And we thank all those who played a vital role in bringing the project to this stage...

TOWCESTER chairman Lord Hesketh has described yesterday’s successful application to construct a greyhound track at the racecourse as “the most exciting development to happen here since our £12 million reconstruction of the course.”

The chairman continued: “I hope it will rapidly become the premier greyhound track in Europe as well as providing us with the opportunity of vastly increasing the footprint of our gaming and technology business, GG.com.”

And Towcester’s general manager, Kevin Ackerman, offered his personal thanks to GOBATA chairman Martin White and Premier League organiser Chris Page, “for their tireless support to this project and, with the first phase of the development now complete, we look forward to working closely with GOBATA to make Towcester Racecourse the Ascot of the greyhound world.”

In turn, White expressed his gratitude to Towcester and also those GOBATA members who gave their time and effort in bringing the project forward. Our chairman stated: “The entire sport should be grateful that Lord Hesketh and his team have committed to such a fantastic venture.

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TOWCESTER racecourse was today granted permission to construct a greyhound track and work on the project will start immediately.

The green light has been greeted with considerable appreciation by the GOBATA committee, including chairman Martin White who, along with Chris Page, has worked tirelessly with the Towcester management to get ‘our dream’ off the ground.

“This is the best thing that has happened to greyhound racing in decades,” said White, “we’ve worked very closely with Towcester over many months and it has now become a reality, it is wonderful news.”

The first Towcester greyhound meeting is planned for August and initially racing will be staged once a week. “These are very exciting times and GOBATA wishes to express our grateful thanks to Lord Hesketh and his management team at Towcester, they have all given this venture their full backing.

“From now on it is full steam ahead and all hands to the pump! added White.”

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“See you in the second division next time,” he says

SEAMUS CAHILL, languishing at the foot of the BETDAQ Premier League table under the guise of the Irish Rovers, will need a near miracle to take the title at Doncaster tomorrow when both the PL and the GOBATA Championship will eventually be decided.

Cahill’s squad will take just 28 points into the final round, some 24 points behind narrow leaders Imperial Rock Its representing Mark Wallis and Paul Sallis and doesn’t rate his chances of overhauling those at the top of the pile.

“Far from winning the Premier League I’m getting accustomed to the idea that I’ll be in division two next time around so that hope for a miracle is looking like even less than a dot on the horizon! But the dogs will be doing their best, it’s really out of my hands now.”

The trainer attributes his league placing to “what has been a very slow start to the year for the kennels.” He added: “We had kennel sickness and coughing here through January and this set everything back a few weeks, we’re gradually getting going again but as far as the Premier League is concerned it looks like the comeback will be too late.

“We’ve all got an extra joker this time and I’ve nominated Skywalkershearer and Rayvin Again but at this stage I don’t really know who’s joking who! When the competition comes around again though we’ll be going for it big time but I wouldn’t want any more problems like we had this time with the sickness.”

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It’s grand finals night at Doncaster..

THE trap draw for the final round of both the BETDAQ Premier League and GOBATA Championship,  to be run at Doncaster on Friday, produced some intriguing contests yesterday and probably none more so than the last leg of the League, the eleventh race on the card.

The race brings together Local Dee Jay from the much in-form Kelly Findlay kennels but whose aspirations as a hurdler have been put on the burner behind the bank burner. He never took to the  jumping game but as a flat runner he is up there with the best of them.

The Dee Jay has a perfect pitch in trap one and will need it with the presence in the line up of Munster Champ and Mags Gamble but there is no ignoring his splendid 29.33sec. (calculated) trial here last week and if stepping out smartly the others will need to play catch up.

Munster Champ looks the big danger, he has been in good form for Mark Wallis (Imperial Rock Its) recently and, conversely, he too could not be better drawn in trap six. Mags Gamble was beaten in an untidy race at Newcastle on Saturday and the form should not be taken at face value.

One peculiarity to emerge from the draw is the presence of Munster Champ in that final leg of the Premier League. Peculiar because the dog is owned in partnership by Team North East captain, Ian Lavery MP, but runs for the Mark Wallis and Paul Sallis side.

How this came about we are unsure but Team North East are represented here by Mags Gamble from the Harry Williams kennel and could be the chief threat to Local Dee Jay and Munster Champ.

While the Premier League offers a feast of top class racing the four legs of the GOBATA Championship look equally fascinating, particularly the puppy race in which Dean Childs introduces the September baby, Aero Lillie.

Running for the first time in front of what will likely be a full house at Doncaster is a big ask for one so young but she ran a very smart 29.57sec. solo here last week and clearly has ability and is one for the notebook, if not for Saturday!

Her main rival is surely Farloe Kyle as a hound out of the Barrie Draper kennel these days is synonymous with winner. He too has run a good trial here but is drawn in trap four and on the immediate outside of the Childs runner, it is to be hoped they don’t spoil the other’s chances on the dash down to the first bend.

Plenty then to look forward to up in Yorkshire this Friday and for those of you who can’t get to the track you can see it all live on Premier Sports (Sky channel 433) – don’t miss it.

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DONCASTER last night was unrecognisable from seven days earlier there when the Premier League meeting was lost due to freezing temperatures and the accompanying crusty track conditions.

But many of the trainers who will hope to go back to Donny next Friday were out in force last night when no fewer than 33 aspirants for the final round of the BETDAQ Premier League and GOBATA Championship were put through their paces in trials.

“Unlike last Friday the track was in brilliant condition and there were some decent runs by the dogs coming back here next week,” said racing manager, Mick Smith. “I particularly liked the look of Matt Dartnall’s Ballymac Pet in a six-bender who, although she was caught close home, was impressive nevertheless and she’ll be a force to reckon with in the stayers’ race next week.”

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KELLY FINDLAY’S wish came true when her Henlow Puppy Derby winner, Coolavanny Bert, was drawn on the outside (trap two) of three times big race winner, Eden Star, for the Racing Post Juvenile Championship at Wimbledon on February 28 (live on Sky).

“It’s a great race and we’re very pleased to be in it,” said Mrs Findlay, “and being on the outside of Eden Star is what we were hoping for. He’ a very fast dog and so too is ours but being closer to the rails than Barrie’s (Draper) dog will suit us just fine.”

However, she might do well to remember that Eden Star, winner of the Puppy Derby, Romford Puppy Cup and Laurels in his first season, is unbeaten in his only two races from trap three and beaten only twice in eleven races.

Coolavanny Bert’s record compares similarly to Eden Star’s, he’s lost only three times in ten races and on the only occasion he ran from trap two won in a common canter at Sittingbourne in November.

Draw: 1 Mill Maximus (late Unreal Timmy), 2 Coolavanny Bert, 3 Eden Star, 4 Farloe Iceman, 5 Silverview Perky (m), 6 Go Go Sonic (w).

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To the points 16/02/2012
 
FOLLOWING the cancellation and subsequent abandonment of the third round of the BETDAQ Premier League, due to the difficulties and cost of re-scheduling TV/production in the time available the GOBATA rules committee, with the omission of Mark Wallis through the affected party rule, have considered how points should be awarded for the fourth and final round on Friday week at Doncaster.

The decision was made in an attempt to re-establish the total points which would have been available at Doncaster last Friday when the third round should have taken  place. On the basis that the maximum score for any team is 36 points (5 races x 6 points plus double for a winning Joker) the maximum for two meetings is 72 points.

The only way to have 72 points available with two jokers is to double the points in each race i.e. 12/10/8/6/4/2 and treble them for jokers. So a team scoring maximum points will get 3 x 12 plus 2 x 18 = 72 points.

We were particularly concious of two matters. Betting on the total points/joker-related betting would be compromised by withdrawing a third of the original total available and teams trying to avoid relegation would be seriously disadvantaged by having half of the available points withdrawn.

We move on to grand finals night at Doncaster with everything to play for. There are only five points separating the top four teams in the BETDAQ Premier League and the top three in the GOBATA Championship, so competition will be intense. If you are unable to attend and avail yourself of some fantastic Yorkshire hospitality the meeting is Free to Air on Sky Channel 433.

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A COMPETITION currently in progress at Tralee has a prizemoney breakdown in the final that tracks in Britain would do well to note.

With the trend here prize-wise to concentrate mostly on winners of big events but, in many cases, offer a pittance to the other finalists, the second and third in the John & Mary Killeacle Dowling Memorial final later this month at Tralee will be generously rewarded.

The 570 yards event is for A1 class greyhounds with the winner of the final collecting 3000 euros, the second 1250 and the third 750, more proportionate you may agree than for the beaten dogs in big finals here.

Other races on the Kingdom track’s card also carried eye-opening prizes, for example an A3 was worth 225 euros to the winner, an A6 195 euros and an A4 215 euros.

Compare these rewards to the paltry amounts for winners at Belle Vue tonight where the opening A6 event carries the princely sum of £56 and the A2s £76. And there are folk out there who tell us that the game in Britain is on the up, who’s kidding who?

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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.

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Williams star has the talent, and we’re not joking!

DESPITE being five points adrift of the leaders in the BETDAQ Premier League confidence in landing the championship is hardly ebbing away in the Team North East camp, which will go out all guns blazing for the penultimate round of the competition at Doncaster on Friday.

That skipper Ian Lavery MP and his squad have nominated Tudor Prince as their joker in leg three (the standard once-rounder) bears testament to the fact that the original ante-post favourites for the title have far from given up the ghost as the 483 metres contest is the arguably the most competitive race of the night.

The Harry Williams-trained Tudor Prince meets the likes of the Kent Derby first and second, Jazz Apollo and Local Dee Jay, plus three accomplished runners in the outside traps, but he will not be meeting his nemesis, Mill Bling Bling at Donny, and Williams will probably be thankful for that!

Tudor Prince chased home Mill Bling Bling in all three of team mate Kelly Macari’s Category 1 event victories, the Eclipse, Steel City Cup and All England Cup, but the pride of the North East has a night off tonight and the Williams dog can prove to be a most able alternative challenger.

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