Two different ways of consuming Sunday evening's Merseyside derby made for an interesting contrast as I listened to Five Live out in the garden for the first half before watching the second on the television as it had been made available free-to-air.
There was no pretence to the radio commentary and with no added crowd noise it was left to John Murray and Mark Lawrenson to get across what was happening on the pitch while also painting a picture of the unique circumstances surrounding the game.
To me they did so successfully and it had the feel of Test Match Special in that the importance of the match wasn't overstated and the idea of real life continuing outside the ground was acknowledged.
In contrast the television commentary seemed lost in the midst of the piped atmosphere (I know that this option can be turned off if you have Sky itself) and I find it curious that the broadcasters have such little faith in the action on the pitch to hold the attention.
The importance of the crowd to the TV coverage has been laid bare over the past week or so, not just as a visual backdrop but also for the context it gives to the key moments that take place during the game.
Clubs have paid due lip service to the importance of their fans but will it mean anything in practice when spectators are allowed back into grounds in terms of season ticket and matchday prices and the availability of tickets to different age and social groups.
Like so many aspects of life at the moment we can only wait and see.
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