Fishing around in the morning can lead to a decent catch

TV VIEW:LURCHING DOWN the stairs in a sleep-addled haze at 6.45am on Saturday was borne of a desire to test a theory based on having to write this column. Having flicked between the Setanta Sports coverage of two Magners League matches the previous night, we required additional research before producing the definitive thesis on "Television co-commentary and the art of Zen". The goal was to take in a Super 14 match but unfortunately, probably for the first time since the tournament started this season, Sky Sports were televising no live matches on the Saturday morning.

It was a schoolboy error on this column's part, exacerbated by a lack of motor skills in initially working the remote control with any precision.

Running up and down the sports channel options as if a Super 14 match would magically materialise on the third or fourth sweep was predictably unfulfilling. The brain's exhortation to return to bed was unexpectedly overridden in stumbling upon a programme whose title invariably provokes a smile: Tight Lines.

It's a wonderful monicker for a fishing magazine show. For 20 minutes, largely on the strength of mislaying a remote control, Tight Lines provided a fascinating insight into the world of fishing, which, incidentally, has only recently resumed following the closed season.

Keith Arthur anchors the show - the Gary Lineker of the rod-and-line world - although programme budgets wouldn't be comparable. Arthur basically hosts the show from what appears to be someone's garden shed but apparently the correct idiom for the studio is a bothy, according to the Sky Sports programme notes.

A bothy is a rudimentary shelter, usually left unlocked and available for anyone to use free of charge. It is also a term for basic accommodation, usually for gardeners or other workers on an estate: so there you have it then; it could be someone's garden shed.

Arthur's guest was the fly-fishing specialist Nathan Clayton, a top angler and qualified coach. The host's gregarious observations are occasionally sprinkled with more erudite concerns as can be gleaned from the following warning on the dangers of summer fishing.

"One thing I would like to mention is the amount of red skin I saw. There have been enough warnings about potential long-term effects of sunburn but surely that nasty, stinging sensation and the inability to wear most of the items in one's wardrobe are enough to convince me that sunscreen is the better option." Well said.

Still there aren't too many sports shows on television that can tantalise the viewer with the teaser, "Our pack bait recipes with carp king Frank Warwick."

The problem with offering footage of people fishing is that they may not catch anything, which means an interminable loop of casting, chatting and detailed discussion on the merits of flies and lures. It's strictly hardcore.

Craig Barr, accompanied by Nathan at the Pitsford reservoir, did manage to land a trout, which was then released as part of the eight-fish-a-day-catch-and-release edict favoured by many fisheries in Britain.

Pitsford used to have a six-fish policy but is now conforming to the eight-fish quota, Arthur informed the viewers.

It's possible to get too much of a good thing, and so on rediscovering the remote control we deemed it time to tackle the other issue of television co-commentators; specifically those in rugby.

Setanta Sports seems to be of the opinion that it's important to marry the co-commentator's birthplace with a specific province. On Friday night Donal Lenihan was alongside Connor Morris in the commentary box for Munster's victory over Connacht at the Sportsground while Tyrone Howe discharged similar duties as Fred Cogley's sidekick in Ulster's defeat to the Ospreys at the Liberty stadium.

The following day Reggie Corrigan was riding shotgun for Leinster's win in Llanelli.

While strict impartiality seems almost impossible - particularly when you happen upon commentary by BBC Wales, where they view parochialism as a prerequisite - the neutral might favour a little less emphasis on one side at the expense of the other and a greater focus on interpreting the footage.

It's about providing insights, not weighing everything from one team's perspective. It grates after a while and compromises the integrity of the endeavour.

It may not be and sometimes is not a conscious bias but the coverage would benefit from it being scaled down. If anything this column would prefer to see a greater cross-pollination of analysts between the various provincial matches.

It's rife across most of the television networks, hence the desire to see the Super 14 footage to confirm that the host broadcaster's commentary team offered the traditional home-team focus. Obviously there will sometimes be a greater knowledge of one team but it shouldn't preclude a balance in interpretation. The great Bill McLaren was unmistakably Scottish in brogue and heritage but rarely let it impact on a strict neutrality with the microphone.

Still there's always fishing, though that too can seem a little one-sided given the obvious absence of one side's viewpoint.

By the way, next weekend Keith Arthur will be joined by the top match angler Steve Jackson, the 2001 Fish 'O' Mania champion.