This week Setanta Sports Ireland will feature a new TV series that focuses the on role of the referee in Ireland’s top sports - soccer, GAA and rugby.
Tonight (Tuesday 24th June), Alan Kelly will present the programme based on soccer while tomorrow night (Wednesday 25th June), David Coldrick will present the show on GAA football. The series continues this week with Barry Kelly presenting Thurssday night’s (26th June) episode on hurling and Alain Rolland will present an episode on rugby on Friday night (27th June). Each episode airs at 9pm on Setanta Sports.
Producer of the series Shane Tobin (‘Dhá Chúirt’, ‘Thomond’, ‘Hill 16’) tells IFTN, “The referee has a huge role to play in the sports we love. High profile referees have one of the hardest jobs in the world and we wanted to explore what makes them get involved and how they make it to the top of their sport.
“Without the referee there would be no All Ireland finals or World Cup finals, and we were astonished by the hard work and dedication they show for such a thankless role.”
Speaking of running the series over four nights in a row, he said that “Four nights in a row allows the viewers to contrast the sports and to see the challenges faced by each referee in dealing with the evolving rules and demands. We think we captured the personalities of the referees, to whom we are grateful for such unlimited access over the season.
“All four are the top of their game and at the end we hope to show a fascinating study of a really tough job. We hear the exchanges between referees, their assistants and players in all four sports, offering viewers a new insight into how the games play out, and allowing them to see a new angle so often unnoticed in their viewing.”
‘Men in Black’ was made by Aeterno productions and was funded through the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland's Sound & Vision scheme and Setanta Sports Ireland. Produced by Shane Tobin and directed by Cillian O’Conchuir, it follows four referees across the top four sports in Ireland. Assistant Producer for the series was Kerrie Costello, Áine Furlong was the editor with online editing by Rory Gavin in Reelgood Studios.
The series premieres tonight at 9pm on Setanta Sports.
See the promo for the series below:
