THE SCALE OF Croke Park quickly became apparent when the meeting was over, and the balcony on the seventh floor opened up before him.
Andy Holmes, director of production at Matchroom, was visiting the stadium for the first time. He had been in Dublin a couple of times already, overseeing the television coverage on DAZN for Taylor’s fights against Chantelle Cameron at the 3Arena in 2023.
But on this occasion, he was on Jones’ Road for a site visit at the venue for Taylor’s final professional boxing match.
This is vaguely familiar territory for Croke Park. The last professional boxing event at GAA headquarters was in 1972 when Muhammad Ali defeated Al “Blue” Lewis with an 11th-round knockout.
But for Holmes, Matchroom and DAZN, this was entirely new ground. And as he looked out across the great open space below, he quickly understood why this is the right setting for what will be a historic night in Irish sport.
Katie Taylor and Flora Pili in Croke Park. Gary Carr / INPHO
Gary Carr / INPHO / INPHO
“It was sort of breathtaking,” Holmes says as he recounts that first look inside the Croke Park arena.
“This is probably the biggest show that we’ve done, as a coming together in the Matchroom group. And it’s just such an iconic venue.
“I don’t know how you can quantify it. It’s amazing for everybody to be here. It’ll be post the event, you will go, ‘Wow, where were you on that day?’”
****
Acquiring the broadcasting rights 18 days out from the fight was not an ideal scenario for RTÉ. The national broadcaster had been chasing Katie Taylor v Flora Pili since it was confirmed for Croke Park on 5 June.
After covering her rise as an amateur fighter, the station was absent for her years in the professional ranks. And it seemed fitting to have their cameras ringside again for her final bout. With almost two weeks to go, they were still hopeful. And it wasn’t a shock to receive word that their campaign had been successful.
Their main concern was the short turnaround to the opening bell.
“Manic,” RTÉ producer Rory O’Neill says, describing what the last two weeks have been like for his team.
“Probably 12-hour days since we got the official nod that this was happening.”
Similar to DAZN, this is something of a new departure for RTÉ. It’s been a minute since they covered a professional boxing match. O’Neill checked it out recently, and found that Paddy Barnes in 2017 was their last one. And after almost a decade away from the pro game, this venture has brought the RTÉ team through a series of discoveries.
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Working in Croke Park will be a different experience compared to what they’re used to on championship Sundays with the GAA. Security, O’Neill notes, will be tighter. They don’t have first pick on where to position their cameras either.
Their Croke Park broadcasts are typically on the Hogan Stand side of Hill 16. But for this weekend, presenter Jacqui Hurley and the rest of the panel will be beside the Cusack Stand.
Brian Peters standing in Croke Park ahead of the fight. James Crombie / INPHO
James Crombie / INPHO / INPHO
There are new stakeholders for RTÉ to coordinate with too, including Taylor’s management team, which is run by Brian Peters.
DAZN are the host TV broadcasters, meaning RTÉ will be using their feed to provide the free-to-air coverage for Irish fans, who want to see how it all ends for Katie Taylor.
“You can’t compare RTÉ to somebody with huge companies like DAZN,” says O’Neill. “Where we definitely do have an advantage is we know our audience pretty much inside out, and we know what they will be looking for on Saturday night. They want to see a celebration of Katie and a celebration of her achievements and the contribution she’s made to Irish sport.
“All you can do is come at it with the mind of an Irish viewer.”
Expanding on RTÉ’s production plans for the fight, O’Neill adds:
“One of the things that we’re trying to do is give people from different parts of the Irish sporting landscape an opportunity to pay tribute. And that involves filming a plethora of people from across a whole wide range of sports. That took a day.
“Once we get to fight night, and all the pre-production issues have been resolved, it will make for an unbelievable programme, and something for people to really look forward to.”
****
Andy Holmes arrived in Dublin on Wednesday to commence preparations. Fortunately, Bon Jovi was on the Croke Park stage last weekend, which gave them a head start. The pitch was still covered after the concert, and event generators were already in place.
Installing the canopy above the ring was the next job. Weather conditions in Dublin are expected to be dry, but the fighters still need coverage overhead in the event of rainfall.
“We have to wait to see how it is. You can’t stop sideways rain. And with one end of the stadium being open, that will allow weather to blow in. Obviously it’s about if there’s safety issues for the boxers, and the people around. You can’t have boxers slipping.
All the work starting to come together in Croke Park. James Crombie / INPHO
James Crombie / INPHO / INPHO
The rest of the work then extends from the canopy. The lights are installed, along with the scaffolding for the TV studios, and the accessible platforms for those with disabilities. Given that this is a sell-out event, four large screens will be positioned around the Croke Park stadium to ensure that all spectators will have a complete view of the action.
And whether it’s Wembley, the 3Arena, or Croke Park, there are some constants about boxing that help with the planning.
“There’s a boxing ring, and it’s in the centre of the pitch, or the venue,” Holmes explains. “That side of things is formulaic.
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“It’s just a bigger space to cover [in Croke Park]. It just takes a little bit longer to do things. And there’s a lot more facilities, mainly from a cabling perspective, for television, for lighting, for PA, for screens. There’s a lot more logistics required to cover this event, because of the sheer scale of the stadium.
“I always say that my job is 90% planning and 10% execution. If I planned it right, and everybody has the information they need to do their job, and as long as everything is working, my job should become easier when we go on air.”
****
Muhammad Ali will be a cornerstone feature of RTE’s coverage on Saturday night. It’s fitting that the torch should pass from the greatest in men’s boxing to the greatest in the women’s professional game.
Jacqui Hurley’s opening link might even be in the tunnel between the Davin and Cusack Stand, which was named in his honour.
Keeping on that theme, they’re also working on a piece which charts the famous non-GAA events that have been held in Croke Park over the years. Voiced by actress Amy Huberman, the package will touch on historical moments like the Special Olympics in 2003, the occasions when Croke Park famously opened its doors to soccer and rugby, and the visit of Pope Francis in 2018 for the Festival of Families.
“The tone of that piece is that this will be the event that tops them all, including Muhammad Ali,” O’Neill adds.
Bernard Dunne pictured with Katie Taylor in 2008. Lorraine O'Sullivan / INPHO
Lorraine O'Sullivan / INPHO / INPHO
Bernard Dunne will be a pannelist for RTÉ, along with Liverpool fighter Natasha Jonas. She shared the ring with Taylor during the amateur and professional chapters of their respective careers. Taylor won all three meetings, including that famous Olympic quarter-final in 2012.
RTÉ was ringside for those memorable times which culminated in gold medal success for Taylor. They were present for the low moments too, as Taylor’s Olympic title defence did not go to plan in Rio four years later. They weren’t involved for her revival as a professional fighter, but a full-circle moment awaits in Croke Park tonight.
An iconic setting for the final act of an iconic Irish athlete. Roll the cameras for the opening bell.
“For the big emotional nights, RTÉ Sport have never been found wanting, and I would hope that’s going to be the case again this Saturday,” O’Neill concludes.
“It has been a journey into the unknown to a large extent from a professional point of view. When it all comes together, it will probably be the one that will give me the most satisfaction above anything that I’ve ever done in my career.”
****
Watch Katie Taylor v Flora Pili on RTÉ2 & RTÉ Player and listen on 2FM. Coverage of the fight will be presented by Jacqui Hurley from 8pm.
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12-hour days at an iconic venue - preparing the TV coverage for Katie Taylor's final fight
THE SCALE OF Croke Park quickly became apparent when the meeting was over, and the balcony on the seventh floor opened up before him.
Andy Holmes, director of production at Matchroom, was visiting the stadium for the first time. He had been in Dublin a couple of times already, overseeing the television coverage on DAZN for Taylor’s fights against Chantelle Cameron at the 3Arena in 2023.
But on this occasion, he was on Jones’ Road for a site visit at the venue for Taylor’s final professional boxing match.
This is vaguely familiar territory for Croke Park. The last professional boxing event at GAA headquarters was in 1972 when Muhammad Ali defeated Al “Blue” Lewis with an 11th-round knockout.
But for Holmes, Matchroom and DAZN, this was entirely new ground. And as he looked out across the great open space below, he quickly understood why this is the right setting for what will be a historic night in Irish sport.
“It was sort of breathtaking,” Holmes says as he recounts that first look inside the Croke Park arena.
“This is probably the biggest show that we’ve done, as a coming together in the Matchroom group. And it’s just such an iconic venue.
“I don’t know how you can quantify it. It’s amazing for everybody to be here. It’ll be post the event, you will go, ‘Wow, where were you on that day?’”
****
Acquiring the broadcasting rights 18 days out from the fight was not an ideal scenario for RTÉ. The national broadcaster had been chasing Katie Taylor v Flora Pili since it was confirmed for Croke Park on 5 June.
After covering her rise as an amateur fighter, the station was absent for her years in the professional ranks. And it seemed fitting to have their cameras ringside again for her final bout. With almost two weeks to go, they were still hopeful. And it wasn’t a shock to receive word that their campaign had been successful.
Their main concern was the short turnaround to the opening bell.
“Manic,” RTÉ producer Rory O’Neill says, describing what the last two weeks have been like for his team.
“Probably 12-hour days since we got the official nod that this was happening.”
Similar to DAZN, this is something of a new departure for RTÉ. It’s been a minute since they covered a professional boxing match. O’Neill checked it out recently, and found that Paddy Barnes in 2017 was their last one. And after almost a decade away from the pro game, this venture has brought the RTÉ team through a series of discoveries.
Working in Croke Park will be a different experience compared to what they’re used to on championship Sundays with the GAA. Security, O’Neill notes, will be tighter. They don’t have first pick on where to position their cameras either.
Their Croke Park broadcasts are typically on the Hogan Stand side of Hill 16. But for this weekend, presenter Jacqui Hurley and the rest of the panel will be beside the Cusack Stand.
There are new stakeholders for RTÉ to coordinate with too, including Taylor’s management team, which is run by Brian Peters.
DAZN are the host TV broadcasters, meaning RTÉ will be using their feed to provide the free-to-air coverage for Irish fans, who want to see how it all ends for Katie Taylor.
“You can’t compare RTÉ to somebody with huge companies like DAZN,” says O’Neill. “Where we definitely do have an advantage is we know our audience pretty much inside out, and we know what they will be looking for on Saturday night. They want to see a celebration of Katie and a celebration of her achievements and the contribution she’s made to Irish sport.
“All you can do is come at it with the mind of an Irish viewer.”
Expanding on RTÉ’s production plans for the fight, O’Neill adds:
“One of the things that we’re trying to do is give people from different parts of the Irish sporting landscape an opportunity to pay tribute. And that involves filming a plethora of people from across a whole wide range of sports. That took a day.
“Once we get to fight night, and all the pre-production issues have been resolved, it will make for an unbelievable programme, and something for people to really look forward to.”
****
Andy Holmes arrived in Dublin on Wednesday to commence preparations. Fortunately, Bon Jovi was on the Croke Park stage last weekend, which gave them a head start. The pitch was still covered after the concert, and event generators were already in place.
Installing the canopy above the ring was the next job. Weather conditions in Dublin are expected to be dry, but the fighters still need coverage overhead in the event of rainfall.
“We have to wait to see how it is. You can’t stop sideways rain. And with one end of the stadium being open, that will allow weather to blow in. Obviously it’s about if there’s safety issues for the boxers, and the people around. You can’t have boxers slipping.
The rest of the work then extends from the canopy. The lights are installed, along with the scaffolding for the TV studios, and the accessible platforms for those with disabilities. Given that this is a sell-out event, four large screens will be positioned around the Croke Park stadium to ensure that all spectators will have a complete view of the action.
And whether it’s Wembley, the 3Arena, or Croke Park, there are some constants about boxing that help with the planning.
“There’s a boxing ring, and it’s in the centre of the pitch, or the venue,” Holmes explains. “That side of things is formulaic.
“It’s just a bigger space to cover [in Croke Park]. It just takes a little bit longer to do things. And there’s a lot more facilities, mainly from a cabling perspective, for television, for lighting, for PA, for screens. There’s a lot more logistics required to cover this event, because of the sheer scale of the stadium.
“I always say that my job is 90% planning and 10% execution. If I planned it right, and everybody has the information they need to do their job, and as long as everything is working, my job should become easier when we go on air.”
****
Muhammad Ali will be a cornerstone feature of RTE’s coverage on Saturday night. It’s fitting that the torch should pass from the greatest in men’s boxing to the greatest in the women’s professional game.
Jacqui Hurley’s opening link might even be in the tunnel between the Davin and Cusack Stand, which was named in his honour.
Keeping on that theme, they’re also working on a piece which charts the famous non-GAA events that have been held in Croke Park over the years. Voiced by actress Amy Huberman, the package will touch on historical moments like the Special Olympics in 2003, the occasions when Croke Park famously opened its doors to soccer and rugby, and the visit of Pope Francis in 2018 for the Festival of Families.
“The tone of that piece is that this will be the event that tops them all, including Muhammad Ali,” O’Neill adds.
Bernard Dunne will be a pannelist for RTÉ, along with Liverpool fighter Natasha Jonas. She shared the ring with Taylor during the amateur and professional chapters of their respective careers. Taylor won all three meetings, including that famous Olympic quarter-final in 2012.
RTÉ was ringside for those memorable times which culminated in gold medal success for Taylor. They were present for the low moments too, as Taylor’s Olympic title defence did not go to plan in Rio four years later. They weren’t involved for her revival as a professional fighter, but a full-circle moment awaits in Croke Park tonight.
An iconic setting for the final act of an iconic Irish athlete. Roll the cameras for the opening bell.
“For the big emotional nights, RTÉ Sport have never been found wanting, and I would hope that’s going to be the case again this Saturday,” O’Neill concludes.
“It has been a journey into the unknown to a large extent from a professional point of view. When it all comes together, it will probably be the one that will give me the most satisfaction above anything that I’ve ever done in my career.”
****
Watch Katie Taylor v Flora Pili on RTÉ2 & RTÉ Player and listen on 2FM. Coverage of the fight will be presented by Jacqui Hurley from 8pm.
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
Behind The Scenes Croke Park DAZN Flora Pili Katie Taylor Matchroom Boxing