Eleventh hour cancellation thwarts one and all..
DESPITE the tireless efforts of the groundstaff at Doncaster on Friday the BETDAQ Premier League meeting there was cancelled at the eleventh hour when plummeting temperatures way below the local forecast forced the meeting to be called off.
In the hours leading up to the start of the meeting it was all hands to the pump in an effort to keep the surface frost free but when it dipped to minus eight degrees, five degrees colder than forecast, the management, after consultation with the vet and trainers, admitted defeat.
The meeting was eventually cancelled just minutes before the first race was due off and there was hardly a complaining word from owners and trainers. “We’re all going home with the same number of dogs as we came here with and they are all sound, that’s what matters,” was how Mark Wallis summed up the decision to cancel.
DESPITE the tireless efforts of the groundstaff at Doncaster on Friday the BETDAQ Premier League meeting there was cancelled at the eleventh hour when plummeting temperatures way below the local forecast forced the meeting to be called off.
In the hours leading up to the start of the meeting it was all hands to the pump in an effort to keep the surface frost free but when it dipped to minus eight degrees, five degrees colder than forecast, the management, after consultation with the vet and trainers, admitted defeat.
The meeting was eventually cancelled just minutes before the first race was due off and there was hardly a complaining word from owners and trainers. “We’re all going home with the same number of dogs as we came here with and they are all sound, that’s what matters,” was how Mark Wallis summed up the decision to cancel.
Premier League organiser Chris Page, who in his days as racing manager at under-soil heated Walthamstow rarely had a problem with the elements, expressed his disappointment at losing the meeting. “Welfare was paramount and while it was a great shame to lose the meeting the unanimous feeling was that the right decision had been made, in fact it was a no brainer,” he said.
“The temperature dipped suddenly, at 5pm the GBGB steward and the vet walked the track and it was fine but after kennelling a number of trainers had a walk round and found some hard patches on the outside, that’s how quickly the temperature dropped,” Page continued.
“On behalf of GOBATA I would like to express our sincere thanks to general manager Yvonne Freeborn and her staff who worked like demons to get the show on the road but they were fighting a losing battle.”
The Premier League draws to a conclusion back at Doncaster on Friday week when the title will be decided along with the GOBATA Championship. “In the meantime I will consult with the teams to decide the fairest way to allocate scores and we are considering introducing two jokers as opposed to one,” Page concluded.
*GOBATA will be making discretionary payments to trainers to cover their travelling costs on Friday and would like to express our thanks to all concerned for making the journey.
“The temperature dipped suddenly, at 5pm the GBGB steward and the vet walked the track and it was fine but after kennelling a number of trainers had a walk round and found some hard patches on the outside, that’s how quickly the temperature dropped,” Page continued.
“On behalf of GOBATA I would like to express our sincere thanks to general manager Yvonne Freeborn and her staff who worked like demons to get the show on the road but they were fighting a losing battle.”
The Premier League draws to a conclusion back at Doncaster on Friday week when the title will be decided along with the GOBATA Championship. “In the meantime I will consult with the teams to decide the fairest way to allocate scores and we are considering introducing two jokers as opposed to one,” Page concluded.
*GOBATA will be making discretionary payments to trainers to cover their travelling costs on Friday and would like to express our thanks to all concerned for making the journey.
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