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Report: Sandy Roberts quitting Seven?

Update: Is veteran sports presenter Sandy Roberts quitting Seven after 34 years?

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2013-02-05_0122More turmoil at Seven Melbourne as veteran sports presenter Sandy Roberts quits after 34 years.

The Herald Sun reports Roberts will inform the station today he is leaving to call AFL games and host programs on FOX Footy.

Roberts, 62, has been sports presenter on Seven’s 6pm News in Melbourne as well as other commitments during the Australian Open, AFL Finals, Good Friday Appeal, Melbourne Cup, Brownlow Medal, Australian Masters and Olympics.

But he hasn’t called AFL games for several seasons, and his son works at FOX Footy as a producer.

An exit by Roberts will come hot on the heels of Seven replacing veteran meteorologist David Brown, 52, for former Olympic swimmer Giaan Rooney, 30 as nightly weather presenter.

Seven continues to trail Nine in the Melbourne news market and while it has been experimenting with its News format in recent weeks the real game is now less than a week away.

UPDATE: Tonight on Seven News, host Peter Mitchell said to Roberts that staff had been flipping coins for his car parking space.

“Sorry to disappoint them Mitch, it’s not available,” Roberts replied.

Or is this a case of delaying his departure until the AFL season…..?

31 Responses

  2. I will miss his little remarks he made at the end of sport or when he used to try to put Peter off deliberately by trying to make him laugh.

    But it will be interesting to see who replaces him.

  3. Just one thing-I know why Sandy wants to move. Did you see how tired he looked at the Australian Open???, so tired his eyes looked nearly shut and once I even heard him stumble over a couple of easy words through tiredness. He probably thought, I never want to go through this again. Calling football means much earlier nights, better with older age. Also I think Channel 7 should replace him with Luke Darcy.

  4. Why doesn’t someone try doing news without presenters at all. Just show the clips with voiceovers and maybe have the reporters the stars. No need for a studio. Much more economical and you would still get the news, but not as you now know it.For the main stories the Reporters could introduce live from a food scene, with his gum boots on or whatever. Maybe a crazy idea but sometimes they work.

  5. @ David, yes it is a little harsh, however the folk on the ch7 news in Melb need to change, the whole thing needs a major refresh. The news,weather & sports presenters should only be around for 2-3 years max, give other folk a chance or career opportunity. Its tough on the oldies, but on the odd occasion I watch ch7 or 9 news, they just seem to be plodding along. Hitch & Mitch both need to retire and let someone else pick up the reins

  7. Makes sense for 7 Melbourne to move on to a younger face of sports news and for Sandy to move to Fox Footy is perfect for him.
    Chances are, we will see him heading up a Friday night pre and post game show and perhaps as the host of a 6.30pm ET call in show, similar to White Line Fever on the old Fox Footy Channel.

  10. C’mon folks, he has been blocking others from getting a chance for a decade or 2, his style is dull and boring. I am glad he is going. Mitch next as ch7 in Melb has been Jurassic for a few years now. They need some fluffy eye candy to attract new viewers and lose all the oldies. Good move, and long overdue

  14. Actually surprised this hasn’t happened earlier. Not that he was a bad egg at 7, just that with Hamish and BT the new golden children and Bruce not slowing down soon, without any real golf at 7, he was never going to get a good gig. He will be a great asset to FoxFooty with his footy experience (he has been calling AFL on regional radio via CrocMedia in recent times I believe) and has the footy vault experience/knowledge and a dry humour which will fit well. I hope he gets League Teams and pushes Dermie to panelist. Maybe a Footy Quiz Show?

  16. From afar, Melbourne seems to have a penchant for “celebrities” & former sportstars to present sport & weather. What’s wrong with good old fashioned journalists?

  17. Good move by Sandy. He has been under-utilised for a for years now just reading the sport each night. He should have been utilised in Seven’s AFL B team. Sandy was before his time, bringing entertainment to AFL commentary when he joined HSV 7 in the 80’s to call VFL and host World of Sport. Sandy… look forward to seeing you on Fox Footy in 2013.
    A couple of clips you might like:

    youtube.com/watch?v=xDFLN0oeQ54

    youtube.com/watch?v=2X-y4aghP28

  18. ashbeer – he did commentate last year for the AFL app so maybe he decided he enjoyed it?

    Also with Browny departing surely he could see he would be next?

  20. We did not think he looked to happy recently, and with his mate Browny gone, it was inevitable, will Mitch follow soon for Helen Kapalos to read the news and what is all this fuss about weather presenters not knowing anything about the ‘weather” it is not necesaary it is about personality, how else would Mike Larkin keep his job, if we want weather we go to BOM web site or other Weather apps, not the nightly news, come to think of it, we go the Sky News, ABC 24 ,online news for our news,,

  21. Oh no,does this mean Tim “rabbit in the headlights” Watson will replace Sandy ?

    Maybe Giann can do sport,as she was a sports person,and David Brown can get his weather gig back.

  22. Seven seem to be relaunching their news but they are missing the point. News tends to be a regular ritual for older folk. If you make it a completely young feel aren’t you alienating much of your audience. Anyone can read the weather but I thought their point of difference was suppossed to be that brownie was a meteorologist. Are they planning to have some unknown for the sports chair now or will the go with tim watson their weekend sports presenter?

  23. At last, good move by ch7 (or Roberts), this bloke has been way past his use by date for many years and is dull and boring. I hope he is replaced by Lara Bingle

  24. Maybe Giaan can do the sports job as well. I mean how long does the weather report take? Not as though she has to do any complicated meteorology stuff with the squiggly lines on the maps……….

  25. Wow what a bombshell! And what a loss for 7! You really wonder why he’d quit such a plum job from a network he’s been at for so many years. He’s part of the furniture at 7 & couldn’t really picture him working anywhere else. I know he hasn’t called afl since seven’s had it back but i’m sure he’s been previously quoted as more than happy not to. Has to be more to it! You would have to think he mustn’t have been pleased about Brownie getting the axe & how that was handled, I reckon that’s what’s pushed him. What a shame, will miss ol Sandles!

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