can anybody explain why the local BBC radio station for Manchester ignored the only Super league team from the area covered by this station on Friday night and ran commentary from a game involving a team from Merseyside and another from Cheshire. Local radio is just that local, it is bad enough that Sky ignore us most of the time, considering the game covered last night was also on Sky this was a poor choice by the BBC and totally ignored its listeners, for many from Salford who could not get there couldn't listen either.



I wonder if we will get better coverage once they cross over the Irwell?

Always been a gripe of mine that GMR/Manchester cover Warrington games when they are not in Greater Manchester.
They wouldn't say cover a Liverpool football game would they.
Think the whole structure of RL coverage is flawed and suffers from the same trouble as SKY and the Beeb in that they have the same old presenters and show format. Anyone who used to hear fitzy from time to time helping with commentary will surely agree if there is ever a ready made young radio/TV presenter then he is the one and would be a breath of fresh air.

jack dearden - tired old muppet.

same old, same old.....

I have just registered a couple of complaints with the BBC on this. This is typical of what I wrote...

Why on Friday night was the Salford superleague match not covered? Why does GMR cover a Merseyside game in preference? Why do local residents in Salford have to put up with this poor scheduling. Maybe Salford should have its own radio station if GMR prefer to cater for scousers.

Trevor Hunte was at the ground doing a commentary last night we sat just behind him.

I think the main point here is, it is simply not good enough to have the odd "lets get an update from..."

Rugby League coverage is diabolical compared to Football within Greater Manchester.

but he was talking to himself as the BBC were not broadcasting it, they just did bits from the ground and no interviews.



Be interesting to see what happens on the 8th July we are at Hull and Warrigton are at home to Huddersfield which is also on Sky.

I get the impression that Salford are seen as an inconvenience and they'd much prefer to cover the likes of Wigan and Warrington. Whenever I turn on the radio for the rugby programme, I'm wondering which one of Tony Smith or Michael Maguire will be being interviewed, or which Wigan or Warrington player they'll be speaking to...

Jack Dearden is only interested in Salford when we are `in crisis`.

WIRE ARE SCOUSERS END OF AND SHOULD BE COVERED BY BBC RADIO MERSEYSIDE!

There's a deal of bitterness here methinks. I agree that GMR's philosophy of covering the better supported 'local' teams is somewhat misguided, but don't we regularly state on here that we are a city in our own right and categorically point out that we ARE NOT from Manchester ? As such, do we have the right to complain when GMR cover the 'big' game of the night only 20 miles away and we are in Wales ?
Just a thought.

Out of interest who out of the BBC channels do you suggest should cover Warrington games???

Bollocks to all your comments...why wern't they at the Willows giving match commentry of the only unbeaten League side.Beats me that one.!!! but all your comments are correct as Jim Jafrezi's has stated, as of course whilst Salford is a city it is of course in the greater Manchester Conurbation so sadly it gives them a wide berth.

Apologies, I should have said 30 miles away, I forgot it was at Widnes

correct.

like it or not, the coverage of GMR includes Warrington and pretty much all of Cheshire before you get to Staffs and Shropshire.

on the subject, the BBC have been considering pulling much of the funding from local radio. what we get now is pretty good i think and could be much much less...

The BBC should give the coverage to the team playing away or not on tv. we get better coverage than clubs in the championship. Lookat Leigh yesterday, they are in France, Wigan on TV but the coverage was Wigan, unless the games wereon at different times.

BBC Merseyside, they are built around the Mersey so ideal.

Maybe the BBC looks at the listening figures, which actually shows a much higher listening figures to a match played by two teams at the top, than a nothing game at the bottom end of the league. I agree with a comment on this post, which said we cannot have it both ways, we keep telling everyone, we are in Salford not Manchester, maybe Salford radio should cover!

they were at the willows we got the last few minutes of the game after Warrington had finished, all Salford got was a made up event from T Hunte, Boyle's try, you could not make it up, only he did

B P : Stockport is closer to the Mersey than Warrington ! I would be disappointed if Stockportians had to tune to Merseyside to listen to their game.

Enjoy the local radio while you can: any more cuts and we'll depend on 5 Live.

I get the impression that Jack Dearden doesn't warm to Salford as a club, he seems to relish stirring things up and talking about us being in crisis. I think it dates back to the beginning of the Superleague era in the mid 90's and his Oldham roots.

I was talking about the Mersey splitting the town of Warrington in two, it was very close to Wilderspool

I actually tried this when I was at Salford City radio in the early days before a certain councillor got rid of the original group who set it up, and we did reports from a few away games Warrington and Catalan ( in Perpignan i was the only English reporter there) the station has the capacity to do outside broadcasts but i don't think they have people there who are interested in Rugby League, than there is the question of cost, i paid my own travel to the away games, plus would they give two hours on a Friday to a live match?

To put this in perspective, I think BBC Manchester give pretty good coverage on Super League , less so the lower league teams. let's face without the Sunday Phone in & Thursday broadcast there be little else.

BBC Manchester , was formerly known as GMR which is a truer reflection of their remitt to deliver a local radio service to the greater manchester area so that would include Wigan Warrington Saints etc. their 1-2 hr magazine program usually shares guests on an equitable basis from the areas 4 SL teams. and each week they usually have at least a pre recorded interview or phone call from a 'Saford ' guest.

BBC local radio's ' contract ' to to deliver a mainly spoken word service with emphasis on local matters , with Rugby League as a NW area sport . BBC schedulling should not be affected by viewing figures like independent's it's a public service. so it matter's not about whether their more Wire' Wigan fans.

I've never attributed any of the people as being overly negative or baised despite their obvious leanings to Leigh/Oldham etc.
A bit of journalistic license was apparant in the ' Club in Crisis ' episode , but that was as much fuelled by the end is nigh callers on a regular basis on the sunday phone in's .
also by the fact that they have had the ' next year will be better ' story from Salford on numerous occassions over the years . and things weren't going to plan.
I expect Mr Parish will be on their show before his jetlag has lapsed ..

Greater Manchester has never ever included Warrington (cheshire /Lancashire) St helens (merseyside/ Lancashire)
thats a geographical fact.

Teams in Greater Manchester
Salford
Wigan
Rochdale
Oldham
Swinton
Leigh