“If it's something new, it's a case of 'What's bad about this? What can I post on social media?'" – Paul Nicholson bunks off criticism surrounding ITV change in darts coverage

The revamped darts production for tournaments on the British broadcaster ITV has drawn mixed reactions in the early months of the season. According to Paul Nicholson, however, that is a logical consequence of the sweeping changes behind the scenes.

“When Matchroom decided to take over from ITV for this production and do things themselves, there were always going to be changes,” Nicholson states in his column for SportingLife. “Changes to staff, changes to production, changes to infrastructure.”

That choice came with an almost complete refresh of the team both in front of and behind the cameras. According to Nicholson, that automatically carries risks.

“What people who have a very strong opinion about this don't seem to understand is just how much work has had to go into this. There are always going to be teething problems when there's wholesale changes made to new productions, especially for an event in Minehead which is a logistical challenge due to the multiple rooms and stages.”

The criticism on social media was fierce, but Nicholson adds clear caveats. He believes people are judging a new product too quickly.

“I saw a lot of negatives on social media but I think for a first domestic event, I think they did a great job,” he says. “Was it perfect? No. But then again, what production is perfect?”

He notes that viewers nowadays tend to look primarily for flaws. “It seems like no matter what the viewers watch these days, if it's something new, it's a case of "What's bad about this? What can I post on social media? Forget about the fact that all of that was done free to view for your benefit, but lets just look at the negatives.”

A common complaint is that the new ITV broadcasts increasingly resemble those of Sky Sports. Nicholson understands where that feeling comes from. “There is obviously a lot of crossover talent that is being used compared to the past,” he explains. “With the introduction of Wayne Mardle and Glen Durrant, while Mark Webster and Dan Dawson remain voices on both productions.”

As a result, he says, a familiar yet more uniform sound emerges. “So I can understand that they might be getting a lot of the same opinions and outlooks from people who work for both productions, but… Chris Mason's presence means there's still a little bit of traditional ITV stock."

Presenter Pete Graves, in particular, is under the microscope. Nicholson believes that criticism is premature. “Pete Graves is a great journalist,” he states. “What we should do is give him the rest of the year to understand the intricacies of darts, because he's a football guy, everybody knows that.”

He draws a comparison with previous changes in the darts world. “When Dave Clark took over people initially didn't like the change. But then, obviously, everyone ended up loving Dave and were gutted when he decided to step back. Emma Paton then came in and that transition is probably the best transition we've ever had in our sport, because she is fantastic and we were very lucky to get her.”

According to Nicholson, it’s unrealistic to judge someone based on one tournament. “But over the course of the year I think the fans will warm to him and the chemistry between himself, Wayne, and the team will improve. You don't judge someone on the first broadcast, you give them time.”

Another innovation is the role of reporters closer to the crowd, such as Alexa Rendall. Nicholson says that’s a deliberate choice. “I think what they're trying to do is bring a little bit of vibrancy. They're trying to have a bit more connectivity with the fans,” he says. “if you look at what they've done traditionally with ITV, there was a bit of a disconnect between the balcony at the top in Minehead, and the fans downstairs.”

Still, he believes that role is particularly challenging. “Alexa probably has the toughest job because she's got 4,500 partygoers and nobody knows which ones have any idea about darts or which ones will be coherent! It's very much a party atmosphere for three days.”

Not everything, however, is met with understanding. Nicholson is critical of the new graphics, especially the scoreboard. “The only thing I take an exception with," he says. "Which is a lot of us within the production have, is that we don't believe the previous graphics needed to be replaced."

Still, he understands that changes are sometimes necessary. “When you have these wholesale infrastructure changes and licensing issues to deal with, you may have to use your own new graphics and they will always get attention due to how prominent and fundamental they are to the coverage.”

He does expect this to be improved quickly. “Are they perfect? No. They're not. And everybody knows it. But like everything else, if they're not right by the middle of the year, when we go to other World Series events, like New York, then there's a problem."

The new mastercaller Lewis Jones also drew plenty of criticism. According to Nicholson, that was inevitable. “I think that was going to be inevitable for whoever was going to attempt to fill the huge vocal chords of John McDonald,” he says. “We've had just two MCs in the PDC since 1993. And the longer there's no change, the harder it is for the public to accept change when it does come."

Nicholson knows Jones personally and sees that he is taking his role seriously. “He loves doing the job and has sought the right advice from voice coaches and other ways to try and project himself better. He's not standing there and simply reading a cue card. He's actively trying to better himself."

He believes comparison with his predecessor is inevitable but not always fair. “John McDonald was nervous at the beginning and he didn't know much about Phil Taylor, Dennis Priestley and all these guys. But over time he grew into the role and that's what we'll see with Lewis, who is nurturing his own style week by week and clearly improving with every passing tournament."