Friday Night Football (Australia)

In Australia, Friday Night Football is the broadcasting of both the National Rugby League (NRL) and Australian Football League (AFL) Friday night matches on television. Friday Night Football is generally considered to be the biggest stage and generate the most publicity for the clubs involved in both codes. It is for this reason that clubs involved generally want to perform at their very best to avoid large-scale criticism from the media. The Seven Network has regained broadcast rights for the AFL starting with the 2007 season, while the Nine Network will continue their association with the NRL.

Both codes are shown in all states and territories, with the dominant code being shown in primetime at 8:30pm, and the other code shown afterwards in a late time slot. The only exception is in the Northern Territory where the NRL is shown at 7:00, with the AFL being shown at 8:45, both generally accepted as being in primetime.

The dominant codes are Australian rules football in Victoria, South Australia, Western Australia and Tasmania; and rugby league in New South Wales, Queensland and Australian Capital Territory. Hence the Australian rules football states get AFL and the rugby league states get NRL.

As part of the new AFL television rights, Seven was expected to show AFL at an earlier timeslot in New South Wales and Queensland in an attempt to boost popularity in those states. Foxtel will take this responsibility off Seven, showing the Friday night match live into NSW and QLD on its Main Event channel at no extra charge for foxsports subscribers. However, it is not known whether the NRL is shown live in to Victoria's Main Event Channel.

As part of the new NRL contract, as of 2007 the Nine Network now broadcasts two NRL games in New South Wales, Queensland and the Australian Capital Territory on Friday Night - one live at 7.30, and the second match replayed at 9.30. The same games are also replayed into other areas of Australia, usually starting after midnight.

Between 2000 and 2006 inclusive, the Nine Network held the rights to both codes, which necessitated the broadcasting of one after the other. Friday Night Football is regularly one of the highest rating programs in Australia. The Nine network prevented Foxtel showing the AFL game live on Foxtel into NSW and Queensland (shown on 2 hour delay after negotiation) and the ACT (one hour delay).

National Rugby League

Friday Night Football (NRL)
Format	Sports broadcast
Starring	Ray Warren (main commentator) Andrew Voss (main commentator) Peter Sterling (anchor) Phil Gould (analysis) Wally Lewis (anchor) Paul Vautin (analysis) Andrew Johns (analysis or sideline commentator) Brad Fittler (sideline commentator) Tim Gilbert (sideline commentator)
Country of origin	Australia
Production
Running time	240 minutes
Broadcast
Original channel	Nine Network
Picture format	576i (SDTV) 1080i (HDTV)
Original run	4 March 1988 – present
External links
Website

Regular non-weekend football started life as Monday Night Football in 1985, with Canterbury meeting Manly on the 24th June. However moderate attendances and a night game prior to a working day eventually saw the game shifted to Friday from 1988 on. As with Monday Night Football, regular Friday fixtures only commenced in the latter half of the season. By 1990, a Friday night game was usually scheduled in all rounds.

With the 2007 season, Monday Night Football returned to the NRL.

The Friday night game is considered to be the most watched game of the week and many NRL clubs have openly stated that they appreciate the publicity given by these matches. The Nine Network choose the game they consider to be the "match of the round" 5 or 6 weeks in advance. This system has both positive and negative consequences, as it increases the likelihood of a good game played between two in-form sides, but does not allow fans or clubs a large amount of time to know on which day they will play in any given round. Since 2007, two games have been played on Friday night.

In 2001, Friday Night Football used an updated song, Friday on My Mind (sung my Vanessa Amorosi and Lee Kernaghan) to open Channel Nine's coverage. Since 2002, it has been opened by the Wide World of Sport's banner. In 2007, End Of Fashion's song The Game was used, whilst in 2009 and 2010 Children Collide's song Social Currency was used. In 2011, the NRL's main theme song, Bon Jovi's This is Our House, was used.

In the past, a Nine News or Nightline update separated the two broadcast matches, however in 2008 this was discontinued. In 2010, it was reinstated, before it was again scrapped.

Memorable events

• Round 13, 2010 saw Parramatta and Melbourne face off for the first time since the previous year's Grand Final, which was subject to suggestions that the Storm should hand over the premiership they lost as a result of salary cap breaches earlier in the year. Parramatta won the match 24-10 but it wasn't without controversy, with Eels and NSW fullback Jarryd Hayne booked with headbutting Storm and Queensland rival Billy Slater midway through the second half (Hayne was later exonerated at the judiciary). Not long before, Storm prop Brett White was booked for taking out Eels prop Fuifui Moimoi, and not long after the Hayne incident Slater and Eels halfback Daniel Mortimer were sin binned for fighting.
• In Round 19, 2009, a referee was knocked out midway through the second half of the Brisbane Broncos vs. South Sydney Rabbitohs match. Brisbane's Tonie Carroll accidentally kneed him in the head after Tony De Las Heras was initially felled by Rabbitoh Jamie Simpson; but no judiciary action was taken on both players. The Rabbitohs won the match 44-12, their first win at Suncorp Stadium in twenty years.
• In Round 24, 2008, for the second time in a row at Suncorp Stadium, the Brisbane Broncos and Gold Coast Titans went into golden point, the Broncos taking out both games. Both the Broncos' wins against the Titans have been from golden point.
• In Round 15, 2008, the Brisbane Broncos recovered from a 12–8 half-time deficit to beat the Wests Tigers, with Karmichael Hunt kicking a field goal to seal a 19–18 win with 8 minutes to go. Ironically, St George Illawarra Dragons' Jamie Soward kicked a field goal to seal a 13-12 win. Both games avoided going into golden point.
• In Round 12, 2008, Brisbane Broncos winger Denan Kemp scored a try after the siren after receiving a kick from Darren Lockyer to give the Broncos a 30-26 win over Parramatta Eels after trailing 18-10 at half-time.
• In Round 3, 2008, the Brisbane Broncos set a club record 50,612 for a home match at Suncorp Stadium against the North Queensland Cowboys.
• In Round 17, 2007, the Brisbane Broncos were down 18-12 with three minutes to go until Corey Parker converted a Dave Taylor try to send the game into extra time. After the first set of six tackles in the first minute of golden point, Broncos captain Darren Lockyer kicked a 40-metre field goal to seal a 19-18 win for the Broncos. It was the Titans' first ever golden point match.
• In round 8, 2007, a match between the Brisbane Broncos and the South Sydney Rabbitohs finished in dramatic circumstances, Souths having to run 100 metres to score in the final minute of play. They kicked towards the eastern grandstand, and John Sutton won the race to the ball. But, as he was about to ground the ball, he knocked on, Brisbane fullback Karmichael Hunt the culprit. Broncos won 8-4. [1]
• In 2007 there were two golden point matches played at the same time in round three. First, the Parramatta Eels defeated the Wests Tigers after Eels' Luke Burt potted a penalty goal in the 87th minute of play. Over in Brisbane, the Penrith Panthers forced the Brisbane Broncos into golden point after being down 28-20 with five minutes to go. Also in the 87th minute, Panthers five-eighth Peter Wallace booted a field goal to give the Panthers a 29-28 win.
• In round one, 2007, the Melbourne Storm and the Brisbane Broncos, grand finalists from 2006, played 2005 grand finalists the Wests Tigers and the North Queensland Cowboys respectively to open the season. The runners-up won their matches.
• In the final round of 2006, Cowboys' Travis Norton, Matt Sing and Josh Hannay all played their last games at home before moving on.
• At the final stages of the Newcastle Knights v Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles match in rd 23, 2006, an Andrew Johns pass went astray, landing on the sidelines. Knights players remonstrated with the referees, arguing that a Manly player had knocked on in an attempt to intercept the pass. After a touch judge ruled otherwise, Johns confronted and yelled at him calling him a: "Fucking Cunt". Johns was ejected, suspended for two matches, and fined $5,000.
• Three Melbourne Storm home matches were played in 2006, two of which were delayed in Melbourne, starting at 5:30am the following Saturday, meaning that Melbourne Storm fans would have woken up watching their local team in action.
• With one minute to go and four points down against the Brisbane Broncos, Dragons halfback Mathew Head kicked to Brett Morris' wing, creating a last-gasp try. Aaron Gorrell kicked the conversion and broke the hearts of Broncos supporters (Ironically, Gorrell would later go on to play for the Broncos).
• In the final moments of the Manly vs. Wests Tigers match at Brookvale Oval, Sea Eagles halfback Matt Orford kicked down field and Brett Stewart caught his kick. He then scored a freakish try to win the game for the Silvertails.
• The round 13, 2006 match between the St George Illawarra Dragons and Parramatta Eels saw only nine points scored. After 70 minutes, there was no score until Parramatta's John Morris kicked the first field goal of the match, and therefore, the first points of the match. Then, Dragons captain Ben Hornby kicked two field goals to settle a score that was similar to that of a soccer match. The following events occurred:

• With time almost up, the Eels were about to feed a scrum, until...
• Parramatta's Jeremy Smith threw the ball away, landing into the hands of Matt Cooper, who would score the only try of the match.
• Players begin to leave the field, despite the match not being over yet. The conversion had to be taken by Aaron Gorrell, and St George Illawarra won 8-1.

• In the final round of 2005, the Eels reversed their round-five humiliation by the Brisbane Broncos and won the minor premiership in front of a packed Parramatta Stadium.
• In 2005, Golden Boot winner Anthony Minichiello scored a 70m try against the Broncos which contributed to the Sydney Roosters winning their first match at Suncorp Stadium in 14 years.
• The Bulldogs suffered consecutive 52-point thrashings, first 56-4 by the Eels in round 23 and then 54-2 at the hands of the Wests Tigers in rd 24.
• In rd 18, 2005, the Eels and Dragons fought out a controversial match at Parramatta Stadium, in a match which saw Trent Barrett get to grips with PJ Marsh [2]. The Eels won 40-14 and the Dragons would not lose another match until late September.
• A rare Friday night match was played at Leichhardt Oval between the Tigers and the Sea Eagles. The hosts won 49-24.
• During a 2005 match between the Roosters and the Eels, Roosters centre Ryan Cross was alleged to have eye-gouged Parramatta's Glenn Morrison in the face. He received a six-match suspension for his actions.
• In 2004 and 2005, when the Roosters and the Bulldogs clashed at Telstra Stadium, a Rooster would be sent off. In 2004, then Roosters three-quarter Justin Hodges was sent off for coathanging Steve Price, and in 2005 Adrian Morley would get marched for his high tackle on Matt Utai.
• In 2004, Newcastle Knights forward Clint Newton was sent off for elbowing St George Illawarra forward Ashton Sims [3].
• The Penrith Panthers have lost their last Friday the 13th matches:

• round 5, 2007, v Parramatta, 14-27.
• round 10, 2005, v Dragons, 12-34.
• round 23, 2004, v Roosters, 12-44.

• A rare match was played in Melbourne in 2004, and a full house at Olympic Park Stadium witnessed the Melbourne Storm thrash the Penrith Panthers 66-14.
• A then-record crowd of 18,669 at Campbelltown Stadium witnessed the Wests Tigers crash to a 56-0 thrashing at the hands of the Sydney Roosters.
• Fielding an injury-hit side, the St George Illawrra Dragons got out of jail against the Brisbane Broncos in rd 26, 2003, when hooker Mark Riddell kicked a penalty goal 41 metres out from the goalline. The Dragons won 26-25. Among those missing for the Dragons included: Trent Barrett, Mark Gasnier, Matt Cooper, Jason Ryles, Brett Firman and Lance Thompson.

Australian Football League

Friday Night Football (AFL)
Format	Sports broadcast
Starring	Bruce McAvaney (anchor) Dennis Cometti (commentator) Tom Harley (special comments) Leigh Matthews (special comments) Tim Watson (field commentator) Matthew Richardson (field commentator)
Country of origin	Australia
Production
Running time	180 minutes
Broadcast
Original channel	Seven Network (1985-2001, 2007-present) Nine Network (2002-2006) Fox Sports Plus
Picture format	576i (SDTV) 1080i (HDTV)
Original run	29 March 1985 – present
External links
Website

The first Australian rules matches on Friday nights were introduced in 1985 when the North Melbourne Football Club pioneered the world first initiative. At this time, these games were irregularly scheduled, and they only involved North Melbourne. By 1987 they had begun to involve other clubs and were played on a more regular basis. The Seven Network, who broadcast football for around 40 years before losing the rights after the 2001 season, took a punt on showing the football on Friday Nights and it paid off.

Between 2002-2006, the Nine Network had the rights to the AFL as well as the Friday night broadcast. During those years, as the network also had the rights to the NRL, in Victoria, South Australia and Western Australia the AFL match would be broadcast first at 8:30pm, followed by a news update and then the NRL match. This would be reversed in New South Wales, the ACT and Queensland.

In 2006 a remix of the U2 song Vertigo was used to open the Friday Night coverage. In 2005 Nickelback's song See You at the Show was used.

Friday Night AFL is generally played in Melbourne, at either the Melbourne Cricket Ground or Docklands Stadium. On a few occasions each season however, it may be played at either AAMI Stadium in Adelaide or Subiaco Oval in Perth with one of the two Adelaide or Perth based sides hosting the match. In 2005, a Western Derby between West Coast and Fremantle was played on Friday Night for the first time. Generally speaking, it is never played in Sydney or Brisbane to avoid clashes with the more popular NRL, however in 2008 the Brisbane Lions hosted a home game at the Gabba, leaving the Sydney Swans without a Friday night match since 2003 (despite the fact that they have played many finals on Friday nights in 2004, 2005, 2006 and 2008). Neither the Lions or Swans were awarded Friday night matches for 2010, however the Lions were awarded two Thursday night matches against Carlton, the first of which was played at the Gabba and broadcast by Channel Seven and the other time at Etihad Stadium and broadcast by Channel Ten. In fact since 2003, the Swans have played more Friday night matches than the Lions, however all of them (the Swans played six to the Lions' three) were finals. The Lions' three Friday night matches since 2001 were two premiership matches against Collingwood in 2008 and 2009 and a final in 2009 against the Western Bulldogs. In 2011, the Sydney Swans had its first Friday night home-and-away fixture since round 5, 2003, against Carlton in round six, but lost narrowly.

If a Friday night match featuring either Adelaide or Port Adelaide is played in Melbourne, it is shown live into Seven Adelaide from 7:00pm. Home and Away, which usually airs at this timeslot, is aired at an often later time in the day, or a double episode is aired. If a Friday night match featuring West Coast or Fremantle is played, either in Perth or Melbourne, it is delayed by one hour (thus airing at 7:30pm on Seven Perth).

Seven's commentary team includes commentary from Bruce McAvaney and Dennis Cometti, special comments from Tom Harley, Leigh Matthews and field commentary from Tim Watson and Matthew Richardson. The Herald Sun's Mark Robinson provides post match analysis in studio. Rick Olarenshaw was a boundary rider until he was sacked by the Seven Network in 2009.

Occasionally, the Seven Network may show a match live especially if it is against two top teams such as St Kilda, Collingwood or Geelong. The round 9, 2010 match between Collingwood and Geelong was broadcast live into Melbourne, as was the St Kilda vs. Geelong Grand Final rematch in round 13, 2010.

As of 2011, the Friday night match is replayed the following morning (Saturday) at 6am on 7mate. In 2010, the matches were replayed at 6am the following morning (Saturday) on 7Two. Occasionally, some matches may be shown live into Sydney and/or Brisbane via 7mate.

Memorable events

• Bali Bombing survivor Jason McCartney made his comeback game for the Kangaroos in round 11, 2003 against Richmond in front of a packed house at Telstra Dome. He had a hand in his side's winning goal and subsequently announced a teary retirement after the match.
• In round 10, 2005, Richmond forward Nathan Brown horrifically broke his leg as Melbourne's Matthew Whelan tried to smother his kick.
• Essendon's Matthew Lloyd played his 200th AFL match against St. Kilda in round 13, 2005. Lloyd booted four goals in the Bombers' 15 point win.
• In round 21, 2005 Fremantle's Justin Longmuir kicked a goal after the siren for Fremantle to beat St Kilda by 5 points. This game would be later known as the Whispers in the Sky game, after journalist Tony Jones claimed to have heard an umpire say "Now we know what it's like to have a win" on the plane back to Melbourne.
• Adelaide's Mark Ricciuto played his 300th AFL match against the Kangaroos in round 16, 2006. The Crows won by a staggering 72 points, Ricciuto kicking five goals and being chaired from the ground.
• In round 18, 2006, St. Kilda backman Matt Maguire broke his leg after Tyson Stenglein slid into his path.