Not the smoothest transition in television history
Some viewers noticed a slightly awkward moment during Sky Sports’ Friday Night Football coverage of Southampton vs Liverpool at St. Mary’s on Friday.
The moment occurred before the match, when presenter Kelly Cates was speaking to pundits and commentators Jamie Carragher and Gary Neville.
“After three wins in four – particularly after the win against Brighton – we’re expecting he’s going to be in a good move. How significant was that last win?” Cates asked Neville and Carragher.
Nah. Um @KellyCates – we need an explanation 😅 I’m baffled. Was this live? Were they out of shot? Producers, directors… what happened here? 😂
— Jeanette Kwakye (@JNETTEKWAKYE) April 6, 2019
At this point things are fine, not awkward at all, but it was the fact that Neville and Carragher answered the question while turning and walking away from Cates that surprised people a bit.
It was clear that this wasn’t the two pundits being rude or anything like that, and was instead some kind of transition, but nonetheless it looked really odd to see them answer a question while turning their backs to the person who asked it, and continually walking further and further away from her.
The fact that the camera continued to show Cates drifting into the distance in the background definitely didn’t help ease the sense of awkwardness surrounding it either.
The moment was shared far and wide on social media, with people wondering exactly what the reason behind it was, and on Saturday morning Cates had her say, and her response was fairly simple.
“They were going to interview (Southampton manager Ralph) Hasenhuttl in the tunnel! Would have looked weird if they didn’t have anything to say I (sic) the way there,” she tweeted.
https://twitter.com/KellyCates/status/1114454454223474688
So there you have it, nice to have an explanation for it all, though it doesn’t really change the fact that it is one of the most awkward transitions we’ve ever seen.
