The O’Gara-Biggar double act has been the sound of the summer
The Lions tour of Australia has been worryingly drab at times, but the second Test in Melbourne brought things to life.
Hugo Keenan’s late winning try sealed a series victory for the Lions, but off the pitch, one of the main spectacles has been the success of Ronan O’Gara and Dan Biggar in the pundit slots.
Commentating on the tour with Sky Sports, O’Gara and Biggar have provided expert analysis, often disagreeing with each other and providing healthy debate.
And Sky Sports’ lead rugby commentator Miles Harrison has revealed what it is about the pair, and O’Gara in particular, that make them such skilful operators with the mic.
Talking to The Telegraph about Keegan’s winning try, Harrison said: “All you want is to be able to hear the reaction of the crowd.
“As I looked around, I just saw two broadcasters [O’Gara and Biggar] sitting with their microphones down, watching the crowd. That makes me feel a little bit emotional, because that’s the journey we’ve been on as a commentary team, to get to that point where I knew they got it, they totally got it.”
Harrison, a commentator with Sky on the Lions tours since 1997, said he spotted O’Gara’s broadcasting talents 24 years ago on the Lions tour of Australia in 2001.
“I remember on the 2001 Lions tour seeing ROG in the foyer of a hotel and he was a bit down because selection had not gone the way he wanted. Stuart and I went over to him and we chatted and, at the end of the conversation, we said to him: ‘When you finish this, you will be one hell of a broadcaster.’
“I messaged him when I heard he was going to work with us and told him I had been waiting years for this. I just knew he would bring something really special.”
Harrison was also encouraged to see both O’Gara and Biggar disagree with each other, mirroring the famous Sky Sports partnership of Gary Neville and Jamie Carragher.
“I knew there was going to be disagreement because it was already happening all the time in the bar,” Harrison said. “I said to them that it was pretty obvious that they were going to see life differently at times, but said we should do it in a way that respects the viewer.
“I like disagreement in sport, I think we all do. It is quite an inclusive thing as well to hear ex-players disagree because it almost validates your own view.”
