AUTHOR: Star Sports Content
EMILY WALLIS: Greyhound Derby Countdown BLOG 1
EMILY WALLIS starts her weekly blogging of the 2024 Star Sports Greyhound Derby with the return of her countdown blog to the action at Towcester …..
⭐ Welcome back! I am excited to be writing the first blog for this year’s Star Sports Greyhound Derby, although it’s hard to believe we are already at this time of year the Derby is fast approaching and my weekly blogs will aim to keep everyone updated on the latest Derby news as we approach the first round and all throughout the competition. ⭐ LATEST STAR MARKET ⭐
⭐ The countdown page has been available to view since February but as you’ll be able to see we are getting closer and closer to the first round kicking off on Thursday 23rd May.
I’ve been out on the road with the Kennel Visits with plenty more planned – the latest with Maxine Locke is below …
⭐ I for one really can’t wait for the competition this year, it has been known for a while that, due to works going on at Shelbourne Park, the Irish Derby is going to be held later this year meaning we are likely to see an even stronger Irish challenge for our Derby this year than usual. However, the standard of 4 bend dogs in the UK right now is extremely hot and there would be multiple capable of beating the best and winning a Derby which really is an exciting thought, bring it on! Don’t forget Star Sports are putting up a £50,000 BONUS for any dog that complete the English / Irish Derby Double !!
⭐ Kicking off with our current ante-post favourite, King Memphis ⭐ LATEST STAR MARKET ⭐ has been hyped up for the Derby since first arriving on the scene. Who could forget his first ever race on Derby semi-final night last year where he was narrowly beaten by New Destiny but ran an unbelievable race for such a young pup, a certain Droopys Clue finished behind him in that race in third! He had a crack at the Produce Stakes at Swindon and finished second in the Cowley Puppy Collar at Oxford but the ante-post money would have started coming for him in the Puppy Derby at Towcester in November when he broke the track record in the semi finals and picked up littermate King Capaldi in the final. He went on to go unbeaten through the Olympic at Hove and then was recently beaten in the Kent Plate final by his cousin Queen Joni.
He was supposed to run in the Juvenile recently at Towcester but was withdrawn due to a dispute over kennelling times. He did however trial at Hove last week clocking a very quick 16.21, on him Rab McNair has said: “It was a great trial and would have been a good blowout for him. The plan is for him to run on Judgement Night and then I’ll either trial him at Towcester or put him in a trial stake and that will be him as the first round isn’t far away!”
⭐ Ed Dark from the Star Sports trading room is bringing regular updates on significant ⭐ STAR MARKET ⭐ movers. Make sure you are following Star’s twitter account to keep in touch with these.
⭐ Speaking of Droopys Clue or ‘Cluedo’ as many have come to know him, he managed to lower Memphis’ Towcester track record a couple of Sundays ago when he obliterated a good class race winning by over 7 lengths in a scary time of 28.58 on going rated normal. He was recently crowned the GBGB Greyhound of the Year for 2023 at the recent awards in Brighton and it was thoroughly deserved after winning the Juvenile Classic at Towcester last year, going unbeaten through the St Leger at Perry Barr and also breaking the track record in the final and going unbeaten through the Ballyregan Bob and George Curtis Memorial at Hove in December over a very stiff 740m showing what a versatile dog he is. He is a dog of a lifetime for connections and trainer Seamus Cahill has had the Derby planned out for him for a while and that track record breaking run shortened him in the market.
⭐ We have been treated to some absolutely cracking trial stakes at Towcester the last couple of weeks run alongside the Maiden Derby competition where dogs who do well in that usually do well in the Derby itself, of course most notably Thorn Falcon in 2021 who won both competitions! The Maiden Derby has highlighted how strong the Irish challenge will be for the Derby this year as four Irish finalists will head to the traps on Sunday – 1 for Graham Holland and 3 for Paul Hennessy. Jaytee Craze is likely to go of a short priced favourite in that race for Paul Hennessy with an impressive semi-final win clocking 28.88, a run that would see him go far in the main Derby but all finalists are there on merit and have the possibility to go well in the Derby.
⭐ Division 1 of the trial stakes on Sunday really was a race to savour as you would expect! Favourite was last year’s fantastic Derby winner Gaytime Nemo who will be aimed to try and defend his title this year, however a missed break cost him the race as he struggled to get into it but is sure to come on a lot for it with it being his first run there since that fantastic night last year. First and second were two dogs that I met in my recent Star Sports kennel visits in Droopys Doughnut and Cooliogold respectively.
⭐ Droopys Doughnut showed his early but his middle pace was particularly impressive allowing him to win a great race with ease. Cooliogold (pictured below) stuck on really well behind him and that is now a second and a third in two hot trial stakes in the last 2 weeks and could be one to keep qualifying. When I went to speak to Maxine Locke (see above) she said: “He’s brought the life back into the kennels, since him the whole kennels have changed.” For the first time Maxine will head to Towcester with a team for the Derby and the lovely ‘Coolio’ will be one of her main hopes to go far along with kennel mate Droopys Reserve amongst others.
⭐ A market that I think could be particularly exciting this year is the bitch market. Two of the best bitches in the country will be battling it out in the Brighton Belle final at Hove on Saturday in Crafty Shivoo and Queen Joni with 4 other very classy bitches, both could go very deep into the competition. Meanwhile, Kevin Hutton’s Jet Stream Angel will start favourite in the Laurels final at Perry Barr proving what a crop of bitches we have at the moment and they should certainly be respected in the Derby. This market will come out in due course when the runners are known.
⭐ Exclusive news reaches me that there will be an extra race on Greyhound Final night – a Mascot Derby raising money for charities. Towcester’s Managing Director Kevin Boothby hopes the move can help cash-strapped charities and community clubs make a small difference to their operation. Kevin said: “Mascot races are always a crowd favourite and Towcester has never held one before, so what better time to do it than on Derby final night”. Representing the sponsors, David Stewart, head of content for Star Sports, will be running. David said: “I’m just hoping this is one race the traps WON’T be used on. I enjoy parkrun over 5k on a Saturday morning but one lap of Towcester feels much more daunting. I’m hoping to have the bulkiest costume ever so I can blame that when I don’t trouble the judge!”.
Mascots on the charge to Towcester …
⭐ We will be treated to more trial stakes this coming Sunday at Towcester as well as the Maiden Derby final. I will be back next week reflecting over it all as the first round creeps even closer!
Best Wishes
EMILY WALLIS
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