EMILY WALLIS: Greyhound Derby Blog #7 – Bring on the Semi-Finals!

Welcome back to my Derby blog for this week where now just 12 dogs remain and we are in for two very exciting semi-finals on Saturday, writes EMILY WALLIS.

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⭐ STAR SPORTS GREYHOUND DERBY 2026 CONTENT ⭐

⭐ GWA TIPPING CHALLENGE ⭐

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⭐ The semi-finals are probably the hardest race for connections to watch as you are so close to making the final and the dreams of doing that and potentially going all the way in the competition are definitely there now, yet it can be the hardest round to go out in for the connections of the six dogs that don’t make it through as you really were so close.

⭐ It’s an amazing achievement to make it to the semi-finals though and for each dog that’s there, they’ll have that proudly on their CV. It’s a very exciting time as the competition gets to the very latter stages and it’ll soon be Saturday when we’ll find out who our six finalists are.

⭐ The quarter-finals last Saturday didn’t disappoint; there was really great racing and the atmosphere at Towcester was brilliant once again. There were plenty of people there, regulars and what looks like a lot of new faces too all enjoying the blaring sunshine that we were treated to!

⭐ The first quarter-final had just the five runners as Bubbly Hogan had to be withdrawn lame, very unfortunate for connections but thankfully just a minor setback. Still, it was a seriously hot race and it was a shame we’d have to lose two runners from the competition. Epic Ace impressed once again showing his fantastic early pace and going on to win in good style, he’s always had so much speed but consistency at the traps has perhaps let him down slightly in his career so far but that hasn’t really been an issue at Towcester yet hence why he is now the 3/1 favourite and if he can come away well for the next couple of weeks, he will be hard to beat.

⭐In that quarter-final, Proper Heiress didn’t come away from trap 1 but also showed brilliant early pace, he had to ride quite a bump at the first bend but did so well and managed to turn second, after not leading he ran great to qualify but was picked up for second by the very strong Ballymac Iroko, the first runner and qualifier for in-form Liam Dowling.

⭐ The second quarter-final looked a good match between Scooby The Lady and Ballymac Duffle. This was over in a matter of strides as Scooby The Lady once again smashed out of the traps to record a brilliant 3.75 sectional, she too got to the front and kept pulling. Ballymac Duffle was so impressive just to stay on his feet at the first bend where it all got very crowded. He somehow managed to turn fourth and flew home to grab third spot. In front of him was Sole Focus who used a good draw to his full advantage to book his spot in the semi-finals despite being 40/1 in the race!

⭐ The next quarter-final was also won in a matter of strides as Ballymac Deniro got it right at the traps, something he hadn’t done in a few weeks and once he led, there was only one winner despite Lennies Eddie running an absolute blinder in second only being beaten a length and a half behind Deniro who clocked 28.21! Lennies Tank looked to run a lot better than in previous weeks too and grabbed that vital third spot.

⭐ The final quarter-final looked the most competitive and brought one of the most exciting races. Hackney Corner, the sole runner left for Pat Buckley, showed brilliant speed to get to the front and lead around the first bend but our little Strike It Skye managed to get herself into a position and showed frightening back straight pace to take the lead around the last couple of bends. She’s only 28.5 kilos but she’s not scared of the bigger dogs, she has good all round pace but is so fast from the second bend, she’s doing us proud and it meant both of the ladies left qualified from their quarter-finals. Ballymac Ralf ran brilliant to only lose by a neck and this meant that all four of Liam Dowling’s runners qualified for the semi-finals – a fantastic performance from him and his team!

⭐ This means that Liam Dowling has a third of the field in Saturday’s semi-finals, trainers who are doubly represented still are Paul Hennessy and Mark Wallis. All three of these trainers have won the Derby before, Paul Hennessy has won it at Wimbledon and Nottingham and is looking for his first win at Towcester after having multiple finalists in the last few years. Chatting to him this week about his team he has said, “It’s brilliant to make the semi-finals and we’re still in there with a chance! Lennies Eddie did his best performance yet last week, he’s a cracking young dog and he’s absolutely loving it around Towcester.

⭐ “Lennies Tank is a brilliant greyhound and has so much early pace but he’s struggling with the traps at Towcester, he partially opened them last week which meant he missed his break. He’s a wide seed so has to be in trap 6 but it’s disappointing to travel all the way over and it not be fair for him at the traps.

“However, we’d rather be in them than not and we’ve been delighted with all the other efforts made at Towcester. Both of the dogs are at home in Ireland until we’ll travel over again at the weekend, they’re in great order, they’re both good travellers and in brilliant form. They’ll be trying their hardest on Saturday and hopefully we can have one sneak through.”

⭐ Despite being the outsider of the field, Soul Focus has ran with great credit in every race he’s had throughout the Derby so far. Still lightly raced for his age, he’s drawn trap 1 the last two weeks and seems to handle it well and that’s where he’ll come out of in the second semi-final on Saturday. Debbie Calvert’s son and Head Kennelhand, Craig Calvert, has worked at the kennels from a young age and is really enjoying the buzz that Sole Focus is bringing them throughout the Derby. He said, “We’ve been delighted with how he’s performed so far, he’s taken to the track well and is really enjoying his racing at Towcester.

“He’s overlooked in the betting but he’s well drawn and with a good break, we think he has every chance of qualifying. He’s given the kennel and owners a lot to look forward to so regardless of the result, we are over the moon with him!”

⭐ Both semi-finals on Saturday look extremely hard and competitive, perhaps the first one in particular. It includes the first two in the market in Epic Ace and Ballymac Duffle; Duffle has been finding himself having to do things the hard way the last couple of weeks and cannot afford to do the same here, particularly with Epic Ace on his inside, however the way he was trapping and the times clocked in the first couple of rounds will put him right back in it. Inside of those two in trap 1 we have Lennies Eddie who’s so consistent and ran brilliantly behind Ballymac Deniro last week, Strike It Skye goes from trap 2 and she has won her last three races despite drawing some of the hardest heats, connections won’t want to see her immediately behind them going down the back straight. Then on the outside, we have Ballymac Deniro who bounced back to winning ways in great style last week and then Ballymac Iroko who, again, connections won’t want to see turn behind them! A fantastic race with many different potential outcomes.

⭐ In the second semi-final we have Sole Focus in trap 1, then Proper Heiress with a much more ideal draw than last week which should hopefully see him trap better. Scooby The Lady has lost her beloved blue jacket here and goes from trap 3 instead, she hasn’t yet had a sectional that hasn’t been in the 3.70s in the Derby which is truly remarkable and if she can do that here, she’ll be hard to lead. We then have Ballymac Ralf who can do things both ways and absolutely flew home last week, then Hackney Corner who ran well last week but may not appreciate being back in trap 5. Finally, we have Lennies Tank on the outside who should get a clear run and, in races like this, that can be so vital.

⭐ Once we know our finalists, all roads lead back to Towcester on Monday for the Derby Lunch. Always a fantastic day, it’s brilliant for connections to celebrate making the final and an enjoy all the Derby talk before the nerves will really start to kick in. This year will be particularly special as we celebrate the life and career of Nick Savva, a four time English Derby winning trainer, including twice with the brilliant Westmead Hawk. Hawk’s second Derby win in 2006 is something I watch on YouTube a lot despite being slightly too young to remember watching it live. “The writing is surely on the wall…” a brilliant commentary from Errol Blyth. We also sadly lost his owner, Bob Morton, who passed awat just a few days after Nick Savva, he will also be remembered at the lunch, it will be a special day.

⭐ More sad news came this week with Linda Mullins, a legendary trainer, sadly passing away. I’m sure she will also be honoured at the Derby Lunch as everyone sends their condolences to her family. Her late husband, Pat Mullins, won the Derby in 1978 with Lacca Champion and their sons Dave, John and Kelly have all trained in their own right, very successfully too.

⭐ The Derby brings so many memories and special moments to people and families, it puts the dog, trainer and owner’s name in the history books forever. It really isn’t long now until we will find out who’ll be adding their name to the prestigious list of Derby winners this year.

⭐ A good initiative has also launched with an online charity auction being run next week with lots including some well-bred greyhound puppies all to raise money for greyhound rehoming charities. The auction will be available on the Greyhound Trader platform and all net proceeds going to various UK and Irish registered greyhound rehoming charities.

⭐ The weather at Towcester on Saturday looks promising again and it’s set to be a brilliant night of action. We have the semi-finals of five other supporting competitions to enjoy where you’ll see superstars of all their respective distances competing to make the finals for the big night next Saturday. It’s not one to miss if you can get yourself to Towcester!

⭐ There are just a few days to go until we’ll found out who our finalists are, to all connections – the best of luck!

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