with me on the golf course. So if Rich is listening, he's a lovely man.

And similarly, when we were at the Open, was it Hoylake Alley when it, yes it was when the butcher won and the weather was terrible on the final day. And do you remember we had double decker's from somewhere and I was eating these double decker's which got mentioned on air. And sure enough, I mean, I think every time I've been there since he's brought me double decker's. Which, am I right in saying John, is not your, that wouldn't be your choice though a chocolate bar would it?

It wouldn't, no, not necessarily, but I do quite like a double decker in the right circumstances. So just to confirm then, our Five Life Commentaries this weekend are, Ian, the small matter of the FA Cup Final, Crystal Palace against Manchester City. And I do enjoy you dropping in a small matter virtually every weekend. I've spotted that. And alongside us are going to be quite a duo this, isn't it? Clinton Morrison and Sean Dyche. Clinton who celebrated his birthday in midweek.

Did he? He did indeed. And? Yeah. What number? I can't remember now. We'll ask him at Wembley and he'll be very excited about that because I know I was with him for the FA Cup semi-final

weekend and 46 apparently 46 years old. I wouldn't have had him 46. Two years younger than me. And Sean, when Sean has been on, he's not often been on with us but when he is on I think he's very, very good so I'm looking forward to hearing what he's got to say. So that's Saturday, Ali, and then Sunday you are reporting on the Everton Southampton match at Goodison. Yeah that's right so I've got Pat Nevin alongside me, I mean again we couldn't have anyone better could we to be at Goodison for that occasion but as you say John I think actually not commentating on it and reporting actually does will give us a chance to look

it up a bit and analyse a bit because sometimes when you're in the in the midst of a commentary you miss stuff. So you'll be reporting on that into the now award-winning Five Live Premier League Sunday after success at a glittering awards occasion this week. Well done everyone. Yes well done everyone for that. Sunday 1.30 the Women's FA Cup Final, Chelsea against Manchester United will be on Sports Extra 3 which will be new to some people. So I've just been looking at this very quickly just to explain that to people.

If you look at your choice of listening on Sunday at that time you go to the BBC sounds app you scroll through the live Radio dial at the top of BBC sounds and then you can go to five live Sports extra sports extra two or sports extra three so on five live you'll have the award-winning five lives Premier League Sunday sports extra from Sports Extra 3. So on Five Live you'll have the award winning Five Lives Premier League Sunday, Sports Extra from £10.55, County Championship Cricket followed by Formula One, Sports Extra 2, IPL Cricket from £5 to £11, followed by full commentary of Brentford Fulham and Sports Extra 3, the Women's FA Cup Final from £1.25. But basically go to the Sounds app and scroll through the dial and then you can listen to whatever you want. So that is now a brand new thing so you'll hear much much more about that so Vicky Sparks

and Gilly Flats he will have commentary on the Women's FA Cup final Sunday afternoon. 2.15 on 5 Live it's West Ham Nottingham Forest Chris Wise and Mark Schwartzer for that one. While as Ali says, on Sports Extra 2, I'll be writing this down, Brentford against Fulham. And then at 4.30, I'm covering a match with Glenn Murray for the first time for quite a long time, which I'm looking forward to, which is Arsenal against New Castle. So that's 4.30 on Sunday. Yeah, that's quite a weekend, John, final followed by because also Newcastle I know drama of the title has gone but

That's an interesting game. I think and as previously discussed that it's going to be quite an odd feeling I think going from the the hoopla of the FA Cup final one afternoon to You know a totally different kind of dynamic as the Americans would say at the Emirates the following afternoon. Yeah right Clash of the Commentators on the way before we do that we always get stickers commentators for the old commentators curse but how about we flip that here come in Michael Brown at the Sunderland Coventry Playoffs Semi-Final second leg reports into Kelly Cates' show 5 Live on Tuesday night. It'll be a Sunderland corner with 40 seconds of the match to play.

There's a chance coming, Kelly, there's a stick with us, it's coming, honestly. What a moment now. Imagine if you could take that on and get the winner. Oh, this is the kind of you've been saying this throughout the game as it's got towards half time, as it got towards full time, as it got towards half time in the in extra time. Now we're getting towards the very very last few seconds of this game. It feels like it's been building to a big moment but are we going to get it for Sunderland, who have a corner at the Stadium of Light with just seconds to go, with the aggregate score at 2-all Coventry lead by a goal to nil on the night.

Oh! Unbelievable! Sunderland have won it! Dan Ballard heads Sunderland into the championship play-off final in the most remarkable of circumstances. So, well called by Michael Brown, really sorry Coventry fans, here's the same goal, but this is on BBC Radio Newcastle this time with the former Sunderland defender Gary Bennett here on Co-Cometry. I can feel it. Well, this is the time to score. It's happened to Sunderland of course at Wembley when Charlton scored with the last kick of the game. Daniel Ballard. So now Lefe from the left-hand side with this corner kick for Sunderland. Right arm raised, here comes Lefe, whips it in, I heard that in the week. That is terrific. And I'm so pleased for Nick Barnes and Gary because you know we see them occasionally but not very often

because they have had thin times. So I'm really pleased for them that they were able to experience that. Has anybody asked Gary for the lottery numbers for this week? That's brilliant. So the question there is, if there's commentators curse, is there such thing as the commentators blessing? I do, I have to say say i do love listening to commentaries not not not

examples of sort of obvious is that but you know when i think i think signal on so pat nevin's a great example where he predicts something's about to take and see the way the game is developing and then within five minutes exactly what he's told you is going to happen happens i think when you listen to that you you know, you, I love that insight. I love, you know, the person who's been there, done it, seen it, knows what they're talking about, tells you what's going to happen and it happens.

It's great. The 72 plus on the football daily. I'm Aaron Paul and I'm Joby Mackinac. And on Wednesdays on the football daily, we bring you 72 Plus, the home of the EFL from five live sports. As we'll get stuck into the latest from the Football League and beyond. They've got so much quality there.

For me, worthy winners. They've only actually lost four games all season, which is quite remarkable, really. That's 72 Plus, the EFL podcast only on The Football Daily. Listen on BBC Sounds. The Commentator's View with Alistair Bruce Ball, John Murray and Ian Dennis. Right, clash of the commentators, eagerly awaited. Before we do it, Newcastle fan John from Gateshead has written in, oh and he's out to get Ian Dennis. Title of his email, Den-o comes unstuck.

Hi gang, listening to the last episode I'm afraid to report that Den-o made my blood boil by erroneously claiming credit for something that on reflection I think he'll admit was unwarranted. Where's this going? When the chat turned to Stansions and when discussing the most excellent contribution concerning the use of the stansion in ice hockey, I'm afraid to report that Denno quite incorrectly asserted that he'd mentioned hockey the previous week in the context of the word stansion entering the great glossary. I think you'll find that whilst Denno did

mention hockey, he wasn't referring to ice hockey, something that would only have been the case had he specifically referred to the prefix ice. Whilst I have no doubt that Denno is an otherwise very honourable man, I have to say I was appalled and I would recommend he as a point deducted from his Clash of the Commentators tally. I can see Ian's face right now, he doesn't look massively impressed by that Ian. Was it John referring that I didn't mention ice? I think he just needs to cool it. Point deducted John? I'd take five points off him.

Right, clash of the commentators. Ali beat John 9-6 last week on Norwegian players, that was changed as well, amended that scoreline John just in case you didn't realise. So that was 9-6 last week, which means that John has suffered eight, eight defeats in a row. So the leaderboard on the 10th of January, so over four months ago, John was top three from four, John's last win on non-league clubs making it to the fifth round of the FA Cup. However, since then, John has slump it to the fifth round of the FA Cup. However since then John has slumped to the bottom, three from twelve. I have climbed to second, five from eleven.

And the runaway leader, Ali, nine from eleven. Time for John to be rested, rotated. Bad time to lose form. Might not get his contract renewed. However, it means that John, you're not in the firing line. Thank goodness and I'm not unhappy about that But nevertheless, I think when you've had a run of eight defeats in a row I would be worried whoever was gonna play me next because that can't go on forever It cannot go on for and no one wants to lose to you now. No one wants to lose to me. That would be a bit like You know, you'd be doing a Ruben Diaz style interview. If you lost to me or didn't beat me.

Right. So this week with me rested, it is Ali against Ian. So the usual question who is going to go first? Do you want to go first Ali? I'll go first. Yeah, I'll go first this time. OK, I'll go first. This is actually the kind of question I would have quite liked. But I'm not doing it.

I'm not doing it, annoyingly. So if you're ready, Ali. Yep. This week's category actually comes on the email from Chris Wood. Not that one. And Chris Wood says, with Everton moving to a new stadium, which teams in the top four divisions, 92 clubs, no longer play in the same ground as they did in the previous century? So which of the 92 clubs have changed stadiums since the year 2000. Your time starts now! Arsenal, Tottenham,

Manchester City, Leicester where are we going next? Why have I slowed down here? There's just so many. What about Sunderland, Middlesbrough? What are all the new stadiums? When did Reading move? I'll say Reading.

This is awful. Sadampton. That's bad. Bad, bad, bad. I would have definitely beaten you on this. I would definitely have beaten you on this. Yeah. Okay.

Let's call Ian back in. Come back in Ian. He's not even looking at us. Here he comes. Here he comes. Hello. I'm making you strong favorites now to win this. Okay. And I think this is up your street. Okay. So this week's category comes actually on an email Ian from Chris Wood, but not that one, uh, as I've already explained. already explained. So the question is with Everton moving to a new stadium which teams in the top four divisions no longer play in the same ground as they did in the previous century? So which of the 92 clubs have changed stadium since the year 2000. Your time starts now. Hull City, Reading. Well, this will be interesting because I can tell you that you both mentioned Redding that they moved in 1998. Did they? Sunderland, Middlesbrough, Derby, they all moved in 1997 so they don't count. So this is actually going to be quite tight. We both missed West Ham which is just foolish. Yeah that is. well. The result is Ian Dennis 3, Alistair Bruce Ball 5. Oh good one Ali. Well you've been caught out by the turn of the century thing there because you name more than me definitely. When you say caught out by

turn of the century you mean he gave wrong answers? To be honest with you I was just thinking of new stadium. So yeah. What about some have you got some obvious ones we missed John? West Ham's definitely won. Yes there were 22 possible answers. Okay. Some of these you got obviously but Brentford, Wimbon Tottenham West Ham Rotherham Brighton Chesterfield Morecambe Cardiff Colchester Milton Keynes Dons Doncaster Rovers Shrewsbury Arsenal you said Coventry Burton Swansea Manchester City Leicesterull City, Southampton and Oxford United. Not Oxfeyord.

Oxfeyord, Brighton's another one. Yeah and Arsenal. I said Arsenal yeah. Yeah so there we are. Good question. I'll take it. Good question. Well done Alec.

Great question. And if anyone else has got any questions that they would like us to answer, preferably ones that they think I would do well on, pcv at bbc.co.uk. but any questions that they would like us to answer, preferably ones that they think I would do well on, pcv at bbc.co.uk. So that means that the leaderboard now, the Clash of the Commentators leaderboard has Ali on 10 from 12,

Ian five from 12, and that's as far as we need to go down the table at the moment. Okay, glossary on the way just before we move on very quickly we mentioned that Norwegian round we did last week Horrie or Horrie, Bristol Rovers fan in Merseyside writes in absolutely love the latest episode about the Norwegian Premier League players however I'm a little disappointed there was no mention of Morten Gamst Pedersen

especially seeing as he was born inside the Arctic Circle as well. Love the pod. Keep up the good work I think it that was the name I was struggling for at the end of my 30 seconds And I just couldn't get it, but that is exactly who I was who I was thinking of but it obviously Yes, I'm sure we just have been popping into my head all week. Yeah, I also thought stick Inga Bjornaby came to mind at some stage. I don't think we mentioned him either, did we? No. No.

So, time for the great glossary of football commentary. We add listener suggestions of football-specific commentary terms and phrases to add to our collection. We also have the sort of the dubious goals panel after the discussion. So last week Stansion was removed because it features in other sports. Where the bat sleeps, having initially made a brief appearance in has been removed and where the owl sleeps has kept its place, which I think we're all pleased about. On the beach undecided we asked for listeners to let us know. So on that note,

on the beach, let's hear from Simon in Finland. A quick response to the suggestion last week about being on the beach. In ice hockey, the fans throw beach balls and other beach toys onto the rink when the opposition is knocked out of the playoffs to send them on their summer holidays. Thus, I doubt football is the only sport to use such a phrase. Great pod, it keeps me smiling on my longer runs and don't go on your holidays too soon. Lovely, thank you Simon in Finland. The email address, tcv at bbc.co.uk,

Alex in Chicago adds to this, as an American I can confirm that phrases like they're playing like they're already on the beach a common In commentary for late season games in most of our major sports over here Common iterations include he's in Cabo or other well-known vacation destinations for young rich Americans He's in Cabo already in his head or some reference to getting out the golf clubs I love the show especially the look into our varied national sports lexicons. So there is a state on the beach now. Yes, disappointing.

Yeah, it is. And I'm just Simon's voice note. Do well in Scandinavia, don't we? Yeah, that's another destination for the world tour. It could be. We're still not allowed to mention you know what are we? No we're not. No. Which we mentioned a couple of weeks ago. The weeks are ticking by and yet still. There's no white smoke. I think you mentioned it once but we got away with it. We've mentioned it again now. There'll be more on that at some stage.

Just on a previous suggestion from Rick that we had, Worldy, which we have banned from the glossary, Michelle writes in, high TCV team, RE the glossary and the phrase Worldy. On Sky Sports they referred to Max Verstappen's flying lap to get pole as a Worldy. What are your thoughts on this? PS, you have surpassed MNC as my favorite BBC podcast episode. Keep it coming. Cheers, Michelle. Thank you, Michelle.

Well, so I think it's not in any way, is it? So that reinforces it. Yes. And Will in Cornwall says, I was listening to ABB's commentary on Bournemouth against Aston Villa on Saturday, and it sounded a dire first half. Ali said, KG, which is a kind of word for boring. I'm not advocating for this to go in the glossary,

but can you create a subsection of euphemisms that commentators use to describe a less than desirable game or action within the match? Keep up the good work. KG's definitely one that has a subtext and that's exactly what I meant. Will's read that perfectly, that's exactly what I meant. Not the best, not a classic is a phrase that will quite often be used, won't it? Yeah, not a thriller. And it's one of those, you know, five minutes after you've left the game, you're not going to remember of this is that it's that sort of phrase as well which you'll

which you'll chuck in poor of course yeah there's ninety minutes of our lives we won't get back again although whether we want to start setting up subsections of the great glossary i think is debatable okay uh... new suggestions right so these are for this week and i know ian's got to hit the road soon so let's let's rattle through some of these. This could be a good one to describe Sunderland's headed winner the other night, it comes from Ian in Northolt.

How about put the eyebrows on it? I've heard it a couple of times, if you put the eyebrows on it, it means you've sort of stretched your head that little bit more to try and get it into the goal. So you may just get it into the goal or you may miss but put the eyebrows on it, that little kind of extra stretch of the head to get the ball into the goal. Not sure I've heard it anywhere else. Anyway, Loving the Pod, cheers. I've never ever heard that. What?

No. That is, and actually probably we would say no because that goes back to what was described at the time as wrong glitch wasn't it? Ron Ron Atkinson's commentary phrases and that was one of Ron Atkinson's and there was a town's end I think it's taken that on right But there are also certain players who are very good at that run and that glancing header that we're talking about Chris Sutton being one Of them Chris Sutton was a great put put the eyebrows on it, near post glancing header, just overt the cross at a slight angle to beat the keeper. So I have heard it but, so you're saying John No for that for the glossary?

I think No because I think that belongs in the wrong, wrong-glish great commentary. If you were me, you'd put the eyebrow, you'd put the eyebrow on it if you were me. You know it's a good one when you get multiple voice notes about the same thing. And this was a phrase that Stephen Warnock used when he was alongside me for Liverpool Arsenal last weekend. First up, Graham from the Wirral has been in touch. Would Fox in the Box not be a contender for the commentators great glossary? I can't hear the term without thinking back to Arsenal attempting to put the finishing touch

to one of their great sides in the early 2000s by signing Franny Jeffers. I'm sure whilst listening to commentary on Sunday of Liverpool v Arsenal I heard Stephen Warnock refer to Arsenal's need for a Fox in the Box in the summer. I can't think of another sport that would have a Fox in the Box and there aren't many situations that an actual fox would end up in a box. Any thoughts gents? Cheers. I think that's got to go in. Yeah. Well let's hear this one as well from Alison in North Norfolk who has given us this quirky

anecdote. I can't imagine any other sport using the phrase fox in the box. The phrase immediately took me back to 2009 when I was working as a regional sales manager in a bank in London and one of the bosses thought it would be amusing if all the managers did their weekly sales report in the style of a football manager. I think it was a ploy to undermine the two female managers, but what he didn't know was that I was an ardent Sunderland fan. When the time came for my sales report, I took off my coat to reveal my Sunderland football shirt and gave my sales report full of

footballing phrases and cliches including Fox in the Box. That was brilliant. Well done Alison. Yeah. How have you got a promotion for that? Well let's hope so. And I'm pleased that Graham mentioned Francis Jeffers because I would associate that phrase with Francis Jeffers and was it Arsene Wenger who actually said that? Who described him as the fox in the box or was that someone else? I can't remember. Does it also suggest, and this might be slightly unkind to Franny Jeffers, that elsewhere on the pitch your skills aren't up to that level. So a fox in the box to me is not really an all-round footballer, it's that classic footballer who's out of the game for a long long time and then comes alive and scores crucial goals. Yeah, yeah good

skill. Have Arsenal got a fox in the box at the moment? No. Is history repeating itself? This is from Hadi in Sunny Barrain. I have to say thanks to Ian, I am now a converted Deacon Blue fan. Never heard of them until I started listening to you lot, but now they're part of the Match Day soundtrack. I'm a lifelong Liverpool fan and absolutely loving this season. Though I'm generally surprised that God of Honor hasn't made it into the great glossary yet. Also, when you lot inevitably take the show on the world tour, make sure that Bahrain is on the list. I'd be honored to take you out for a proper traditional meal.

Maybe Deacon Blue can open for you. Well, if only we knew someone who could arrange that. Well, I'm glad that you're a convert to Deacon Blue. Thank you for listening to the podcast. And if you haven't listened to the new album yet, it is outstanding. Anyway, um, but God, God of Honor. I would say no, John, because I'm immediately taken to a cricket cricket. Yeah. I've seen so many of the Courtney Walsh, Kirtley Ambrose.

I was there watching their God of Honor. Yeah, yeah. Do they call that a God? They do call that a God of Honor, don't they? They do, yeah, they do. They do. They love the sports, yeah. Okay. Here's one as well from Ernie in America,

who says, dear John, Ian and Ali, greetings from sunny Georgia, USA, which we know very well, Ali, don't we? We do. Where Ernie says, I've been happily binging the pod. It's been excellent company as I adjust to life after departing the federal government. Turns out leaving bureaucracy behind opens up all sorts of possibilities like writing emails to podcast legends in inverted commas.

If you're serious about taking the show on the road, might I humbly and selfishly suggest an episode in Atlanta during the 2026 World Cup? I'll have loads of free time and would gladly help coordinate the chaos logistics, he says. Also, for your great glossary of football commentary, I submit Nutmeg, utterly useless in other sports, and let's be honest, equally delightful

and humiliating to witness. I'm not sure if I'd be prouder to have my submission accepted or to be firmly publicly rejected. Ideally I'd like the full journey rejected accepted then rejected again that's the sweet spot. All the best Ernie. I think Nukmeg isn't it in already? I think it's in I think it's in. I like the name Ernie. It's not in. I've just scrolled down. It's not in. No, well, how is that not in? Well, because we've not discussed it. It's not come up in conversation. Ernie, that's a great name. You don't come across many Ernie's nowadays, do you? Well, by the way, the way we're going, it'll be 2026 before

we can announce what we're not announcing just yet. By the way you say that we have mentioned on this podcast up and coming young commentator Ernie Bratherton before. That's true, two on the pod. Right just to finish wouldn't be an episode of TCB these days without a reference to this. This is Tony from Australia. Dear ABB, Denno and JM, I was listening to last week's podcast while watching my son's Saturday football in Sydney. I was chuckling on the ongoing odyssey of where the owl sleeps when lo and behold a

Kookaburra swooped in and took residence where the aforementioned owl should be placed. After chuckling at the serendipitous nature of this, my mind wandered to whether where the Kookaburra sleeps should now be part of the antipodean football commentary lexicon. I then wondered if any other down under bird could be considered when I mused that the white ibis, known colloquially in these parts as a bin chicken due to its love of scavenging on park rubbish, could be equally considered which of course leads me to a potential inclusion in your glossary of top bins for a shot headed for Either top corner. I do wonder if it's a worthy inclusion yours Tony from Sydney

Australia so can the Australians can the a tip of the antipodeans use where the cooker burrow sleeps I love that that happened while he's listening to the pod only if an Aussie commentator can slip it in. Yeah, that's a good That's a good rule and any other down under birds Kiwis, that's bird isn't it from down under although. I'm not sure they fly the Kiwis fly Top bins Producer Nathan has gone. No, he says Kiwis cannot fly so they probably wouldn't be able to get up there would they? No, they'd be nestling in the bottom corner. They would be nestling.

What about Top Bins? No, definitely no. I knew John would have immediately dismissed Top Bins. Right, Ian's got to go, we promised you a special voice note to finish. Here it is, this message comes from North London. This is Joseph from Palmer's Green and also I will introduce my daughter. What's your name? Lottie.

That's Lottie. Okay, so the Owl Bats debate has been ongoing in our household since the arrival of a book called Monkey Puzzle. One of the pages has in it... what is it Lottie? Bats. Or what did you used to call it? Owls. Yes so Lottie used to call it an owl but it is a bat. Now this is obviously very relevant for the debate on where the owl sleeps. So in this page the bat is sleeping upside down what's that? One hour and one hour.

Yeah see now Lottie is calling this an hour but it is a bat anyway I will make sure I do my best to continue working on this and say goodbye? No. Okay. Oh how sweet is that? That must be youngest contributor to TCV so far. Yeah, the record. Well, we can tell Lottie, gotta get that sorted because Bat's gone.

Bat is out of the glossary and the owl is in the glossary. So, in summary today, on the beach, no. Worldy, still no. Fox in the box is getting in, though, unless people can tell us that's used in other sports. I've never heard that in other sports. No. God of honour no, because you get that in other sports. Nutmeg yes. Put the eyebrows on it. We're saying no, aren't we, because it's wrong-lish. Hang on, are you calling? What's that all about? Why are you shouting? You're calling Chris. Chris Sutton was just calling. Right, we could have got him on the eyebrows. Kukaburra sleeps, Denno

is throwing down the gauntlet to an Aussie commentator out there to get it into a commentary and send it to the pod so we can hear it and then stick it in and Toppins is a no. Very much looking forward to listening to you chaps commentate on the FA Cup final on Saturday at half four. Five Lives Premier League Sunday will be a great listen as well. Last game at Goodison for the Everton men's team that kicks off at 12 o'clock but obviously John is it. Arsenal against Newcastle at half four and the Women's FA Cup final Sports Extra 3. BBC Sounds app, scroll across the dial, Find Sports Extra 3, coverage from 125. Thank you very much for your emails and your voice notes. Voice notes 08000 289 369, emails

tcv at bbc.co.uk and on the next episode of the Football Daily we will have reaction to the Men's FA Cup Final between Crystal Palace and Manchester City and remember you can catch every single episode of The Commentator's View on the Football Daily feed on BBC Sounds. Thanks for listening. Cheers champs. Yeah, some nice emails there, weren't they? Very good. I think John was definitely winning Clash of the Commentators today. If you've been involved, you're winning that.

Definitely. And that is the way it crumbles cookie-wise. It does. Yeah. It does. Hello, I'm Manishka Matandodawati, the presenter of Diddy on Trial from BBC Sounds. Sean Diddy Combs is facing a fight for his freedom as his hugely anticipated trial starts for sex trafficking, racketeering with conspiracy and transportation for prostitution. He denies all the charges. I'll be bringing you every twist and turn from the courtroom

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