Time On: Mark Howard’s new commentary gig

Fox Footy caller Mark Howard is about to go missing in the middle of the AFL season for another commentary gig — but it’s an opportunity too good to turn down.

Mark Howard was given the green light to head to India. Picture: Brett Costello

Time On is your Monday wrap up of all the footy gossip from the weekend.

Footy and cricket commentator Mark Howard is off for a stint in India.

Howard, who calls for Fox Footy and Triple M, is going to call the Indian Premier League.

“I was privileged to be asked to go to the IPL for an extended period of time and our fantastic boss at Fox Cricket Steve Crawley said I think it’s a good opportunity,’’ Howard said.

“Just a short little stint in India which I’m tremendously looking forward to.”

Howard was grilled by his Triple M Friday Huddle colleagues for going missing during the footy season.

“I asked the boss and he thought it was a great opportunity for me,’’ Howard said.

“It’ll be broadcast on Fox Cricket.”

Howard’s successful podcast The Howie Games has secured more big names with F1 star Lewis Hamilton and an upcoming chat with Greg Norman.

He recently had a chat with Aussie golf star Cameron Smith who has joined LIV Golf.

Matthew Lloyd never considered leaving the Bombers. Picture: Michael Klein

Loyal Llordo

Matthew Lloyd has revealed he rejected a long term deal from Sydney to be the replacement for Tony Lockett.

It was 1999 and he was 21.

“Lockett was retiring at the end of the year and I did receive a call from (my manager) Ricky Nixon saying they want you to be the man up in Sydney for the next five, six years, as long as you want,’’ Lloyd said on the Sunday Footy Show.

“But I was too happy at the club. I actually didn’t want to ever hear about the money offer because of how entrenched I was at the Bombers.

“It would have been a lot more — probably double.”

Scotty James celebrating at the footy on Saturday night.

Olympian’s footy bachelor party

Looks like Scotty James had the time of his life over the weekend.

The Olympic snowboarder was in a box at the footy on Saturday night at the MCG dressed as a penguin accompanied by a cardboard cut out of his fiance Chloe Stroll’s head.

A big Bombers fan, he was celebrating his bucks with family and friends here, having already had a party abroad with close mates.

James’ good friend Daniel Ricciardo revealed he was part of that fun.

“I don’t know if I’d ever been to a bachelor party in my life,’’ Ricciardo said.

“Although we are goofballs at times (James) is certainly quite mature in terms of having deep conversations and someone I talk to a lot.”

James was at the Grand Prix all weekend supporting his soon to be brother-in-law Lance Stroll who drives for Aston Martin and just missed a podium finish on Sunday.

Stars lapping up GP

Footy players lapped up the Grand Prix over the weekend.

Spotted in the Paddock Club on Sunday were Essendon’s Dyson Heppell, Bulldogs Marcus Bontempelli, Ed Richards and Jack Macrae and Collingwood’s Darcy Moore and Mason Cox.

Nick Daicos and Christian Petracca were also trackside on Saturday. Elsewhere on Sunday at the All-American Events Miami F1 Grand Prix Penthouse Party in St Kilda, there were Bulldogs Cody Weightman, Mitch Hannan and former star Mitch Wallis, as well as Hawthorn’s Jarman Impey.

Arty Jones with his family in the rooms after the Bulldogs win on Thursday night.

TV star in the making

Arty Jones has a future behind the camera as well as on the ground.

The young Bulldogs forward joined the Channel 7 team behind the desk after his debut on Thursday night and was great talent.

Channel 7 host Hamish McLachlan and commentators Jobe Watson and Dale Thomas couldn’t stop smiling while talking to the 19 year-old, who hails from Mount Barker in Western Australia.

He even brought his mum in for a chat and came back to wrap up the coverage.

“I’m living out every boy’s dream — it’s as good as it gets,” Jones said.

“I think I was dead serious in the locker rooms before the warm-up, but then looking up the raceway I think it hit me then. I just thought ‘wow, kid you’re living the dream’.”

He revealed he’s related to Jamarra Ugle-Hagan through his Ugle side and also had uncle Andy, Andrew Krakouer, in the rooms after the game.

“I watched him and thought if he can do it I can do it,’’ Jones said.