There’s no denying that some viewers were more engaged with the Match of the Day episode without a presenter last night’s over 2.5 million viewers.
Yet it’s safe to say that the majority of those people weren’t quite as enthused as Scott Benton, the Conservative MP for Blackpool South.
Scott declared it to be the “greatest episode in years” on social media after yesterday’s episode of the chilly, minimal show ended.
The fact that it ended early so he could make it to the bar for a round of beers with the fellas before final orders, as well as “all the goals” that were featured, were his favorite aspects, he claimed.
Sadly, Twitter was merciless in taking the mickey out of Scott for his take.
Thomas Wynne Lewis asked: ‘When was the last time MOTD didn’t “have all the goals in” Scott?’
Aaron Stokes added: ‘I too, like most totally normal people, enjoy nothing more than leaving the house at 10.40pm to make it to the pub for last orders.’
Comedian Dara O Briain also joined in, writing: ‘I like the way he said “episode”, the way football fans always say “I hope it’s a good episode of Match of The Day tonight”.’
Woodo replied to say: ‘I love waiting until the end of #MOTD to go to the pub for one beer when the staff are clearing up rather than going to a pub showing Match of the Day anyway at a normal time.
‘I am definitely a football fan and definitely watch match of the day and definitely frequent pubs.’
Scott, who was elected to the Lancashire seat in 2019, eventually restricted the replies to his tweet after more than 4,000 people had responded.
It wasn’t the first time he’d taken on the subject, though – earlier that day he’d taunted the wokerati with a low-resolution picture of Jeremy Clarkson badly edited over a Match of the Day background.
The MP, who proclaims himself a fan of Tottenham Hotspur in his Twitter bio, also retweeted support for the ‘Alternative Match of the Day’ hosted by former Balls of Steel presenter Mark Dolan on GB News.
The segment baffled some viewers with its complete lack of any football clips – no goals at all were shown, presumably frustrating Scott.
It was later criticised for a sneering reference to the ‘rainbow flags’ that can be seen in Brighton.
Today, the crisis at the BBC over Gary Lineker’s suspension grew to consume even more of the broadcaster’s sports shows, with Match of the Day 2 also going ahead without pundits or commentary this evening.
Meanwhile, a petition to reinstate Lineker following the controversy over his criticism of the government’s new Illegal Migration Bill has passed 200,000 signatures.