Collins lifts the lid on callous Sky sacking
THE ruthless way Sky Sports News axe staff has been described in detail in a new book by highly-respected former England football reporter Nick Collins.
In Fifty Cup Finals (Pitch Publishing), Collins gives a blow-by-blow account of how he was told his 25-year career with Sky was over with a ‘bullet-to-the-back-of-the-head technique’.
Collins (below) was speaking on air when he received the phone call summoning him to Sky headquarters in December 2016. On arrival, Collins said, ‘This looks ominous’, and was told by Sky Sports News boss Andy Cairns: ‘ Yes, it is Nick, it’s all bad news, I’m afraid.’
Collins adds: ‘For the next two minutes Andy read from a printed sheet and that was it.’
On the same day, Sky also sacked England cricket reporter Tim Abraham and rugby reporter Phil Edwards, claiming it was part of a transformation for the digital age when they wanted staff to work across sports and all broadcasting outlets.
But as Collins writes: ‘The reality was that the company was struggling to cope with the absolutely vast sum it had paid for the latest Premier League rights — £11million a match.
‘The perceived wisdom, certainly among many of the Sky Sports staff, was that Sky could have paid a billion pounds less than it bid and still won the rights. That could have safeguarded an awful lot of jobs.’
Despite his strong criticisms, relations remain cordial enough for Collins to have been interviewed on Sky this week about his book and to be warmly welcomed in the studio.
THE Action Against Discrimination group are staging a panel discussion called A Poisonous World Cup? on England’s hopes and the prospect of racism and violence in Russia at the most emotive of venues a week on Monday. It is the Hendon Hall Hotel, where Sir Alf Ramsey’s World Cup-winning England squad were based in 1966. The building is due to be demolished at the end of the year.
Right to count out Rio
THE British Boxing Board of Control are not known for their common sense — far from it. But rejecting Rio Ferdinand’s request for a professional boxing licence has to be one of their better decisions. His Defender to Contender challenge, sponsored by Betfair, always seemed a shameless publicly stunt by the bookmakers, although Ferdinand, 39, said he had been training up to five times a week. It is understood that the BBBC told Ferdinand that his age and lack of experience were the main reasons for turning down his application.
SIR JOHN MAJOR, who quit the main MCC committee in a huff seven years ago in protest at the way they had handled the decision to abort the property developerfunded Vision to rebuild Lord’s, made his return to the Long Room yesterday. The former Prime Minister made the keynote address at the dinner that follows the annual meeting. But instead of re-entering the fray in support of property developer Charles Rifkind’s plans, which offer cricket fans the opportunity to buy into his ownership of the tunnels under the Nursery End, Major made the blandest of speeches, saying nothing of note.
A LOT of fans forget that Football League highlights are shown on Saturdays from 9pm on Channel 5. So what chance has little-known free-to-air station Quest of keeping the same audience of around 500,000, let alone attracting more viewers when they start their four-year highlights coverage at the same time next season — as revealed by Sports Agenda.
Quest had the 9pm start as part of their bid but keeping the same arch-irritant presenter Colin Murray as C5 have used this season is hardly going to help the Football League attract a new audience.
The League are banking on Quest being part of the powerful Discovery stable that includes Eurosport, who will provide production expertise.