How changing cricket times cause a sticky wicket for our schedules

One of the most exciting and yet frustrating elements of this station is that we have the remit to be the BBC radio network for Wales. Exciting because that means that you can build a rich schedule celebrating all aspects of Welsh life and culture. Frustrating because there are times when you need much more capacity to fit it all in. 

That’s frequently where we find ourselves with sport. I know how important sport is here in Wales. I’m also more than aware how divisive it is too. Many BBC Radio Wales listeners just want sport to be something that happens on the weekend. 

But that’s a scenario that no longer exists. Live sport now happens seven days a week. And short of making this a sport station, that provides us with some difficult choices. 

For many years, one day county cricket was a Sunday pursuit. And having a ‘Sunday League’ gave us a certain level of predictability that we could build around. We’d carry our ‘normal’ output on FM and live cricket on AM. 

As of this season, and after its opening weekend, the new Royal London One Day Cup will mainly see Glamorgan competing on weekdays. Some of the games start at 2pm, some at 10.30am. 

That’s a headache because it means taking out much of our schedule – including Good Evening Wales - on AM and Digital TV. And because of the imperfect coverage of Radio Wales on FM and DAB across Wales, we’d be broadcasting only cricket to 20% of the population.

Hence I’ve taken the decision that, for the first time, Glamorgan’s 50 overs games will be broadcast in their entirety on the BBC Sport website. Glammy fans should be familiar with the routine of heading to a PC or laptop for commentary, as it is the service we’ve provided for all County Championship games for the last two years. 

That doesn’t mean you won’t hear Glamorgan on your (conventional) radio. Edward Bevan will be providing hourly updates of Glamorgan’s progress in our bulletins. For the One Day Cup games with later starts, we’ll provide commentary of the closing stages on Radio Wales Sport. 

Plus of course, we have everything crossed for a Glamorgan win against Gloucestershire tonight. Any progress in the T20 Blast will be live on BBC Radio Wales. 

And while cricket is complicated, plotting out the football season gives me sleepless nights. More on that in the next few weeks...

Rick O'Shea presents live T20 Cricket, with commentary by Edward Bevan, as Glamorgan play Gloucestershire in Cardiff this evening from 7pm.