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Seven signs ‘Lethal’ Leigh

Former Brisbane Lions coach Leigh Matthews joins Seven's AFL commentary team.

Former Brisbane Lions coach Leigh Matthews is joining Seven’s AFL commentary team.

Matthews, an AFL Hall of Fame inductee, resigned at the end of the season after 10 seasons and 3 premierships with the club. He will join the Seven line-up which already includes Bruce McAvaney, Dennis Cometti, Nathan Buckley and Tim Watson.

“Seven has a long and proud association with football and I’ve thoroughly enjoyed my involvement with Seven over the years,” he said. “I look forward to seeing all the action and excitement of the season unfold and giving viewers an insight into what’s going on.”

Press Release:
AFL Legend Leigh Matthews will join Channel Seven’s AFL coverage.

The addition of the four-time premiership player and four-time premiership coach will add to an already formidable and authoritative commentary line-up on Seven’s AFL coverage.

In a playing and coaching career spanning five decades, Matthews has done just about everything an individual can in the game. He has won premierships as player and coach, captained Victoria, won eight Hawthorn Best & Fairests and delivered a first-time premiership to the Lions and a drought-breaking flag to Collingwood. His standing in the game is unquestionable, explains his status as an AFL Hall of Fame Legend and now adds further weight to Seven’s AFL coverage.

Matthews will join Seven’s 2009 AFL commentary team that will include Bruce McAvaney, Dennis
Cometti, Nathan Buckley, Tim Watson, David Schwarz and Rick Olarenshaw.

Commenting on Matthews’ appointment Seven Melbourne general manager Lewis Martin said: “Leigh was an outstanding success on Seven’s AFL coverage throughout the 2007 and 2008 finals series. So it was only natural we wanted such an AFL Legend to be part of our football team.”

Matthews was equally as excited at joining Seven’s AFL commentary team.

“Seven has a long and proud association with football and I’ve thoroughly enjoyed my involvement with Seven over the years,” he said. “I look forward to seeing all the action and excitement of the season unfold and giving viewers an insight into what’s going on.”

Leigh Matthews football achievements
· Australian Football Hall of Fame Legend
· Four-time premiership player with Hawthorn (1971, 1976, 1978, 1983)
· Four-time premiership coach (Collingwood 1990, Brisbane 2001, 2002, 2003)
· Hawthorn captain 1981-1985
· Eight Hawthorn Best & Fairests
· Six-time Hawthorn leading goal-kicker
· 332 VFL games, 29 VFL finals matches, 915 VFL career goals
· Represented Victoria 14 times and captained Victoria in 1980

Leigh Matthews AFL TV career
· Channel Seven football commentator (1996–98)
· Commentated three Grand Finals with Seven (1996-98)
· Football expert on Seven’s Talking Footy (1997, 1998)
· Lips of Lethal (2002-04) – this award winning program matched Leigh Matthews’ comments from the coach’s box with the 2002-04 Grand Final vision.

10 Responses

  1. I highly doubt 9 will get hold of the rights. They simply will not have the means, unless it was at the expense of NRL, and I cant see that happening.

    If 9 treated AFL fans with the same contempt they treat NRL fans, im not holding my breath for mind blowing coverage. *pukes* at thought of Eddie infesting AFL with his mindless babble.

    Leigh Matthew is quite a coup for 7, did a great job for the Finals.

  2. Yup most fans hate the seven coverage and can’t wait for nine to get the rights back in 2012 which they will. The only reason seven got them last time was because they had the rights to last bid which they won’t next time. I personally can’t wait for the old gang..dermie,eddie,gary etc..to return!

  3. dino if the 7 have the rights to the afl for a long time. the fans of the game will be worst off than ever before. i think channel 9 want the afl more than they want the nrl

  4. Quite a good pick up from 7 indeed. He is definitely one of the more bearable commentators

    Knoxoverstreet, I think we will see the AFL on 7 for a loooong time to come. 9’s pockets will be fairly empty after their Olympic bid, not to mention they have to get the NRL rights back, with speculation rights to the State of Origin Series might be split from that deal and sold as a separate package.

  5. I love ch 7s commentary team (tho ox and tim r pretty bad) and matthews was gr8 in the finals so will be a gr8 addition – hopefully that will mean less of tim and ox – i think they work better at interviewing, like tim did in the finals series.

    Dennis and Bruce are still the best callers of the game and i hope 7 keeps the rights so we dont go back to ch9 with eddie and dermie!!!

  6. Leigh and 7, this is how to translate AFL footy to a Queensland audience.
    (Queensland definitions in brackets)

    He marks the ball! (He caught the ball in mid-air!)
    In for a behind! (Missed the big sticks, but got a reward for his incompetence!)
    He kicks for goal. (He is aiming for the big sticks in the middle.)
    It’s a goal! (Six points for just kicking through the big sticks in the middle, easier than a try at Lang Park.)

    Thank you, you have been a wonderful audience…

  7. Nice pick up by Seven Leigh is an excellent caller. Probably the first smart move they’ve made with their footy coverage thus far. Nine will likely have the rights from 2012 so I hope Leigh has only signed a three year contract!

  8. formidable commentary line up . what rubbish bruce is past it well and truely. dennis isnt even close to being funny any more. tim watson sound like a woman talking about her last period. the ox is terrible. ricky needs to be shot. bucks and lethal will be the only good commentators.

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