Taylor’s bid for Thursday night supremacy on free-to-air TV will be challenged by Fox Footy, which now has its own commentary crew at all games under the new $4.5 billion broadcast deal. Fox will have Mark Howard and Matt Hill as lead callers on a Thursday.
Asked about the so-called footy broadcast wars, Taylor had a blunt response.
“I don’t give a shit about any of that. What I have learnt in this industry over a period of time, just do your job. Just do your job,” he said.
“If you worry about opposition, or what people think of you, you ain’t going to do a very good job.
“I am happy that there are two broadcasters calling footy. It means we have all got jobs, and if we fall out of one, who knows, we may fall into another. It just provides a great opportunity for people that are in my industry, having two broadcasters.”
BT backer: Luke Hodge says Brian Taylor is often unfairly maligned for his commentary.Credit: Jono Laird
Taylor has had his share of controversies and brutal social media feedback, including viewers questioning a perceived bias towards Collingwood. Others have criticised the way he called certain players, including Essendon’s Jake Kelly during last year’s Anzac Day clash. Kelly is the son of Taylor’s former teammate and current Magpies chief executive, Craig Kelly.
Taylor said he only took on criticism from Seven’s bosses, including head of sport Chris Jones, and his wife, Tania, whom he says quickly picks up the “vibe” of the call.
“It is a subjective sport, whether it’s the game or whether it’s the broadcast of the game. Everyone has got their opinion. To be honest with you, I listen to everyone within my stable here at Seven, and then I go home and my wife is the No.1 person I listen to, because she is the one that is prepared to give it to me between the eyes, saying ‘you were shithouse today’, or ‘you were good today’, or whatever it is, her honest opinion.”
Fellow Seven commentator Luke Hodge, the four-time Hawthorn premiership great, said Taylor was unfairly criticised.
“BT can say 99 things correct out of 100, and they will pick the one thing he made a mistake in. Everyone makes mistakes. People sitting at home forget about that. They go to their job and make a mistake, and no one is there to point it out,” Hodge said.
Taylor says he will continue to probe his expert commentators during a game on how the trailing team can get back into the contest. For fans of the team in front, Taylor admits this can be annoying. But he insists it’s no gimmick to try to hold on to viewers in lopsided games.
“I am giving the supporters of that team a reason why they could possibly come back. They could come back if they can do this, this and this. It’s got to be genuine,” Taylor said.
“If I think a side is being absolutely belted and outclassed, I am not going to say they can get back in this. If I think there is a genuine reason for a team to get back in it, I will say it.
“People don’t like that because, if their team is winning, that’s all they care about. They don’t care about the team that is five goals down. I do. I care about both.”
Taylor’s Roaming Brian segment will continue post match.
To a younger generation, it’s often forgotten Taylor played 11 seasons in the AFL, with 43 games and 156 goals for Richmond, before 97 games and 371 goals for Collingwood. He was the 1986 Coleman medallist, and was a selection heartbreak tale because of a dodgy knee in 1990, when the Magpies claimed a breakthrough flag.
“Even I have forgotten that I played, so I wouldn’t expect others to remember,” Taylor said.
