The Sunday Game

Infobox Television
bgcolor = #D6D6FF
show_name = The Sunday Game


caption = This logo, used for the 2004 season, was replaced with the RTÉ Sport corporate style logo in 2005
format = Sports
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audio_format =
runtime = Variable
creator =
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executive_producer =
starring = Presenters:
Michael Lyster
Pat Spillane
Commentators:
Ger Canning
Marty Morrissey
Dara Moloney
Mícheál Ó Sé
Reporters:
Evanne Ní Chuilinn
Joanne Cantwell
Hurling analysts:
Anthony Daly
Tomás Mulcahy
Cyril Farrell
Donal O'Grady
Michael Duignan
Pete Finnerty
Declan Ruth
Football analysts:
Joe Brolly
Colm O'Rourke
Martin Carney
Tommy Lyons
Tony Davis
Coman Goggins
Anthony Tohill
Dara Ó Cinnéide
Kevin McStay
narrated =
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country = Republic of Ireland
network = RTÉ Two
first_run =
first_aired =1979
last_aired = present
num_episodes =
website = http://www.rte.ie/tv/thesundaygame/
imdb_id = 0481925
tv_com_id =

"The Sunday Game" is Radio Telefís Éireann's main Gaelic games television programme. It is shown on RTÉ Two every Sunday during the Football Championship and Hurling Championship seasons. It is one of RTÉ Two’s longest-running shows, having been on air since 1979, one year after the channel first began broadcasting. The programme is currently celebrating its 30th season. [cite web|url=http://www.rte.ie/sport/gaa/championship/2008/0501/championship.html?gaa|title=RTÉ launches Championship coverage|publisher=RTÉ|date=2008-05-01|accessdate=2008-05-12]

History

The Gaelic games of Gaelic football and hurling have always been at the heart of broadcasting in Ireland from its earliest days. On August 29, 1926, the All-Ireland hurling semi-final between Kilkenny and Galway became the first radio commentary of a field game outside of the United States. When Telefís Éireann first began broadcasting in 1961 the Gaelic Athletic Association restricted annual coverage of its games to the two All-Ireland finals, the two All-Ireland football semi-finals and the two Railway Cup finals. 1962 was the first occasion that Gaelic games were seen live on Irish television while the All-Ireland hurling final of 1971 was the first colour broadcast of a GAA game.

The original version of "the Sunday Game" programme began broadcasting on Sunday nights in 1979. The programme generally featured one full championship game and discussion about it. The show soon expanded featuring coverage of one or more of the day’s main championship games, followed by extended highlights of the other games. This format still continues.

For the entire 1980s RTÉ was still restricted to just showing live coverage of the All-Ireland finals and semi-finals in both hurling and football. This changed in 1992 when the Munster Hurling Final was broadcast live for the first time. Since then RTÉ has gained the rights to show all of the provincial hurling and football finals live as well as many other earlier provincial and qualifier games. The station broadcasts these and many other games under "The Sunday Game Live" banner. This programme usually contains live coverage of two games. In 2007 "The Sunday Game" broadcast 50 live championship games. [cite web|url=http://www.rte.ie/about/pressreleases/2007/0404//tvsportapril2007.html|title=RTÉ Television Announces Record Coverage of Live GAA Matches|publisher=RTÉ|date=2007-04-04|accessdate=2008-05-12] In 2008 the programme will broadcast 40 live championship games due to the fact that rival broadcaster, TV3, has been granted the rights to show live championship games for the first time ever. [cite web|url=http://www.tv3.ie/media.php?action=news&id=150|title=TV3 ANNOUNCES LIVE AND EXCLUSIVE ALL-IRELAND CHAMPIONSHIP FIXTURES|publisher=TV3|date=2008-04-16|accessdate=2008-05-12]

"The Sunday Game" programme only covers the championship season from May to September. All of the GAA’s National League games are screened on TG4 and Setanta Sports, while "Sunday Sport" on RTÉ Two provides highlights of some of these games. When a hurling or football game is shown on Saturday or Monday - the latter becoming more common during Summer Bank Holiday weekends - the appropriately customised title "The Saturday Game" or "The Monday Game" is used. Previously "The Game on Monday", a second selection of highlights, had also been aired. If Setanta Sports 2 show a match being broadcast on RTÉ then they will use the coverage from The Sunday Game.

Aside from the two senior championships, "The Sunday Game Live" also covers the finals of four other championships: the All-Ireland Minor Football Championship, the All-Ireland Minor Hurling Championship, and the senior and junior All-Ireland Camogie Championship finals. For the minor (under-18) matches, the commentary is traditionally in the Irish language and performed by Micheal O Sé. The All-Ireland Ladies Football Championship senior and junior finals were also formerly covered, but are now shown on TG4 as part of a title sponsorship deal.

Presenters, pundits and commentators

"The Sunday Game" was first presented in 1979 by the popular Galway-based journalist Jim Carney. Former Dublin hurler, footballer, referee and sports journalist Seán Óg Ó Ceallacháin took over in 1980. He remained at the helm as presenter for two years before being replaced by Carney once again. He was eventually replaced by Michael Lyster, who became the main anchor of the programme in the GAA’s centenary year in 1984. Lyster continues to present "The Sunday Game Live", while Pat Spillane took over in 2004 as the main anchor of the Sunday night highlights show. [cite web|url=http://www.independent.ie/national-news/top-of-its-game-for-30-years-1364234.html|title=Top of its game for 30 years
publisher=Irish Independent|date=2008-05-02|accessdate=2008-05-12]

In the early years, the programme's most regular commentators were Michael O'Hehir, Jimmy Magee and Jim Carney. Ger Canning joined the team in 1980, becoming the programmes chief commentator following O’Hehir’s retirement in 1985. The most recent additions to the commentary team include Marty Morrissey and Dara Moloney.

"The Sunday Game" has always shown an innovative approach in its use of match analysts. In its very first season the makers of the programme made the brave decision to include Liz Howard as one of their main analysts. Howard was an All-Ireland camogie winner who was the daughter of Garrett Howard, one of Limerick’s all-time hurling greats. Other analysts during the programme’s first season included Enda Colleran, a former Galway footballer, and Dave Weldrick, trainer of the Thomond College team that won the All-Ireland club football title.

Throughout the years "The Sunday Game" has featured many of hurling and football’s greatest players as analysts and pundits. These include:

Hurling

D.J. Carey, Éamonn Cregan, Anthony Daly, John Doyle, Cyril Farrell, Pete Finnerty, Pat Hartigan
Pat Henderson, Liam Griffin, Eddie Keher, Phil 'Fan' Larkin, Ger Loughnane, Tomás Mulcahy, Jimmy Barry-Murphy, Larry O'Gorman, Donal O'Grady

Football

Kevin Armstrong, Joe Brolly, Enda Colleran, Tony Davis, Seán Flanagan, Kevin Heffernan, Joe Lennon, Jim McDonnell, Kevin McStay, Mick O'Connell, Mick O'Dwyer, Seán O'Neill, Anthony Tohill, Dave Weldrick, Eamon Young, Paul Curran,Coman Goggins,Tommy Lyons

Theme music

For the 2004 season of the programme, RTÉ replaced the long-standing theme tune of "The Sunday Game", "Jagariarten", composed by James Last, with a completely different composition. This was met with much comment (RTÉ had previously re-arranged the theme, then reverted back to the original), and was likened to the famous "Match of the Day" or "Grandstand" themes being replaced. The new theme was used through to 2006 and was then replaced by another different theme in 2007. On 10 May 2008 RTÉ announced that the original theme would return, with a new arrangement, for the 2008 season. [cite web|url=http://www.rte.ie/sport/gaa/championship/2008/0510/sundaygame.html?gaa|title=The Sunday Game re-instate old tune
publisher=RTÉ|date=2008-05-10|accessdate=2008-05-12]

References