Seamus Malin

I liked him, but then I liked Dave Dir the best.

At this point, I expect that the anybody they truck out for PBP will get panned.

 

I agree the game today was called very well. I think a top notch broadcast team will stay out of the way as much as possible and let the action on the field take center stage.

 

He was solid today.

Spot on in some commentary, bumbled a few names and didn't seem intimately familiar with either team. Basically used the standard talking points that everyone uses (aka that you can read in the papers): Gerard at RM, Drogba dives, Bellamy could be gone...

But he was generally pretty good. All in all, it was a terrible game to watch. UEFA should sue Benitez for ruining the game by making Gerrard play wide (see, there I am using the talking points).

 

I agree. He was really good today. No wasted comments + really solid observations. (balanced, not overdone on either side of argument for effect- like so many commentators do)

 

I was about to say the same thing and make my own thread about it. Guy is very professional.

 

Seamus doesn't do PBP, he's the analyst.

 

i carried the flag for Seamus for years. i thought Seamus was great for USMNT games in his stint from about, i don't know, 1995-98 (?). i've brought his name up several times since and apparently I'm the only one who liked him b/c i get slagged every time.

when he did the US games, you could really tell he knew his stuff -- especially about the other teams in CONCACAF. and that has always been my pet peeve, oh for the last 9 years of so: none of our color guys know a damn thing about the OPPONENT. it started with Ty Keough and it got worse -- WAY WORSE -- with Marcelo Balboa. these guys they bring in now (Wynalda included), don't study. even when we play our arch rival, Wynalda doesn't offer any insight into any of the Tricolor players.

Seamus knew ALL of the Mexican players, knew their tendencies, backgrounds. same goes for the Hondurans/Ticos, etc. if you're gonna be the lead color guy for the US, you have to know every single player in CONCACAF (or at least the HEX). Seamus is a very bright man, and he studied, he knew his shit. not to mention his basic knowledge of the game of soccer.

sorry, i know this is an MLS board .. had to get that off my chest.

 

Seamus and Jim Carvelis used to be the voice of the Cosmos. Seamus is very good.

 

I like marcella balboa, he's very realistic in his observations. they should hire him.

 

Malin used to be a very condescending analyst back in the day he did the US matches. He knew the game but you could tell he wasn't rating the product on the field much.

But, while one can blame him for the lack of excitement, he is fairly professional in his approach. That works well for soccer dweebs but that's not what/who ESPN is interested in with its MLS/USMNT coverage.

 

Repped... It's shocking to see how little insight ESPN gives on our opponents in CONCACAF.

In a European qualifier the upcoming opponent is dissected ad nauseum with daily updates on injury situations and the like. On game day before and during the match each opposing player is referenced to his club and how many minutes he played last game, and if he's playing well for club or not etc...

 

Well, I may be a "soccer dweeb" but that's an approach I prefer regardless of the sport.

I do question sometimes the validity of ESPN's assumptions about what their viewers want from broadcasts.

 

My black friends who are into soccer think he has a bias against black players because, they say, he tends to be more critical of black players than non-black players who do the same things he criticizes the black players for.

Has anyone else ever noticed that?

Personally, I've always felt he was a pretty even-handed analyst except that he always gave Mike Burns a free pass even when he sucked ass just because he was from Massachussetts like Seamus. That always drove me nuts. Actually Burns' play drove me nuts and Seamus giving him a free pass only made it worse.

 

I don't really agree that he was condesending--I think of him more as a "realist" when the PBP announcer would go overboard on his comments about the national team. He did love Claudio Reyna and was most effusive in his praise.

I think Malin would be a great choice for color commentator. He is obviously very bright and has followed the American game for years. Heck--he just got inducted into the American Soccer Hall of Fame. You would think he would be good enough for ESPN.

 

All this board does is bitch and complain about who calls the game. The sad part is that half of them don't know the difference between a PBP announcer and an analyst but they'll act like they're an expert. That's probably what bugs me most about this forum.

 

I seem to remember he liked Earnie Stewart and Cobi Jones quite a bit. But I haven't seen him call a game in over a decade so who knows what he has done lately.

 

He already does MLS games for HDNet.

 

Of all the main announcing tandems ABC/ESPN has used on the World Cup since 1994, Seamus and Bob Ley (1998) were head and shoulders above the rest. Seamus also showed a genuine enthusiasm during the 1999 Women's WC working with Holly Rowe. You don't see too many male announcers in any sport who would show that same level of commitment for the women's game, JP Dellacamera being another exception to that rule.

 

Shameless Malin? Gag.

I think he is the worst I've ever heard. He says the most stupid things. I've retched at his comments for 2 1/2 decades now.

 

that's a good idea. they should try him out with Dave O'Brien. i'll bet that would be pure magic in the booth.

 

I never get up in arms about the announcers. For the most part, they're all good to me. I dislike some such as Rob Stone because he's just plain boring and Ty Keough sounded like he was reading off a cue card.

Seamus is good. So was Adrian Healey. I wish they did MLS and US games and maybe add Wynalda in there.

I really think Wynalda has a lot to offer regardless if he stays in the booth or moves to a desk for pre/half/post game and a highlight show. He gives a lot of good opinions.

 

Seamus isn't good, he butched Jon Arne Riise's name way too many times and he kept saying how good Zenden was when he's the least talented of Liverpool's midfield. But Healey is decent.

 

I would love Derek Rae (or Adrian Healey) and Seamus Malin calling NT or MLS games on ESPN. I wouldn't pair them with Wynalda because I don't like 3 in the booth. Though a Rae & Wynalda pairing would be fine with me.

And let them call it in their style. It works for the Champions League, it can work for American games as well.