Nine’s coverage of Australian Rules football will be turbo-charged in 2020 with the signing of some big new names, the launch of exciting new programs and the return of familiar favourites.
The beefed-up footy slate will see previews, reviews and analysis of the AFL radically boosted across Nine’s suite of television programs, newspapers, radio stations and digital properties.
Headlining the enhanced lineup is Footy Classified, returning for its 14th season on Monday, March 16, at 9.00pm.
Widely regarded as the most knowledgeable of all footy panel shows, Footy Classified will reunite Craig Hutchison, Caroline Wilson and Matthew Lloyd in the must-watch Monday night timeslot. Joining them this year will be the outspoken South Australian Kane Cornes, who played 300 games for Port Adelaide before retiring in 2015.
And in a win for footy fans across the country, Nine will launch a second, midweek edition of Footy Classified in 2020.
Premiering on March 18 at 10.00pm, the Wednesday edition of Footy Classified will bring Eddie McGuire back to Nine’s prime-time schedule, joining Caroline Wilson and Matthew Lloyd on the panel. Rounding out the team will be former St Kilda and Fremantle coach Ross Lyon, who joins the Nine family for the 2020 season.
Another big-name recruit is highly respected journalist Sam McClure, who will play a role on both editions of Footy Classified as the program’s newsbreaker, as well as providing the latest unfolding news developments across The Age and 3AW. Sam will also be heard Monday to Friday at 6.00pm on 3AW’s Sportsday program, alongside Gerard Healy.
The Sunday Footy Show will be back for an incredible 28th season from 10.00am on Sunday, March 22.
This year’s lineup is unchanged: the winning combination of host Tony Jones alongside former AFL superstars Matthew Lloyd, Nathan Brown, Kane Cornes, Billy Brownless and Damian Barrett. Plus, Sam Newman will make special guest appearances throughout the year.
Oval Office also returns in 2020, featuring interviews with AFL players and hosted by Sam Edmund.
Free-to-air’s only dedicated AFLW program, Women’s Footy, brings viewers the latest news, opinion and analysis in and around the women’s AFL competition.
Complementing our broadcast television slate will be three digital programs available on 9Now and YouTube.
Full Time with Crawf, presented by AFL legend Shane Crawford and Nine News reporter Ayrton Woolley, will drop across digital channels at 8.30pm each Sunday, starting March 22. With a recap of the day’s footy action, Full Time with Crawf will also tackle the headlines and key talking points from the week, taking a look at post-match media conferences and bringing viewers up to date with the latest on injuries, reports and suspensions.
Our second new digital program is Talk of the Town, on Wednesday afternoons, starting March 18. Each week, Sam McClure, Warren Tredrea and Seb Costello will dissect the key issues in footy’s heartland. We’ll have agenda-setters across the country and Talk of the Town will be their platform to zero in on the big news in their respective markets that may not be making headlines elsewhere.
Rounding out Nine’s new digital lineup is the third program, Home Ground. Hosted by Shane Crawford, Home Ground will document the life of AFL players away from the game. It will feature retired players in their natural environment as they recount fond memories of their careers, and provide an insight into the private lives of current players as we explore their hobbies, pets, partners and favourite haunts.
Nine’s unrivalled coverage also encompasses our top-rating football callers across radio stations 3AW and 6PR as well as our award-winning writers at The Age.
Featuring a roll-call of commentators, expert analysts and esteemed journalists, 3AW will bring you the best call from the best matches every week of the season.
And with The Age, you’ll always be up to the mark, whether online or in print, with unrivalled reporting from the best football writers in the land.
Nine’s AFL Executive Producer, Matt Conway, said: “Footy on Nine will make its mark in 2020. Nine’s award-winning team of commentators and journalists will come together across television, newspapers, radio and online to provide unique insight. The digital space provides an exciting new ground for us to share stories about the game we love.”
