Fulham - Back Down the Pub (1)

Sat in the local public house last night, I got chatting to a fellow supporter, it proved to be an interesting chat.

During a couple of hours of conversation, we touched on several subjects, occasionally we found our views matched up, occasionally we found we were miles apart when it came to some subjects. However, despite our differences, we covered a lot of common ground but one thing intrigued us both, the widespread coverage of football on the television these days.

This weekend, is the final weekend of the Premier League, already I`ve managed to find four of the ten final games being covered on television in this country alone. If you`re something of a telly addict and have access to Sky Sports and Setanta, you can access the following games, at random or stick with one,

Wigan v Manchester United

Chelsea v Bolton

Birmingham v Blackburn

Portsmouth v Fulham

No doubt, if you have internet access you can probably pick up most of the others on various sports sites.

My drinking companion and I both agreed it was a far cry from when we were youngsters. In those days live football was restricted to the FA Cup Final and the Home International Tournament, our diet of televised football was restricted to Match of the Day and The Big Match. There were no 'sports` channels full stop. But we kind of enjoyed it.

We both agreed that the dulcet tones of the likes of Brian Moore, Hugh Johns, Kenneth Wolsenthome and Gerry Harrison, became embedded in some of the wonderful memories we both share of our formative years.

Not even the grainy pictures and the lack of numerous camera positions could spoil our enjoyment. Television gave us our own heroes, once the programmes had finished we admitted we both used to rush out into the street and quickly a throng would gather and it`d be thirty against thirty until the sun went down. Off course, the number son each side dwindled as kids of various sages were called in by their irate mothers.

We both agreed, it`s something we don`t see so much of these days; it`s a digital world we live in. The PC and its associated formats have changed society forever. Children stay encompassed within the confines of their bedrooms slaying evil monsters instead of pretending to be Viv Busby nodding in at the far post; we agreed that we both found it all rather sad.

Today, television is saturated with football coverage, if you choose you can watch football live every day, not just one match but probably two, some days even three. Highlights, replays, valuable insights, reviews, previews - the digital world is littered with them. We agreed it has made us both a little blasé when it comes to live football these days, we`ve reached saturation point, a point whereby television money is seen as more important than the pounds I shove across the counter to access craven Cottage.

We both wondered where it will all end. Will that 39th game become a reality? Will it stretch to a 40th? Will the paying customer become almost an irritation as the global franchise that Premier League football is becoming becomes more reliable on other revenue streams, I know our views but I`d be interested to know yours!

Please feel free to comment in the box below!