Nine Lets Go Of O'Donnell, ESPN Hires Growden For Rugby Coverage

Australia's Channel Nine "has parted ways" with sports commentator Simon O'Donnell after 25 years, according to Darryl Timms of the HERALD SUN. O'Donnell said that "he was a victim of the network's salary cap." He said that he had "great memories of his work" with Nine and described "it as a sad day." O'Donnell was a cricket commentator, covered football and "thrived in the network's Spring Carnival racing coverage." O'Donnell: "There was no room in the salary cap for me" (HERALD SUN, 11/21). Meanwhile in Sydney, Nick Leys noted ESPN hired former Fairfax Media journalist Greg Growden as a writer and analyst. Growden "will appear on TV as well as online and provide southern hemisphere expertise to ESPN's coverage." He will cover RBS Six Nations Rugby, Super Rugby and the British & Irish Lions tours in '13 (THE AUSTRALIAN, 11/20).