Football Emporium

 
Andy Gray could be described as a dinosaur of the golden age of football: The 1970s, with its Gene Hunt approach to sexism, racism and any other sort of bigotry related ‘ism’. But so could many of his generation, in and out of the game. Which is perhaps why his time has come, or is it?
 
The media would have you believe Andy Gray’s dismissal from Sky’s football studios is because of the sexism issue – the female linesman (sic) that was an unwitting victim of what she will hear every other time she tells someone she is a football official. 
 
The truth is Sky simply didn’t want him anymore. Rupert Murdoch’s empire features many examples of bigotry and ignorance. Even Sky’s football coverage includes a Socerette on Soccer AM. For the uninitiated, a Soccerette is a kind of armchair spectator sport for the Kleenex generation.
 
Indeed, Gray’s dismissal will probably have more to do with his cohort Richard Keys’ resignation a couple of days later. If ever there was a man that had grown to believe in his own self-importance it is a man that claims, "I'm not proud of what happened at the weekend, but with success comes envy." If you need explanation, Keys’ ‘success’ is as a football journalist and presenter. I am not sure of his achievement list, but he sits in an armchair in football studios and prompts former players and managers to discuss the sport. 
 
What neither took time out from their golf days or hob-nobbing with the game’s aristosscracy (correct spelling), to learn, was the viewing public do not like them. Now, no-one actually knows whether they ever did. What we do know is you cannot hide smug, you cannot hide out of touch, you cannot hide your true self for too long. What the public want the media witch hunt will eventually provide.