RTE boss: no regrets over Brolly axing
ULSTER star Jacob Stockdale has promised the province will put the pressure on themselves this evening when taking on Leinster at the Aviva Stadium (7.35pm kick-off).
With both sides having play-off spots already secured, and the game to be played in a near-empty stadium, the contest could be seen as a low-key affair.
But, after last week’s off-colour return to action against Connacht in the same venue, where Ulster lost 26-20, Stockdale knows a much better performance can only help the preparation for next weekend’s semi-final away to Edinburgh.
“I put myself under more pressure than anyone else ever can because I am obsessed with performing well,” said the 24-year old. “It doesn’t matter if there’s an entire stadium booing me or cheering me, I only really care about how I feel I played.
“Because of that, that’s where the pressure gets put on because you put it on yourself because you want to perform to the best of your ability every time you step on the pitch.”
While Stockdale again gets the start at full-back, Dan Mcfarland has made eight changes to the side beaten last weekend with Sam Carter as captain. His Leinster counterpart Leo Cullen, meanwhile, has named an entirely new starting team from the one that beat Munster seven days ago.
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RTE’S Head of Sport Declan Mcbennett says he has no regrets over the manner of Joe Brolly’s axing last year as a pundit with The Sunday Game GAA TV programme.
Former Derry All-ireland winner Brolly (below), lined up as a key figure in enhanced GAA coverage by BBC NI this autumn, was told before the drawn All-ireland final between Dublin and Kerry that his contract was not being renewed after almost 20 years with RTE and he was not a panellist for the replay.
The decision generated widespread headlines given the barrister’s outspoken profile but, asked by the Irish Independent if, with the benefit of hindsight, he had any regrets about the ultra-public manner of Brolly’s dismissal, Mcbennett’s response was an emphatic “none”.
Mcbennett said: “I was happy to stand over the decision and I believe it was the right decision. There are three reasons why you get a seat. Credibility, informed opinion and the ability to articulate that opinion.
“If you’re a pundit and a contract gets cancelled, you have to ask yourself why. The optics didn’t concern me. To my mind, it was about putting the best people on the replay.
“We brought in Stephen Rochford. Why? Because Stephen had walked the line and actually gone to war in a way with Dublin. So he had a great understanding of what it would take to beat them. I stand over the decision and the timing of the decision.”