Am I alone in feeling that post-match radio
and TV interviews make everyone who watches them cower on the sofa and
cringe? If I had my way, I'd ban them. Having experienced various
aspects of the media in both my home and working life, I know how
important producers deem these interviews to be. I once worked for a radio station covering a football match between
two giants of English football: Aylesbury vs. Aldershot. I had to make
sure I recorded the post-match reactions from players and management.
After a dire game, none of the players wanted to talk, but
the losing manager was able to offer me his priceless thoughts. His team were gutted by their loss and they had one
or two things to work on at the training ground. When I asked what they
were, he said he could tell me but he would have to shoot me. Despite
this rather droll answer, I deleted and did not file the interview as I
didn't think it added anything to the story of the day. I don't blame the journalist, he is trained to enquire about the
feelings of the player, even though the viewer or listener knows
well that he will be feeling delighted if he has won and disappointed if not. I don't blame the player or manager who answers
the questions, which can often be answered best with a Yes or No. My favourite moment came last year when Mushtaq Ahmed was giving one
of the countless interviews he has to give. We had won the game after
one of the senior players had been left out the side. A journalist asked Mushie: "Do you feel that the selectors and you have been vindicated by
the result of this game?" Mushie replied: "I don't think the press are
vindictive. They can write what they want." They certainly can, if only they didn't have to interview us at the end of games.