“I could probably be more serious” Max Rushden on the challenges of broadcasting and why he’d play an elephant in midfield
Sport often requires a baton to be passed.
Be that metaphorically: think, Cristiano Ronaldo taking David Beckham’s number seven shirt at Manchester United.
Or literally: think, a relay race.
Whilst not a sportsman, Max Rushden can certainly relate to this.
In 2008, when Sky were struggling to successfully replace Soccer AM’s original host Tim Lovejoy, Rushden grasped the baton.
Once more he took the rod in 2017. This time from James Richardson, to become host of the Guardian Football Weekly podcast.
Was a pleasure talking with @maxrushden on the challenges of broadcasting and why he’d play an elephant in midfield. Look for it on the @SportsGazette tomorrow. pic.twitter.com/1fwgJfD5qJ
— Hal Fish (@halfish95) February 13, 2020
Rushden explains the pressure of trying to step into someone else’s shoes: “I found them very different because when I got to Soccer AM I was incredibly inexperienced. And it was like a massive break for me, and I was basically terrified. So, I don’t know if I handled it very well at all actually.
“It just took me a long time to relax, because I was different to my predecessors. Not necessarily better or worse.”
He smirks, before adding: “I mean, some people would definitely say the latter.”
But his move to Football Weekly was more akin to Sergio Aguero stepping up when Fernando Torres left Atletico Madrid, as opposed to William Gallas claiming Dennis Bergkamp’s vacant number ten shirt at Arsenal.
“When I got the Guardian [job] I’d already been hosting seven or eight shows a year. And Barry Glendenning who does it, I would never praise him on camera, he’s obviously a huge part of the pod, so I just kinda felt comfortable doing that.”
“It’s a less pressurised environment, a podcast to a live TV show, you know? The lights, the people, the audience, the producers. The amount of stuff you’ve got to do, it just feels more pressurised.”
Having left Soccer AM in 2015, Rushden now divides most of his time between Football Weekly at the Guardian and hosting on talkSPORT.
Despite his enduring reputation as someone who takes a more jovial approach to sports broadcasting than others, it’s clear what Rushden has learnt to prioritise.
“For me, it doesn’t really matter who wins or who loses. I don’t get angry about that,” he explains.
“But the things in football that are problematic – the wrong owners of football clubs, how the whole of football is run, racism and homophobia and sexism in the game – we take them seriously, and that’s important for me.”
“I can’t pretend to get enraged about Jordan Pickford making a mistake. I’m sad for him but I don’t mind. Whereas other broadcasters either do care more, or are just capable of being like, this is an outrage Jordan Pickford should have saved that!
“You have to say things as you see them, and talk about the things you care about, and what you like. And hope you are a decent human being, or certainly that’s how I try and do it.”
https://twitter.com/maxrushden/status/1228223746214748160
Occasionally, sports broadcasters find themselves having to shift from frivolous matters onto moments of genuine gravitas. They can be talking about racism heard at a game, violence, or even a death, and then move on to discuss the comparatively less important result of that same match.
Rushden believes honesty is key in these moments however they manifest themselves.
“I’ve done phone-ins on gambling addictions, on Talksport, and they’re incredibly moving. But at the same time you’re aware if you are working any commercial sport channel, radio, TV, whatever, you’re going to be funded in part by bookmakers.
“You have to say, the elephant in the room is that I might throw to a break and there could be an advert for a bookmakers. That doesn’t mean you should be scared of doing that I think as long as you’re human about it,” he explains.
“I think you can do gear changes really quickly actually on the radio, because you can do them in life. Like if you’re having a conversation with your friends you might talk about someone who’s really ill and then start joking about something completely different.
“I just think as long as you’re honest about it. And you can always say, we’re about to talk about this thing, it’s really difficult to talk about, and we’re not really sure how we meant to cover this.
“I could probably be more serious more of the time. I feel this is the most serious I’ve been while broadcasting ever in my life actually,” he jokes.
“But it’s really important to think about it.”
In fear of things becoming too serious, however, we swiftly move onto matters a little closer to Rushden’s usual discussion topics.
The 40-year-old offloads a well-considered analysis of what positions animals would play if they lined-up on a football field – having recently been inspired by a Tweet.
“Somebody’s kid came home with some fridge magnetic animals animals in a squad and he asked me if I agreed with it and I spent way too long doing a thread about where he’s gone wrong.”
https://twitter.com/maxrushden/status/1226597184877056001
Upfront, naturally, would be a Giraffe, though it would need a partner: “He’s got play alongside someone else because he wins a lot in the air but needs some pace around him. So I put a natural predator next to him. A tiger or a lion; I went tiger I think.
“A lot of people wanted to the goat in the ten but I pointed out it was a goat not the goat,” Rushden asserts.
“People wanted the cat in goal because lots of goalkeepers have been called that. But I thought a frog would be good because they can make themselves big and that is key for a goalkeeper,” the 40-year-old is having to use all of his broadcasting experience to maintain a straight face.
“There was an elephant in centre-mid, because elephants can put their foot on the ball, can’t they?
“I’ve thought about it a lot.”
Presumably, it’s detailed analysis such as this which has seen Rushden’s odds of becoming Cambridge United’s next manager recently drop lower than those on Sam Allardyce taking over at Old Trafford.
