Gareth Wheeler

[JohnnyFranchise]

7 hours ago, gator said:

I personally think Adam Jenkins is the best that OneSoccer has for play by play!

just noticed this one you snuck in there, and i agree 100%.

[narduch]

Jenkins sounds like he's calling a hockey game

[BearcatSA]

Who does the French language call for OneSoccer?

[red card]

58 minutes ago, JohnnyFranchise said:

just noticed this one you snuck in there, and i agree 100%.

Jenkins is a plain vanilla announcer that Canadians seem to prefer. But he bores me. His pacing and tone is also off for football. His performance during Olympic qualifying when Canada was on the brink was also the worst performance of any OneSoccer announcer since inception. He basically whined about every ref call and his voice became quite shrilly.

Only one more boring on OneSoccer was Dunlop. He's fine doing shows/podcasts but basically listless as a game announcer. Close behind was Nigel Reed. He's fine in small doses like for the Olympics but hearing his non-stop cliches said in a dry tone for a full 2019 CPL season was too much to bear. Or he needs someone like Rustad to give him a reality check.

Dunfield's pacing is also too slow and doesn't recognize quickly enough that he needs to shut up when a play is developing. His analytic insights are also very ordinary. No surprise, Alf de Blasis is the best so far on OneSoccer.

In the world broadcasting context of national teams, Wheeler's level of homerism is the norm. The British style we're most exposed to is the most neutral but nearly everybody else is often more giddy making goal calls than Wheeler. 

I view Wheeler as our Ray Hudson. Not everyone likes Hudson's style but he gets more North American mainstream attention than any other football broadcaster ex ones used on EA FIFA. Wheeler's call on the Haiti own goal got more airplay on TSN/SN blooper shows than any other Canadian football announcer ever. If Canada does well doing the Octo, he will become widely known for calls like "Oh Canada, Oh Baby".

 

 

Edited July 27, 2021 by red card

[JohnnyFranchise]

7 minutes ago, red card said:

Jenkins is a plain vanilla announcer that Canadians seem to prefer. But he bores me. His pacing and tone is also off for football. His performance during Olympic qualifying when Canada was on the brink was also the worst performance of any OneSoccer announcer since inception. He basically whined about every ref call and his voice became quite shrilly.

I missed the olympic qualifying, will have to check that out. Might be confusing Jenkins for deblasis or one of the other guys, tbh.😆

8 minutes ago, red card said:

In the world broadcasting context of national teams, Wheeler's level of homerism is the norm.

I never said anything about his cmnt homerism, I have absolutely no problem with it.

8 minutes ago, red card said:

Dunfield's pacing is also too slow and doesn't recognize quickly enough that he needs to shut up when a play is developing.

100%

9 minutes ago, red card said:

view Wheeler as our Ray Hudson

Who's ray hudson?

10 minutes ago, red card said:

If Canada does well doing the Octo, he will become widely known for calls like "Oh Canada, Oh Baby".

Except the only people watching are all on this message board 😅

[narduch]

24 minutes ago, JohnnyFranchise said:

 

Who's ray hudson?

Dude how do you not know. He's a legend 

 

[Unnamed Trialist]

35 minutes ago, red card said:

Jenkins is a plain vanilla announcer that Canadians seem to prefer. But he bores me. His pacing and tone is also off for football. His performance during Olympic qualifying when Canada was on the brink was also the worst performance of any OneSoccer announcer since inception. He basically whined about every ref call and his voice became quite shrilly.

Only one more boring on OneSoccer was Dunlop. He's fine doing shows/podcasts but basically listless as a game announcer. Close behind was Nigel Reed. He's fine in small doses like for the Olympics but hearing his non-stop cliches said in a dry tone for a full 2019 CPL season was too much to bear. Or he needs someone like Rustad to give him a reality check.

Dunfield's pacing is also too slow and doesn't recognize quickly enough that he needs to shut up when a play is developing. His analytic insights are also very ordinary. No surprise, Alf de Blasis is the best so far on OneSoccer.

In the world broadcasting context of national teams, Wheeler's level of homerism is the norm. The British style we're most exposed to is the most neutral but nearly everybody else is often more giddy making goal calls than Wheeler. 

I view Wheeler as our Ray Hudson. Not everyone likes Hudson's style but he gets more North American mainstream attention than any other football broadcaster ex ones used on EA FIFA. Wheeler's call on the Haiti own goal got more airplay on TSN/SN blooper shows than any other Canadian football announcer ever. If Canada does well doing the Octo, he will become widely known for calls like "Oh Canada, Oh Baby".

Good post. I also thought Rustad was pretty good, sometimes she tried too hard, but she went for it. Not all game commentators can be spot on every match. Doing colour commentary when not in the stadium is also ridiculous, you can't see the whole play and are enslaved to camera angles. 

There was someone out in Halifax the first year, a woman, I forget her name, also thought she did a good job for their CPL matches. I like the idea for CPL of having some locals at every location, it give character to a broadcast. 

For Canada-Costa Rica, I watched FS1, being out of Canada I understand OneSoccer won't serve me (they did the first year, or was that just CPL?). Cobi Jones was doing colour. Cobi Jones was very uninformed and basically incapable of understanding what was going on, it was really poor. The US often likes to put their legends out there, like they do with NBA, and then you have to suffer through it. US Open tennis, Chris Evert, another example, absolutely useless, played the game well, cannot talk about it intelligently at all.

[JohnnyFranchise]

Just now, narduch said:

Dude how do you not know. He's a legend 

 

Oh, that f*cking guy!

Now that I'm reminded of him wheels doesn't seem so bad 🤣🤣🤣

[Unnamed Trialist]

6 minutes ago, narduch said:

Dude how do you not know. He's a legend 

 

I think you have to explain to a few people on this board who Messi is for this to make sense.

[Macksam]

52 minutes ago, JohnnyFranchise said:

Who's ray hudson?

Just imagine everytime you hear someone say how over the top Gareth Wheeler is, visualize a stocky English guy go "hold my beer."

[Gian-Luca]

There should be a "maybe" or "it depends" option for the poll, can't really vote as it is. The answer depends largely on who are you suggesting should be calling the game instead. If the suggestion is Nigel Reed, then I would vote yes Wheeler should do the play by play for Canada games. If you are suggesting that I should be calling the games instead (I am told I have a great voice - and a face - for radio), then the answer is no, Wheeler shouldn't because it should be me instead.

 

 

[SpecialK]

It’s 39-38 ! So divided! Get your VOTES in. Send a message to OneSoccer I am sure they have some people on this form. 

[BearcatSA]

Since some people are going down memory lane with guys like Curling King Rauter and Jerry D, it's nice to hear Steve Armitage doing another Olympic games one more time.  He is pushing 80 now but I remember when he was one of Graham Leggat's early broadcast partners doing the NASL games on CBC during the early/mid 70s.

"Wheels" is probably hoping that he can have  the same kind of longevity in one form or another in his broadcasting career.  Unfortunately, broadcast journalism has a pretty short shelf life nowadays (ask any ex-broadcaster for TSN).

Edited July 28, 2021 by BearcatSA

[BearcatSA]

1 hour ago, Gian-Luca said:

There should be a "maybe" or "it depends" option for the poll, can't really vote as it is. The answer depends largely on who are you suggesting should be calling the game instead. If the suggestion is Nigel Reed, then I would vote yes Wheeler should do the play by play for Canada games. If you are suggesting that I should be calling the games instead (I am told I have a great voice - and a face - for radio), then the answer is no, Wheeler shouldn't because it should be me instead.

Can I be your colour guy?  I do a great impression of Graham Leggat's big suck of breath any time danger is approaching the Canadian goal!  (Can't do the Scottish accent but can say, "Pick that out!" whenever we score).

[Cheeta]

^ Truly?  Armitage is still crowing into a mic?  Outstanding.

Bah.  Dobson got nothing but grief around here for years and still became the voice of Canadian football for a generation of Vs, and rightly so.  He earned it and maybe so will Wheeler.

In fact...I'm going to get a Dobby "Fu'k the Board" tee made up for WCQing and wear it to every event this cycle.  Just see if I don't!

#loveforwheeler.

Edited July 28, 2021 by Cheeta

[gator]

2 hours ago, JohnnyFranchise said:

Oh, that f*cking guy!

Now that I'm reminded of him wheels doesn't seem so bad 🤣🤣🤣

Agree with you, I don't like him one bit and find him a bit creepy in his enthusiasm or whatever we will call it!

[BearcatSA]

3 minutes ago, Cheeta said:

^ Truly?  Armitage is still crowing into a mic?  Outstanding.

They have 70 year old Byron MacDonald still doing colour on the swimming (but no longer with Armitage:  I think he is doing rowing).  I have always liked him in that role.  It was a shame that CTV/TSN did the 2008 Olympics where Phelps broke Spitz's record for most golds in one Olympics because they had lesser talent doing the broadcast, imo.  I would have preferred to hear Armitage and MacDonald do those historic calls.

Maybe Wheels should be doing the Olympic swimming?  How about Olympic equestrian riding? Trap shooting?  

Perhaps that should be the poll:  in which Olympic sport would Wheels do the best as a pbp commentator? 

[rkomar]

1 hour ago, BearcatSA said:

Maybe Wheels should be doing the Olympic swimming?  How about Olympic equestrian riding? Trap shooting?  

Perhaps that should be the poll:  in which Olympic sport would Wheels do the best as a pbp commentator? 

Soccer, of course.  What is this, a trick question?

[frmr]

I voted yes because it's probably the thing that he's best at, which is why he's doing it. He's uniquely ours I suppose.

edit: I will say though, the homerism is over the top and kind of annoying, and it seems like he tries to make catchphrases for himself, which he doesn't need to do. He's actually not bad if he just stopped trying so hard.

Edited July 28, 2021 by frmr

[Obinna]

Was out with my wife for a walk this evening. I was telling her about the Gareth Wheeler thread, explained to her that he's a soccer commentator who some people like and others don't. She said why and I said well some people say he's a little cheesy because he says thinks like "Oh Canada......

Then she finishes my sentence and says...

....Oh Baby"?

Lol

[SpecialK]

42 minutes ago, Obinna said:

Was out with my wife for a walk this evening. I was telling her about the Gareth Wheeler thread, explained to her that he's a soccer commentator who some people like and others don't. She said why and I said well some people say he's a little cheesy because he says thinks like "Oh Canada......

Then she finishes my sentence and says...

....Oh Baby"?

Lol

That’s awesome !!🤣🤣🤣

 

[SpecialK]

Keep those votes coming !!! It’s a close one !!! I’m really shocked about the voting turnout!!! Amazing everyone ! 

[Unnamed Trialist]

5 hours ago, SpecialK said:

It’s 39-38 ! So divided! Get your VOTES in. Send a message to OneSoccer I am sure they have some people on this form. 

You want to tell One Soccer we can't decide? 

Anyways, I lied on the vote, like a few others here, so tell One Soccer that too. 

[Ozzie_the_parrot]

12 hours ago, BrennanFan said:

...His use of alliteration in calling goals (Davies in Dreamland, Phonzie having all the fun) is just pure cringe though...

Something dies inside me every time I hear "...and Borges is gorgeous". It's not just his alliterations that are totally over-the-top.

Edited July 28, 2021 by Ozzie_the_parrot

[dyslexic nam]

Just on the (off) topic of Steve Armitage, I have always enjoyed his calls but I think it is may be time to drop the mic.  His voice didn’t seem to be holding up the other day when I heard him speak.  Maybe it was just an off day or adjusting to travel or something, but he sounded quite different from the strong voice of the past.  

Edited July 28, 2021 by dyslexic nam