Des Scahill

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Bruce_Savage

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What an absolute fantastic commentary for the 14:50 at NAAS.

The winner Pass The Hat and the runner up Black Mac were in a dual where Dessie even managed to rhyme "Pass The Hat comes from the back to go past Black Mac"

Now, that's a moutful especially live!

What a commentator.
 
My absolute worst commentator. And that's going some. Not the slightest insight into how horses are running or jumping, just front to back, front to back (missing a faller - although to be fair, he has picked a few up more than he used to in the past year), front to back (missing the change up front by the time he's got to the back again)... he makes racing as interesting as reading the school register over and over again.
 
How very cynical of you, Colin - Bruce may have mildly irritated a few people on here, but I feel that his views, commingled with his unique phrasing and grammatical constructs, bring a refreshing insouciance to the usual application of the English language. And, boring as feck as Dessie is, rhyming commentary is to be commended - I think it's a pity that Racing for Change didn't beat Brucie to recommending that addition to the gaiety of racedays. Imagine what callers could do with FRANKEL or PASS THE BUCK?
 
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Listen sweetheart, if you could pull the strings and get me on the Racing For Change committee you'd see a positive change in 6 months.

I could give the Racing what it needs, I know the answers and would love to pull the strings in making our Sport better.
 
I have to say i prefer the "smaller picture" offered by Des Scahill than
the endless reaching for the "bigger picture" offered by so many others.
 
kjansch said:
I have to say i prefer the "smaller picture" offered by Des Scahill than
the endless reaching for the "bigger picture" offered by so many others.
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I agree with this, so many of today's commentators try to be the main attraction but with Des I just want the names and the race.
I totally get people who don't like him, I'm just glad his employers do
 
I take it for granted commentators will call out the horses' names, or they're not much use! But I also appreciate colours being called, which Dessie never does. Given the size of Irish fields, at least 20, up to 30, calling out which is where changes so often that an early call of the main colours would be very helpful. Knowing which one has fallen, which he usually doesn't figure out until three jumps later, is also helpful in knowing whether yours is still travelling or not (and as the cameramen tend to focus only on the leaders in the last quarter of a race, that's not something that's clear).

I don't want commentaries clogged up with stories, but I do like to know which horse is which and, without the benefit of the colours in front of me, tracking my interest for myself, Dessie doesn't make that easy.

What surprises me is that there seems to be only Dessie and one other caller working in Ireland - surely, given that Dessie stated that the job bored him, there's room for more?
 
Malcolm Tomlinson is my favourite commentator at the moment. Calm, assured, knowledgable he is one of the most underrated callers around in my opinion.
 
Harry, Aussie Jim should probably ditch calling and stay with analysis for the Telegraph!

Mark Johnson: very nice bloke, loves Jersey and the USA, but very shouty through the entire race. John Hunt - there is a very harsh tone to his voice and he's also shouty. Lee McKenzie - smashing fun guy, but has been increasing his hysteria levels at the finish to incoherence. Malcolm Tomlinson - Aragorn, give yourself a gold star! I think he does everything right. Richard Hoiles - can inject some fun into dull 3-milers in the mud where nothing's happened, also accurate and has about the right tone. Tony O'Hehir in Ireland (is it Tony? I might have his first name wrong) - better than Dessie in that he does actually notice what's happening and tends to stay more with the real action than keep reading right down to the totally lost-in-the-woods tail-enders.

We have some new guys being brought round by race callers, some of whom have made the odd one or two calls per meeting, so hopefully the old farts will eventually be pensioned off to witter on about ratings to the end of time.
 
Krizon you wasn't on yesterdays on the line after racing by any chance?

Some stuck up lady was defending Aussie Jim saying the Grand National wouldn't be the same without him

Just adding 2 and 2 you know....
 
krizon said:
Harry, Aussie Jim should probably ditch calling and stay with analysis for the Telegraph!

Mark Johnson: very nice bloke, loves Jersey and the USA, but very shouty through the entire race. John Hunt - there is a very harsh tone to his voice and he's also shouty. Lee McKenzie - smashing fun guy, but has been increasing his hysteria levels at the finish to incoherence. Malcolm Tomlinson - Aragorn, give yourself a gold star! I think he does everything right. Richard Hoiles - can inject some fun into dull 3-milers in the mud where nothing's happened, also accurate and has about the right tone. Tony O'Hehir in Ireland (is it Tony? I might have his first name wrong) - better than Dessie in that he does actually notice what's happening and tends to stay more with the real action than keep reading right down to the totally lost-in-the-woods tail-enders.

We have some new guys being brought round by race callers, some of whom have made the odd one or two calls per meeting, so hopefully the old farts will eventually be pensioned off to witter on about ratings to the end of time.
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Thanks Kri :thumbsup:
 
I judge a commentator by whether I can close my eyes and still get a picture of what's happening in the race so that I'd be able to follow the fate of the horse I've picked, and whether he - the commentator, not the horse - has a pleasant voice/tone. I'd say Richard Hoiles and, mostly, Simon Holt (bar a couple of uncharacteristic minor oversights I've noticed from the latter this NH season) mostly get it spot on.

Verbal tics annoy me, although I appreciate they must be hard to eradicate and I'll be more forgiving if it's a commentator I otherwise don't mind. I quite like Stewart Machin apart from the fact that every chaser who makes an error at a fence during one of his races "parts the birch".

Harsh (John Hunt), overly loud (Mark Johnson/Lee McKenzie) or unpleasant (Ian Bartlett - I don't know what it is about his voice but it's like nails down a chalkboard to me) voices will turn me off even if the content of the commentary is otherwise okay.

As far as Dessie is concerned: he doesn't commentate he just calls the roll, occasionally throwing in the jockeys' names for good measure. No colour, no context, no nuance, hardly any variation of tone....zzzzzz. Watch the 2007 Tied Cottage Chase for an example of his utter can't-be-arsed-to-think-of-anything-to-say-if-I-can't-run-through-the-field-front-to-back-as-usual attitude.
 
Dessie is an institution... Gerry Hannon is pretty decent but sometimes sounds like he's going to wet himself near the finish. Tony O'Hehir always seems out of breath after running back up the stairs and putting on a lump!!
 
krizon said:
Tony O'Hehir in Ireland (is it Tony? I might have his first name wrong) - better than Dessie in that he does actually notice what's happening and tends to stay more with the real action than keep reading right down to the totally lost-in-the-woods tail-enders.
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Surely the difference with Tony O'Hehir is that, as a commentator for RTE television he has a bit more descriptive license than an on-course commentator? I think he's well below standard as commentator's go.

The two that always strike me as the best of the current bunch in the UK are Richard Hoiles and Stewart Machin.
 
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