As per usual Ford Super Sunday dominates the Sky Sports 2012 viewership numbers, but it is very interesting to see our dear old Currie Cup managing to sneak onto the radar …
Further proof that even though plenty South African’s depart our shores to live abroad, they never really completely cut the umbilical chord … Either that, or the Poms have taken a liking to good “Old fashioned” South African rugby?
One has to wonder if it is worth reading a little more into this Super Sunday concept, though?
In the UK, it is Sky Sports’s flagship live football programme, broadcasting live Premier League football on most Sundays over the course of a season. The main live game will typically kick off at 4pm, often following a 1.30pm game, on Sky Sports 1.
The varsities are keen to dominate Monday nights but is it worth SARU scheduling a big Sunday afternoon game every weekend? I can picture the steam coming out of wives and girlfriend’s ears round the country, but given the success of Super Sunday, and Formula One – another sport that dominates on a Sunday, a “Made for TV” Sunday arvie game might do well here in SA …
People might then be more inclined to keep Saturday’s for school and club rugby, together with whatever else is on offer, and keep Sunday afternoon’s free for that post carvery couch denting session while taking in the Bulls taking on the Stormers?
NB – Sky Sports TV numbers courtesy of RepucomSA
No way Tank, imagine the absenteeism numbers come Monday morning?
I suggest that those events are an indicative sample of events, rather than a Top 10. eg: It’s just not feasible that the Abu Dhabi QUALIFYING session makes No.5 while no other Grand Prix RACE is listed in the Top 10.
So, I’m afraid the 14,000 average watching Currie Cup won’t be in their Top 10 and to put that number in context, I have seen it reported that SkySports has a reach of 8.5million viewers. It’s small beer to them.
As for a South African Super Sunday of rugby – let’s hope not but the early signs are all there that it will happen. We’ve done the Friday nights, we’ve done the Monday nights, we’ve used three different kick off times on Saturdays so there’s only Sundays left.
First American football Sunday’s in the U.S. and now soccer Sundays in the U.K. I hope we get rugga Sunday’s here. It’ll almost definitely be good for our game and at worst it can’t do any harm.