Euro 2012 Bone on the Box: Final shows it's time ... to Bring Back Barry

One lot had no-one up front and had got this far without providing much in the way of entertainment, sparking claims they’re simply boring.

The other lot had one or two loose cannons you couldn’t take your eyes off and were a line-up no-one thought we’d still be watching by this stage.

Enough of the BBC v ITV, though – on the pitch, it was Spain v Italy.

I did my best to watch both channels last night to give you the perfectly-balanced view.

But I’m afraid that when I saw Gary, Alan, Alan, Alan, Alan, Alan and Gianluca were dressed for a funeral, I feared dreariness and sobriety and switched back over.

In 30 years of watching World Cups and European Championships, I’ve never before opted for ITV over BBC for a match being shown on both sides.

But this year’s BBC coverage has been so dreadfully dull and predictable and ITV’s full of humour and decent banter, the contest was over long ago.

All ITV lack (and it is a major lackage) is a good commentator/summariser duo. I’m not a fan of Clive Tydlesley, while Andy Townsend and Jim Beglin are as weak and irritating for the network as Lawro and Keowno are for the Beeb.

Can the BBC persist much longer with Lawrenson?

When Brazil 2014 comes around, both channels should try giving the co-commentary jobs to the present-day football folk – the Martinezes or Seedorfs. Surely they’d be able to dissect tactics and performances better than the current state-the-bleedin-obvious brigade.

Martinez has been one of the best pundits of the lot for me. He so obviously knows a lot about the players, the teams and the tactics but explains it in a way that doesn’t blind us with science.

Last night Tyldo overdid the ‘thanks for allowing ITV into your living room’ bit but I gamely stuck with them.

I’ve heard a lot of comments during this tournament yearning for the days of Barry Davies – someone who effortlessly came out with lines that summed things up perfectly ... and lines that people still repeat 20 or 30 years later.

Given that Barry has been doing a spot of Wimbledon commentating, is it worth a campaign to get him back behind the mic for Brazil? The Bring Back Barry crusade starts here. Could be interesting ... very interesting.

We have until 9pm BST on June 12, 2014 to talk him into it. That’s when Brazil get the next World Cup started. And I can hardly wait.

Euro 2012 TV’s best: Roy Keane, Roberto Martinez, David James (under-used), and, at a push, Gordon Strachan.

And the worst: Too many to mention, but, poorest first: Mark Lawrenson, Martin Keown, Alan Shearer, Gary Lineker, Clive Tydlesley, Andy Townsend, Jim Beglin and Alan Hansen.

And finally... Thanks to all who have tweeted and emailed me during the tournament, particularly Rob Williams, who’s spent longer coming up with lookalikes than watching the games.

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