Clive Tyldesley: ‘Iâ€ve only been drunk twice and once was with the England womenâ€s team†| Soccer

What is the best sporting accomplishment or achievement you have commentated on and did you ever harbour personal ambitions to be a professional in any sport?Tony Medlock

I was never good enough at any sport to kid myself that I had a career at elite level. My parents would have told you that from an early age any sporting ambitions I entertained were in the area I ended up in; describing and commentating on top-level sport. I always resist any grading of goals or players or matches because I have a belief that sport belongs in its moment. Sport creates memories – we can recall vividly where we were, who we were with, what we were thinking, when our team won a trophy or an athlete won an Olympic gold medal … or Shane Lowry sunk a putt to seal the Ryder Cup. Those moments are very personal, and the job of the commentator is to try to add something to the memory of those moments. And those moments are unique and should remain separate from one another.

My favourite line of commentary of yours is from the final whistle of the 1992 Second Division playoff final between my beloved Blackburn Rovers and Leicester: “Thatâ€s it! Going up, going up, going up! Blackburn Rovers have made it at last, and the great Ewood gamble by Jack Walker on Kenny Dalglish has paid out the premier prize!†Did you have this or any of your other famous linesscripted, or is it all down to the moment?Dave Stainton

Preparation for a commentary is partly about researching information; in the modern era that includes statistics and data. But more importantly, preparation is a journalistic process, asking yourself: “Whatâ€s the story here?†“What does it mean for Blackburn Rovers to win this match or for Leicester City to win this match?†In cup finals the commentator gets extra air time after the final whistle – during the celebrations, during the presentation of the trophy – to reflect on what they have seen, and in preparation for that I often draw up a sheet which will have, in this case, Blackburn down one side and Leicester down the other … you canâ€t script lines because you donâ€t know what the story of the game is going to be, but you can write bullet points which highlight the significance of victory or the repercussions of defeat for the two teams involved. Thatâ€s a useful reference point in those very emotional moments after a game such a playoff final. Itâ€s then a case of finding the right words to fit the moment, and that can really only be done in the moment.

After “And Solskjær has won it!†did you think:“Shit, I hope Bayern donâ€t score nowâ€?David Estherby

Thatâ€s a very good question, actually, because in saying what I said I broke the cardinal rule of commentary, the Devon Loch rule: never wave the winner across the winning line until theyâ€re there. And if Bayern [Munich] hadgone down the other end and equalised and the game went to penalties, they would have definitely won the shootout, and then there probably would have been an effigy of me hanging on a lamp-post at the Arndale Centre by midnight. I would have been blamed for Manchester United not winning the final. When I recall that game there was a definite change in momentum when the equaliser went in; it was as if the Bayern players and fans had witnessed some sort of awful human tragedy. There was a disbelief that it was difficult for them to recover from. And therefore, when Ole [Gunnar Solskjær] reached out and diverted the ball into the roof of the net, the heart overruled the head and I said what I felt: “Thatâ€s it, thatâ€s the winning goal.â€

Do you have any spare copies of the end-of-season compilation cassette you did for Radio City commemorating Liverpoolâ€s double-winning side? My mum chucked mine out by accident (so she says).Stephen Carr

Sounds like you lost it yourself! I do have a box of memorabilia but Iâ€m pretty sure a copy of that cassette is not in it. Apologies Stephen, canâ€t help with that one, sadly.

What is your favourite ground to commentate at and why?Adam

There are certain stadiums that create an atmosphere of their own; you wouldnâ€t be surprised to hear me say Anfield or Celtic Park on a Champions League night. But for the commentator thatâ€s no good if you canâ€t see the pitch properly. And so in terms of favourite places to broadcast from I tend to make my selection based on the height and access of the commentary position. Some of them are a long way away from the pitch, some of them are too close to the pitch … some of them are too low, some of them are too high. For many years the commentary position at Goodison Park involved walking past the roof of the Bullens Road Stand and then shinnying down a vertical ladder, none of which is preferable in preparation for a football match! At modern stadiums, like the Emirates and the Etihad, you are provided with a commentary position that is at a perfect height. Also, I was fortunate enough to commentate on a couple of Cup finals in the Cardiff era, when Wembley was being renovated, and I always felt the commentary position there [the Millennium Stadium] was what I would call a “no-excuses commentary positionâ€.

‘And Solskjær has won it!†Manchester United seal the 1999 Treble and provide Clive Tyldesley with the platform to well and truly shine. Photograph: Colorsport/Shutterstock

Has there ever been a moment in a match youâ€ve been commentating on that has left you speechless?Daniel Richardson

I always struggle with this question because in my job Iâ€m always trying very hard not to be speechless. Iâ€ve got professional standards and hate it if I make an error, and getting lost for words would very much be an error. My great mentor Reg Gutteridge used to say: “Silent moments are not lesser moments; instead they are times during a television commentary when you donâ€t need to add anything and instead ask yourself what couldyou add next.†So silences are part of good commentary.

How do you feel about where the style of modern-day commentary is heading?Rob

The trend in contemporary sports media is towards conversation. Weâ€ve seen the rise of the podcast and before that the rise of the phone-in. Even the main rights holders for live sport embroider their coverage with long discussions and debates. Itâ€s the way weâ€ve consumed sport in classroom and barroom arguments and in recent times those arguments have become content and created stars, people who are genuine influencers and influence the way people consume sport. So there was an inevitability of that trend spilling into commentary; itâ€s become more conversational, which has been reflected in recent years with the rise of more than two people commentating on live football and other sporting events.

The first priority of a commentator is to consider your audience and who your audience are. The audience for, say, a World Cup semi-final on terrestrial television is different to that for a Conference League game on TNT Sport. You need to commentate to your audience, and the danger when you have more than two people working on a live commentary is that they start talking to each other rather than to the audience. And, as the audience, you feel as if youâ€re eavesdropping into a conversation. That doesnâ€t serve an audience because it doesnâ€t engage and include them.

“Not for me, Clive.†How many times a day do you hear that phrase?Mike Cotton

A lot! Itâ€s a phrase Andy Townsend first used regularly and [Ally] McCoist has taken to a different level! In all seriousness … the relationship between a commentator and a co-commentator is traditionally, and essentially, a trained broadcaster who can recognise the players and the drama and someone who has gone across the white line and can provide an informed, professional opinion on what weâ€ve just seen. I always bow to the experience of a co-commentator, and so if I said something and Andy looked at me and said “Not for me, Cliveâ€, I fully took it on board. And ultimately it was a really good friend in a really gentle and sympathetic way saying: “Shut up! What do you know?!†If I was having one of those dream supper parties that people are often asked to put together, Andy and Ally would definitely be there. Both are great pals and wonderful co-commentators to work with, on and off the mic.

Clive Tyldesley on commentary duty alongside his longtime co-commentator and friend Andy Townsend. Photograph: Mike Egerton/PA

Are there any teams you were fond of commentating on who did not win the Champions League during your time covering the tournament for ITV?Eddie Munro

As a kid I was fond of Manchester United; Iâ€m from Bury, my dad took me to Old Trafford when I was five and throughout my youth there was only one team in the world for me. But when I started to work that feeling became diluted by the fact I was commentating on my mates; my friends were out there, people I had met through football. Itâ€s a different feeling when youâ€re commentating on people who you know. In regards to that period, from basically 1999 through the noughties, Premier League clubs were among the regular contenders to win the Champions League and I guess it would have been nice to see Arsenal get over the line. I had no affinity with the club but I always had a huge amount of respect for Arsène Wenger; he was never dismissive of any inquiries, he always tried to be helpful, and that team during that era, with the likes of [Thierry] Henry, [Robert] Pires, [Dennis] Bergkamp, were certainly good enough to win a Champions League final, and in Paris [in 2006] they very nearly did.

Did you ever imagine in early 1972, when you opened the door to Room 7 at Kirkham Grammar School, where we were having an English lesson with Mick Clarkson, and announced “Preston are playing Man United†after listening to the FA Cup draw on your radio, that you would one day commentate on all those big matches for ITV and BBC?Philip Smith

As previously touched on, I entertained ambitions of being a commentator from an early age; I wasnâ€t the only kid who chased a football around the park and commentated to himself, but I meant it. I wanted to do that. It was my one and only ambition. English was my favourite school subject; I was that kid who loved to write essays and poetry, and wrote the match reports for the school magazine. So English teachers were a big part of my school life and I can remember two or three who had a big influence on me. Mick Clarkson was certainly one of those. He died this year and I was fortunate to have some contact with him, after years and years and years with no contact, before he passed away. That was lovely.

Clive Tyldesley is supporting the Football Associationâ€s Silent Support Weekend. ‘Itâ€s an initiative to promote true support and encouragement. Stop moaning, start cheering!†Photograph: Alex Broadway/The FA/Getty Images

How do you reflect on being an early supporter of Englandâ€s womenâ€s team? I remember you being in Sweden for the 1995 World Cup, alongside Hazel Irvine (I was Englandâ€s ­press officer).Mark Sudbury

Iâ€ve only been truly drunk twice in my adult life and once was with the England womenâ€s football team in Sweden in 1995. It was after they lost [to Germany] in the quarter-finals, I was staying in the same hotel as the team and thought I could drink the likes of Clare Taylor and Kaz [Karen] Walker under the table; I was wrong! Nobody who follows womenâ€s football needs telling the game had a very different profile in 1995 than it does in 2025 and some of the pioneers of the success England have enjoyed in recent years were in that team. So I look back fondly at being there, especially as itâ€s the only womenâ€s football I have ever covered.

Are you still a big fan of Joni Mitchell? If Iâ€m not mistaken, you once called her “the first lady of rockâ€. Peter Walker

­Iâ€ve got pretty eclectic musical tastes; I like a bit of everything and make a point of listening to contemporary music, and more than anything Iâ€m in awe of anybody who can write words that take my breath away. Make me think. Make me cry. Joni Mitchell certainly had that ability, she was one of the truly great songwriters of my youth. More than anything I admired how she could – can – take men apart in two lines. She knows us much better than we know ourselves.

Clive Tyldesley is raising awareness of The Football Associationâ€s Silent Support Weekend. For more information, visit here.

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