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The Irish Sun
21-04-2025
- Entertainment
- The Irish Sun
‘My heart sank' – BBC legend reveals she ‘had to drink a lot of vodka' to deal with nerves of making MOTD history
FOOTIE commentator Jacqui Oatley has opened up about overcoming the backlash she faced when she made telly history. It's been EIGHTEEN years since Oatley became the first woman to commentate on Match of the Day. 3 Jacqui Oatley became the first woman to commentate on Match of the Day in 2007 Credit: Getty Images - Getty The announcement that Oatley would cover Fulham's 1-1 draw against news . In an interview with radio for several years before that. And the Match of the Day gig would involve an editor clipping Oatley's 90-minute commentary, recorded 'as live' at Craven Cottage. It would be cut into an eight-and-a-half-minute audio package to air over the match footage for the BBC highlights show. READ MORE IN FOOTBALL But Oatley recalled the "stomach-drop moment" when she realised that her history-making commentary job had received a lot of negative coverage and fan fury. The Wolves fan told Three days before her big job, Oatley's radio alarm woke her up at 7am with the sound of Radio 5 Live talking about it. Presenter Most read in Football CASINO SPECIAL - BEST CASINO BONUSES FROM £10 DEPOSITS By the Friday, the day before the match, Oatley admitted to hardly having slept or eaten. The 50-year-old added: 'My only regret was that I couldn't be at my best for the most-watched game of my life. Unseen Match of the Day footage shows how pundit analysis really works as BBC boss looks to cut highlights 3 Oatley's career went from strength-to-strength as she became a leading figure in the world of sport journalism Credit: Getty 'I'd love for it all to have stopped and just gone away. But that was never an option. 'I was really conscious that if I'd commentated and people hated the sound of my voice, or they just didn't trust me to convey what was going on. 'It was purely the judging of my gender. I wanted to do a good job, but also hang around and stay around, not just do it on that day. 'Because people do make assessments of an entire gender based on that kind of thing, which is hilarious and ridiculous at the same time.' And during the commentary itself, Oatley admitted to feeling like a bag of nerves and that she needed a strong drink afterwards. It was purely the judging of my gender. Jacqui Oatley In his post-match interview, the then-Blackburn manager, Mark Hughes, asked her how it went. She then walked to her car in a daze, drove home and called Alison Mitchell, the cricket commentator, and 5 Live presenter Phil Williams to arrange a night out. Oatley said: 'I wanted to drink a lot of vodka to make it possible to deal with the final thing.' She paced the hallway of Mitchell's flat decided her efforts 'didn't sound too horrendous. I just needed to get through it'. 3 Jacqui Oatley and Stuart Pearce presenting the FA Cup Youth Cup in 2017 Credit: Getty MOTD presenter Gary Lineker - who is leaving the flagship show after 25 years at the end of this season - introduced Oatley's segment. Lineker said: 'After all the publicity this week, the moment has finally come for a little piece of history on Match of the Day. 'For the first time ever, Lawrie Sanchez took charge of his And now Kelly Cates and Gabby Logan will join Mark Chapman as part of a trio of presenters to front MOTD from next season. Oatley's career went from strength-to-strength as she became a leading figure in the world of sport journalism. She was also the UK's first female darts presenter, covering major tournaments for ITV. The BBC legend is an Ambassador for Women in Football and was awarded an MBE in the New Year Honours in 2016 for services to broadcasting and diversity in sport. At the 2022 Qatar World Cup, Oatley became the first female to offer play-by-play commentary of a World Cup match in the United States.
Yahoo
01-03-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Manchester United wonderkid JJ Gabriel reaches exciting milestone before potential debut
Manchester United wonderkid JJ Gabriel travelled to the Emirates for the FA Cup Youth Cup quarter-finals. Gabriel, who was the nickname 'Kid Messi', travelled to London and took part in the warm-up. The promising youngster wasn't included in the squad, but he was given the opportunity to be around the Under-18s and is expected to make his debut for that age group before the end of the season. The 14-year-old being on the cusp of a debut for the U18s highlights just how highly regarded he is at United given it's unusual for a player of his age to be around that group. READ MORE: Man United U18s vs Arsenal FA Youth Cup highlights as Reds earn dramatic extra time victory READ MORE: Manchester United unearth rising academy star for Ruben Amorim during FA Youth Cup thriller Gabriel was given the nickname 'Kid Messi' after clips of him training and completing specialist skills went viral when he was younger. There is excitement building about his potential, but he is on the radar of top European clubs and there has been interest in luring him away from Manchester. The youngster thanked Marcus Rashford for taking penalties with him at Carrington before the forward joined Aston Villa on loan for the remainder of the season, and he received a 'get well soon video' from Andre Onana when he was recovering from a shoulder injury. Although academy followers are hopeful that Gabriel will reach the first-team at Old Trafford, his talent has not gone unnoticed elsewhere and he made a visit to watch Barcelona in August. Gabriel was pictured with one of his idols, Lamine Yamal, outside the Nou Camp and he has a European passport, which has caught the attention of big clubs on the continent The youngster also spent time with United's U18s when they played Manchester City in the Premier League Cup final last term and was involved in the warm-up at Leigh Sports Village. Gabriel's ball control is exceptional and he has starred for England's Under-15s this term.
