It has been revealed that James Bracey and Peter Sterling will replace The Footy Show host Erin Molan when she goes on maternity leave.
In an announcement made on Sunday by Nine, it was revealed that Erin will be going on maternity leave in mid-May.
‘I’m excited for this next phase,’ Erin, 35, said in an official statement.
‘I’m excited for this next phase’: The Footy Show’s pregnant host Erin Molan will be replaced by James Bracey and Peter Sterling when she goes on maternity leave
New hosts: Pictured is Peter Sterling (L) and James Bracey (R)
‘I’m excited for this next phase and also looking forward to introducing the newest member of our family to everyone at Nine,’ Erin said.
Erin said she and fiance Sean Ogilvy are ‘so excited to meet our baby’, and added: ‘We just hope Bub is polite enough to come before or at least in between State of Origin matches!’
She added: ‘We want to thank all the wonderful people who have sent through their best wishes and particularly those who have assured me ‘It won’t hurt a bit’… majority male!’
Expecting: Erin said she and fiance Sean Ogilvy are ‘so excited to meet our baby’, and added: ‘We just hope Bub is polite enough to come before or at least in between State of Origin matches!’
James will host the show after Thursday Night Football, while Peter will fill in as host of the Sunday Footy Show.
James said in a statement: ‘Erin does such a fantastic job in her role as host, and I hope I can add something off the bench until she’s fit and ready to return.’
Last week, Beau Ryan told Daily Mail Australia that network bosses were keeping him in the dark about who would replace Erin while she’s on maternity leave.
‘I don’t know what they’re going to do, I’m sure they’ve obviously spoken about it but no one has told me yet,’ Beau said.
Erin is currently in the third trimester of her pregnancy and Channel Nine was rumoured to be keen to get Fatty back to host after the show’s ratings took a dip with her at the helm.
Coming back? Erin is currently in the third trimester of her pregnancy and Channel Nine was rumoured to be keen to get Fatty (R) back to host after the show’s ratings took a dip with her at the helm
Last month, the network faced pressure by fans to reinstate veteran host Paul ‘Fatty’ Vautin, following Erin’s promotion this year.
A Facebook petition, titled ‘Footy show boycott, Bring back the Fat’, has attracted close to 24,000 likes, and seen a common thread of viewers wanting the blonde beauty to be axed.
A post shared to the social media site earlier this month, saw die-hard Footy Show fans urging for the sports program to be ‘brought back to life’.