Smithson: who are the radio stars winning footy finals fever?
In the race to the finals in Adelaide’s breakfast radio, it appears those talking the most footy, have most to gain.
The latest GFK survey shows Triple M and FiveAA are reaping the rewards of a footy culture with both now clear leaders.
Roo, Ditts and Loz would be expected to shine at this time of year, especially with the Crows still pushing to stay in the premiership race and, for die-hard fans such as me, the diminishing hope of another trophy.
Triple M remains comfortably in top spot with a 14.8 per cent market share, albeit only a slight rise in their long-running, coveted breakfast slot.
Will Gooding and David Penberthy must also be smiling today with a successful result after a relatively lacklustre year.
AA hasn’t been afraid to ‘shift the magnets’ with new brekky producers Jono Edwards and Pat Goldsmith seemingly having an impact.
They climbed by an impressive 1.7 per cent, the highest rise of any breakfast slot, to 13.1 per cent.
It seems that every time I tune in to AA, Will and Penbo are living and breathing footy with both presenters being hard-nosed, blokey analysts of the game and happy to speak their minds.
They now sit comfortably in second spot with an eye to climbing the ladder just as the Crows did in the minor round.
But Triple M isn’t going to give away any free kicks or 50 metre penalties as they ramp up the pressure with three weeks of finals to go.
They’ll be as tough as Roo was in the 1998 Crows premiership line-up.
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But AA’s breakfast momentum might have had a rebounding downside later in the day where sport is traditionally king.
The Drive slot with Rowey and Timmy G had a shocker.
It’s almost unbelievable that, against the AA flow, their designated sport show during the lead up to footy finals dropped by 2.4 per cent.
It was biggest ratings’ plummet in any show, in any time slot, across the entire survey.
AA’s afternoon flagship now sits in fifth position at time when its bosses would hope to be winning.
It’s not as if sport isn’t listened to on the drive home with Triple M’s Rush Hour stars James Brayshaw and Billy Brownless climbing by 1.6 per cent to reign supreme.
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AA must be wondering if they have the format right in that slot with 17,000 listeners deserting the show during this crucial survey period.
The ABC may also appear to be at a concerning precipice in its once dominant breakfast slot.
That show dropped by 1.1 per cent and now sits uncomfortably in an unfamiliar fifth position.
NOVA also dropped by 1.5 per cent at a time that it should be doing better.
The much-hyped MIX team didn’t bother the scorers too much with a 0.1 per cent drop to finish third.
And SAFM did what it normally does, by sitting near the bottom of the pile on 7.2 per cent.
Morning talkback is proving a problem for the two big guns, but at least AA saw a much-needed rise.
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Graeme Goodings couldn’t have dropped much lower and fortunately for him he didn’t with a healthy 1.3 per cent rise to draw level with the ABC’s Rory McClaren.
But is it a race to the bottom?
Both shows sit on a 7.5 per cent market share with every mainstream music format show, even on the AM band, now above them.
The Afternoon slots are also agonising to watch.
Leith Forrest is filling in during Stacey Lee’s maternity break on AA and dragged the program up by 0.3 per cent.
The ABC’s rising star Jo Laverty had a bummer.
She dropped by a concerning 1.7 per cent but still has the edge over her main rival.
Afternoon listeners appear to love their music more than chatter, with the popular FM bands more than doubling the figures of talkback.
Evenings are a mixed bag with AA’s Matthew Pantelis holding firm in top spot.
If there is a brighter side for the ABC, it gained audience share in the 40 to 65 age group.
So did AA.
They both gained listeners at breakfast and in mornings but still can’t deliver on dominant market share.
So, what is my takeout message from this survey with just three more for the year?
The winds of change in radio land aren’t going to get any kinder for AM talk format shows.
They’ll rise and fall in small to moderate increments but are highly unlikely to overtake their cheekier FM opponents.
Audiences don’t want to get bogged-down with economic and environmental troubles gripping the state and nation.
They’re also tired of global conflicts and trade tariff threats.
Getting the balance right between delivering the issues of the day, being genuinely entertaining, inclusive and having the occasional zany laugh is the billion-dollar formula.
Look at past legends of Adelaide radio and you might just unlock the secret.
Mike Smithson is weekend presenter for 7NEWS. He is also a weekly unpaid commentator on various Adelaide radio programs.
