Game-changers: Record grand final ratings to usher in TV’s next big things

FORGET the AFL and NRL grand finals - we should be excited about what comes after them. The TV wars are intensifying.

FIRST it’s big-rating live grand finals, then it’s drama, drama, drama.

Channel Seven has already won the year, but there are still shots to be fired in the commercial free-to-air television ratings wars.

Record numbers are forecast to watch this weekend’s two big sport events: the AFL grand final on Seven, and the NRL grand final on Nine.

And that will be a warm-up for another stoush on Monday, with two new dramas and a new season of The X Factor entering the fray.

Reality check: X Factor judges Adam Lambert, Iggy Azalea and Guy Sebastian. Picture: Channel 7

GRAND FINAL WARS

Those big bucks Seven and Nine shell out for sporting rights come to fruition this weekend.

Live television, especially sport, remains the last great bastion for free-to-air network TV dominance: nobody wants to record or download it to watch later, and exclusive live rights mean their broadcasts are the only way to watch the games, unless you’re there.

Forget reality TV: the five most-watched programs of 2015 were the three NRL State of Origin matches, the NRL grand final and the AFL grand final.

Last year’s NRL grand final final set a new viewer record, peaking at 4.4 million viewers tuning in to watch North Queensland down Brisbane Broncos. The AFL grand final kicked goals of its own, peaking at 3.9 million viewers. Average ratings for the two games were closer: 3.6 million to the NRL, and 3.5 million to AFL.

Insiders expect both numbers to be bigger this year, with Saturday’s AFL grand final predicted to peak at more than 4 million.

Preliminary finals ratings bode well for the record: last Saturday’s clash when Western Bulldogs won their way into the grand final, ousting GWS Giants, captured an average audience of 2.39 million.

Throw in the fact that the Sydney Swans always rate with viewers, and the Bulldogs present an irresistible underdog story, and the bumper ratings forecast seems in reach.

“Undeniably, it is an extraordinary match-up between the Swans and the Bulldogs. A tale of two cities, the pursuit of a dream by the Bulldogs against the Swans which has delivered the biggest national audiences in its Grand Final appearances,” said Seven’s Simon Francis.

Meanwhile in NRL land, Nine is basking in 2016 ratings which delivered the biggest State of Origin viewer numbers in history: peaking at 4.423 million viewers for Origin I.

Nine has shared the NRL round match and preliminary final spoils with Fox Sports, but again has the exclusive rights to the live grand final broadcast, with pundits tipping it will peak at a record of more than 4.5 million viewers when Cronulla takes on Melbourne Storm.

DRAMA, DRAMA, DRAMA

Monday night sees the focus switch from sport and the battleground reset in the final TV year charge.

Three new shows come into the commercial free-to-air schedule.

The X Factor: Next Generation enters the reality TV fray for Seven, and looks to have a tough task against Nine’s perennially good performer The Block, which has remained rock-solid in the ratings. Seven’s hopes ride on the lure of judges Guy Sebastian, Iggy Azalea and Adam Lambert a shorter season, a longer title and a revamp to carry off success with an ageing franchise.

Monday night also marks the clash of two much-hyped new Australian dramas on Nine and Seven.

There’s plenty of positive buzz around Nine’s Hyde and Seek. There’s a lot to like about the eight-episode crime thriller series, with Matt Nable and Zoe Ventura heading up a stellar cast which also includes Deborra-lee Furness and Mandy McElhinney.

Seven’s new offering, the Jess Mauboy-helmed The Secret Daughter has also had plenty of hype. The six-epsiode drama has also had plenty of hype, with early reviews indicating Mauboy hits the spot, as does the booming pub rock soundtrack.

Viewers are spoiled for choice with new, homegrown drama at the moment. The new offerings arrive on the back of the debuts of Nine’s Doctor, Doctor, already renewed for a second season, and Ten’s Wrong Girl, starring Jessica Marais.

Channel Ten will also usher in the two-part drama Brock, about the life of motor racing driver Peter Brock on October 9.

It airs on the same weekend Ten broadcasts the Bathurst 1000 from Mount Panorama, the track which Brock made his own and earned the moniker The King of the Mountain.

AFL — Sydney Swans v Western Bulldogs: Grand final day coverage from 9am, match starts 2.30pm, Saturday on Seven

NRL — Cronulla Sharks v Melbourne Storm Grand final day coverage from 10am, match starts 7.15pm, Sunday on Nine

The X Factor: Monday, 7.30pm Seven

Hyde and Seek, Monday, 8.45pm, Nine

The Secret Daughter: Monday, 9pm, Seven

Gritty thriller: Matt Nable and Zoe Ventoura star in Hyde and Seek. Picture: Channel 9