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Olympics viewers rage over Matildas move as Channel 9 cops backlash over 'woeful' call

Aussie viewers tuned in to watch some live Olympics coverage only to be confused.

riley morgan
Sports Reporter
·5-min read

Aussie viewers have called out Channel 9 for showing a replay of the Matildas' win over Zambia and Jess Fox's gold medal run on the main free-to-air channel instead of live action of the Olympics on Monday night. The Matildas left fans around the nation stunned in the early hours of Monday morning when they came from behind to defeat Zambia 6-5 in an Olympics thriller.

However, fans tuning into the Olympics coverage on Monday night for a some live events were left frustrated when another replay of the Matildas was playing. Many viewers only have a couple of hours to watch live action from the Paris Olympics before it gets too late and the Matildas highlights had been hard to miss all day.

Aussie viewers have called out Channel 9 for showing a replay of the Matildas' win over Zambia and Jess Fox's gold medal run on the main free-to-air channel instead of live action from the Olympics on Monday evening. (Getty Images)
Aussie viewers have called out Channel 9 for showing a replay of the Matildas' win over Zambia and Jess Fox's gold medal run on the main free-to-air channel instead of live action from the Olympics on Monday evening. (Getty Images)

And Aussies were left stunned when Channel 9 opted to show highlights of the Matildas game and push live sport onto their other streaming channels. Then highlight of Jess Fox's incredible gold medal was also shown on the main channel.

Tennis fans wanting to see the epic 60th encounter of superstars Novak Djokovic and Rafa Nadal in Paris were forced to find it on one of the other streaming channels. And it wasn't the only criticism of the coverage from the host broadcaster.

Popular Aussie boxers Harry Garside and Tyla McDonald were left shattered when they were defeated in their first bouts at the Olympics. However, fans were forced to find Garside's bout instead of the main channel prioritising the Aussie's push for a medal.

Garside and McDonald's fights were then showed later on the main free-to-air channel after they had fought and lost. And the backlash towards the coverage was swift. Fox Sports reporter Max Laughton questioned why Channel 9 wasn't prioritising live sport when the majority of viewers only had a few hours to watch the Olympics.

Sporting News reporter Jed Wells agreed with Laughton's confusion. Aussie viewers joined in on the frustration as they called out Channel 9 for prioritising replays over the lack of live action on the easy to access channels.

Channel 9 probably opted to show Matildas highlights because of the enormity of their comeback in the early hours of Monday morning. Michelle Heyman won the game off the bench for the Matildas as the veteran striker kept a cool head with 90 minutes on the clock to slot home past the goalkeeper, after she was freed by a superb pass from Steph Catley.

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"A memorable night in Nice ... the Matildas have cooked up their most extraordinary comeback yet," said commentator Brenton Speed on Channel 9. Aussie football legend Craig Foster wrote on social media: “Craziest game ever. Gutsiest performance. Talk about never say die. Unbelievable.”

Heyman told Channel 9 after the match: “We want that medal. We are trying our hardest to bring something home. We knew we could do it. It was going to come. We have it our all, and we never gave up.”

(Top from L) Australia's midfielder #08 Kyra Cooney-Cross, Australia's defender #15 Clare Hunt, Australia's defender #07 Steph Catley, Australia's goalkeeper #01 Mackenzie Arnold, Australia's defender #14 Alanna Kennedy, Australia's forward #11 Mary Fowler, (bottom from L) Australia's midfielder #06 Katrina Gorry, Australia's forward #05 Cortnee Vine, Australia's forward #09 Caitlin Foord, Australia's forward #16 Hayley Raso and Australia's defender #12 Ellie Carpenter pose for a team picture ahead of the women's group B football match between Germany and Australia during the Paris 2024 Olympic Games at the Marseille Stadium in Marseille on July 25, 2024. (Photo by Christophe SIMON / AFP) (Photo by CHRISTOPHE SIMON/AFP via Getty Images)