Newcastle football fans are furious the popular ABC broadcaster Aaron Kearney will not be calling the Socceroos’ Asian Cup semi-final in his hometown on Tuesday.
Already reeling from savage cuts to 1223 ABC Newcastle after the Coalition’s $250m budget cut last year, Newcastle residents took the latest slight to their hometown boy badly – and expressed their outrage on social media on Friday morning.
“Wait, what? No @aaronkearneyaus for the Socceroos semi in Newcastle? That is a disgrace, why does the ABC hate Newcastle?” asked local businessman @HyperBrendan on Twitter.
“Why is the best voice in the Hunter not calling the biggest game the city has ever hosted @aaronkearneyaus #outraged,” asked Chris Matthews-Darby.
Kearney, an award-winning sports broadcaster who has been calling A-League on radio since its inception a decade ago, is also the 1223 ABC Newcastle’s breakfast presenter.
His breakfast show is so popular it finished last year as the highest-rating ABC breakfast show in the entire country.
He was booked to do Tuesday night’s semi-final call – until Australia went through to that game and the Melbourne-based ABC broadcaster Frances Leach was drafted to do the radio commentary as well as appear on the TV coverage. The ABC’s TV commentary is taken from the Foxtel commentary team, as the pay TV platform also shows the matches.
Kearney told his listeners on Friday morning that he wouldn’t be calling Tuesday night’s game and they were not happy.
This complaint to the ABC was fairly typical: “Can I ask which genius determined to import a broadcast caller for the Socceroos game next Tuesday from Melbourne instead of our local boy Aaron Kearney? He is the voice of Newcastle! Please reconsider this? It’s an affront to the local community and the passion and talent of our local broadcasters. C’mon Aunty.”
Kearny also wrote later on his Facebook page: “Really disappointed, but more than anything, I’m embarrassed that the ABC has decided to send someone from Melbourne to call the Socceroos in Newcastle.
“Spent a decade of giving up weekends only to be benched for the big show. But on the upside, people have been beautiful. Supportive and appreciative.”
Listeners posted dozens of supportive comments. “Terrible decision. Why not have a Newcastle announcer calling the game that is being held in Newcastle? Melbourne has plenty of opportunities to shine, this should be ours!”
Kearney enjoys a special position in the Hunter because he survived the management cull late last year which saw the afternoons program with Carol Duncan and Helen Clare’s Sunday morning program decommissioned.
While the director of ABC Radio, Michael Mason, said at the time Newcastle had not been “deliberately targeted or singled out for those cuts”, the locals disagreed and took to the streets in protest.
Kearney told Guardian Australia the timing meant people were reacting badly. “I’m in an awkward position because I know there is no conspiracy from ABC management and they didn’t intend a snub to me or the city,” Kearney told Guardian Australia.
“They have supported me and this project for a decade. But the people of the Hunter are deeply wounded by the ABC cuts and how deep they have bitten here and I can understand their anger.
“I had to admit I shared their disappointment. If nothing else, this shows that my efforts and those of the ABC are deeply appreciated by the public.”
The ABC will broadcast the match between the Socceroos and either the current Asian Cup champions, Japan, or the United Arab Emirates, at Newcastle stadium live and on iView, ABC Radio and ABC online.
The ABC’s head of sport, Justin Holdforth, said: “Aaron has not been dropped. Francis Leach is an integral part of the overall ABC broadcast strategy for the Asian Cup. Francis appears on the national ABC TV coverage pre-game and then calls the game on ABC Radio to a national audience. Francis was always calling all Socceroos matches from the quarter final stage on ABC Radio.”
• This article was amended on 24 January to correct the reference to Kearney being the only ABC Newcastle broadcaster with his own show.
