Take A Look At Soccer Commentator Nick Barnes' Cheat Sheet (10 pics)

1

2

Despite the hours that Barnes pours into each page, he uses his notes only sparingly during actual gameplay. “They are there purely as a crutch and a point of reference if need be,” he said. “If I was a newspaper reporter, I could keep my match reports, but radio is transient, so my notebook is my personal record of the matches I cover.”

3

4

Barnes creates a detailed two-page spread for each match he commentates for BBC Radio Newcastle. The notes are divided into two color-coded segments: The left-hand page contains background information on Sunderland’s opposition—the club’s starting XI from its last fixture, previous results, and stadium details—while the right-hand side is updated in real time as the action happens.

5

6

7

8

Sometimes the action gets ahead of Barnes’s pen and paper. “There have been a couple of occasions when I’ve been writing something down during the match and there has been a goal or an incident,” he said. “Then I have to thank [Gary Bennett, Barnes’s co-commentator] for being beside me or the monitor which will hopefully replay it.”

9

10

11

12