m a n a b o u t d o g b l o g

Oi Oi Wally!!

I thought he had a great chance tonight and so it proved - banging on the door the last few weeks he bolted up tonight in a very fast 13.64 (only 5 dogs have gone quicker this year at Romford).

Delighted for Steve Locke and Maxine. That's 7 wins in 24 starts for his cracking fawn - his third open win. His sister was out of luck on the same card after last week's victory, but the litter is very decent thank God and there are plenty more wins to come.

Tipperary Cup Final 2009

I was at Thurles last Saturday night where a huge crowd witnessed the Tipperary Cup Semi Finals.

This historic competition has been won by many greats in the past, and this latest renewal is the best in many years.

Tomorrow night's card will ensure standing room is at a premium - it has many good finals and the big race itself should be spectacular.

Favourite is likely to be the well drawn Chicken Supper in the red box - beaten in the Laurels and St Leger finals, this Waterford raider's supporters should know his fate soon after traprise - if he traps he should win.  Closest market rival is the 'dual purpose' runner Serene Digital out in the 6 box - this dog has enjoyed success on the field.

Here is the betting for tomorrow's big race courtesy of local layer Sean Cleary.

1. Chicken Supper 6/4

2. Bay City Jack 7/2

3. Callums Lad 7/2

4. Chunfie 8/1

5. Gilbeyhall Jake 4/1

6. Serene Digital 5/2

I couldn't have a bet in this one, but if my life depended on it I would side with Serene Digital who is well drawn to take advantage of any early crowding and can come home very strongly. 

On the undercard I think the bet of the night could well be Slaneyside Sue in the marathon final. She was mega impressive last week.

Tommy's belated debut

Tommy (Bantiss Rescueme) makes his long awaited debut at Romford this Saturday night in an A6. The grader is taking no chances whatsoever after the 3 previous comrades from the litter all won Opens - he is being extremely unfair though as Tommy is nearly 28 months old and unraced for a very simple reason - he has been very hard to keep injury free. Anyway, he is seeded wide and hopefully will have a clear run around. I own Tommy in partnership with Steve Locke whose daughter Maxine is training him.

Tommy's brother and sister (the 2 he shared a pen with actually and a pair of greyhounds with more than a few scars from Tommy's alpha-male instincts) Bantiss Dermot and Bantiss Allblack run in opens at the track tomorrow night. Dermot (aka Wally) has been knocking on the door over the last 3 weeks in the 225m sprint so hopefully he can notch a win.

Shoeless Julie wins at the Cross

A bitch out of the Droopys Vieri x HIghgate Albion litter won in Harolds Cross last night in a modest 30.04 - she is the 2nd pup in the litter to run and win.

A bitch from the Droopys Vieri x Bantiss Jymmi litter (also born in December 2007) Drumscraw Tarn made her debut at Hall Green last night and was 2nd, leading from traps to the home straight.

Droopys Bogart: UK Greyhound of the Month June 2009

Nice to see this young son of Droopys Scolari and Droopys Gucci get the nod this month for winning the Gymcrack.

Liz and Rab McNair's kennel star is likely to be aimed at the East Anglian Derby and the English or Irish Laurels.

Vacancy to rear some pups

If anyone wants a pup reared please get in touch with me.

With the imminent arrival of the syndicated Westmead Hawk pups out of Ms Firecracker and Shelbourne Nina I will be in a position to rear a pup of 2 whelped in March and at the end of June.

These pups will be reared as if they are my own at a fair rate, with plenty of space and great grub.

Bantiss Allblack wins in fastest time of the night

Nice to see Bantiss Allblack win an A1 at Romford on Saturday in a pretty sensational 24.19 - that merits a GData speed rating of 109 - that's the highest for any pup I have bred.

There were 21 races over the 400metre circuit on Saturday and she was faster than all the other 125 dogs.  That takes some doing!

Well done Steve and Maxine Locke, and Bunny of course ;)

Aston below par as Nodrog blasts to victory.

Shelbourne Aston finished a disappointing 5th in the Champion Stakes Final at Shelbourne Park last night.  First of all I have to say that Fatboys Nodrog ran an absolute blinder to win from trap to line, and Shaneboy Lee was almost better in defeat.  Two dogs that will have a big say in the outcome of the Irish Derby which starts in a fortnight.  Shelbourne Aston will not have much chance in the big event in my opinion.

Shelbourne Aston has been on the go consistently since last year when he won the Champion Stakes and Irish Derby.  He is and was a fantastically brave greyhound, and fully deserves those victories last year.  His owners pocketed 3/4's of a million euro through gambling and prizemoney.  In my honest and frank opinion they should have retired the dog last September - but he is not my dog.

Instead we have seen the dog entered for every big competition including the English Derby, where subsequently it transpired that the dog tested positive for metabolites of the anabolic steroid Stanazolol.  This was a kick in the guts for honest greyhound people like myself who had grown to love the dog. 

Understandably Shelbourne Aston's great achievements last year when winning all around him on his way to being named the Irish Greyhound of the Year have a big cloud over them. 

There are several things I want to get off my chest.

Over the last couple of months, talking to well respected owners, trainers and breeders it seems that not only is it the general perception that more than a few of the dogs running at a high level in Ireland have been given illegal substances, but it is a reality.  I refused to believe this for years, giving the benefit of the doubt to most trainers.  But I have no doubt that the use of steroids is indemic in this sport.  What is frightening is that it is not just dogs running at the top of the sport - the so called 'big trainers', but also the 'one man and his dog' operations.

We have all heard stories about trainers giving Class A drugs to their dogs - in my heart I believe this is relatively rare and I don't actually believe it helps dogs - I have seen it with my own eyes, and reported it.

But the main drug problem in Ireland is the use of steroids.  For years trainers were giving dogs nandrolone/laurabolin, a steroid that is permitted for use in stopping bitches having a normal seasonal cycle.  Unscrupulous trainers were loading up male greyhounds with high doses of laurabolin - i'm not sure the exact reason - some say that this will make a dog more aggressive, some say it will help them recover quickly from overexertion.

A leading trainer was called up in front of the Bord's disciplinary committee for using steroids on his dogs.  He actually broke down in tears and begged forgiveness, before threatening them with legal action because male greyhounds were being discriminated against by not being allowed to run on the same substances as bitches. 

This may sound ridiculous but there is a bit of logic here.  Some trainers do give their bitches very high dosages of the suppressants to give the bitch an edge - you only have to lift up the tail of some bitches to see that they have been over exposed to male hormone suppressants.  A case could easily be made that bitches should not be allowed to run with a suppressant - surely this is an un-natural substance in a bitch and obviously affects performance.  So here is a grey area/loophole that has been exploited by trainers over the years.

So where does Stanazolol come into things.  Well, Stanazolol is now the 'drug of choice' for trainers aiming to get an edge on their rivals  and it's use (anecdotally) is rampant in Ireland.  This is the same drug that disgraced Olympic 100 metres winner Ben Johnson was banned for.  It enables the user to recover quicker from over exertion, it helps build muscle without adding bulk. 

I have been told it is being tested for by the IGB but that is not credible for me as it is likely that Shelbourne Aston and Cash Dream had the steroid in their system before they travelled to the UK for the English Derby - both dogs tested positive in the first round.  Aston was tested again in subsequent rounds but was all clear.  Stanzalol has a approximate clearance period of 28 days from the blood.

So why have the dogs not tested positive for the use of this steroid in Ireland?  In fact why are no dogs testing positive for this drug in Ireland?  It appears the drug is more widely used than I thought - so therefore the only logical conclusion is that the IGB is either not testing for this steroid or it is testing but doing nothing about the results.

Ask yourself, is it feasible that these two dogs are the only two dogs in Ireland to have been given the steroid. Highly unlikely. So what other dogs have been running with help?  The mind boggles.

This post is not written to take any of the heat off of Shelbourne Aston's connections - I couldn't care less - you do the crime, do the time.  I just think the witch-hunt on internet forums against Aston and his trainer at present will deflect away from the big picture - and that is that so many of our dogs are running under the influence of illegal substances.  If I was a UK buyer I would tread very carefully.

I still believe that this abuse is by the minority rather than the majority, but that is still too many dogs being abused.

So how have the UK authorities acted in this case? Well Shelbourne Aston was running in the ownership of John Marks during the English Derby despite being sold 15 months previously, and winning the Irish Derby in the ownership of the Montgomery-Hehir-Curtin Syndicate. In fact Aston raced at Sunderland last year for his new owners.  The GBGB were notified of this after the first round but nothing was done about it.

When the dog tested positive and a date for a hearing set, the GBGB wrote to John Marks informing him that the dog 'he owned' had tested positive.

I heard two weeks before the story broke in the Racing Post that a dog had tested positive - apparently it was the talk of the GBGB Awards and a steward had let it slip to a friend of mine in England.  Then the story was amazingly leaked to the Racing Post's Jonathon Kay who was fairly happy to publish just the one name and not Cash Dream for some strange reason.  Obviously a GBGB employee slipped him the info as it is apparently policy that no names are given to press until after the hearings. 

For God's sake the Wimbledon racing office even lost Shelbourne Aston's racecard - it has never turned up.  A man could be excused for asking did they even test the right dog - but that would be ridiculous.

So Shelbourne Aston and Cash Dream were given fines of £850 each and 'severely reprimanded'.  Putting this into context, Pat Curtin reputedly took €60,000 from Dublin layers on the night Shelbourne Aston, Castlehill Pat and Shelbourne Denny won in the first round of the English Derby - the night Aston failed his test.

So what now for the Irish Greyhound Of The Year?  The Irish Derby is on the agenda but I give him little chance.  Shelbourne Aston cut his foot in the Dundalk International a fortnight ago, and ran below par in the Champion Stakes.  This is a legitimate excuse. 

In the Irish Derby he will meet his old rival College Causeway.  Pat Buckley's dog didn't run in the Champion Stakes as he had a small muscle twinge following a great trial at Dundalk.  His trainer realises that the Irish Derby is the big one, and despite the Champion Stakes' brilliant €25,000 win purse, he gave it a miss.  Says it all really.  Money isn't everything.

Blog Syndicate Coursing Pup

I went up to Roscommon yesterday morning to get our bitch and she is a fine specimen.  I was about to take her down to her trainer in Waterford but lo and behold, when I got her out of my van at home, she was in season.

She will stay with me for a month before going into training.

 

 

An oldie but a goodie

A dog walked into a bar and asked for a beer. With that a man at the bar said I don't want to drink at the same bar as this dog. The dog and the man got into a fight and the man shot the
dog in the foot. With that the dog yelped out of the bar and down the street.

A week later the same dog walked into the same bar, this time he was wearing a black hat, a black vest, black chaps, black boots, a black gun belt with a pair of black colt .45's one on
either side, and a black bandage around his sore foot.

He goes up to the bar and says to the bar tender "I'm looking for the man that shot my paw"

Vets taking the piss.

My mate went into the vet's surgery today, carrying his greyhound, screaming for help. The vet rushed him back to an examination room and has him put his dog down on the examination table. The vet examined the still, limp body and after a few moments told my mate that his dog, regrettably, was dead.

My mate was not willing to accept this, and demanded a second opinion. He was in grief.

The vet went into the back room, and came out with a cat, and put the cat down next to the dog's body. The cat sniffed the body, walked from head to tail poking and sniffing the dog's body and finally looked at the vet and meowed. The vet looked at my mate and said...and this is just taking the piss now if you ask me....

"I'm sorry, but the cat thinks that your dog is dead too."

My mate, in shock, was still unwilling to accept that his dog was dead, which is understandable.

The vet then brought in a labrador puppy. The cute little thing then sniffed the body, walked from head to tail, and finally looked at the vet and barked. The vet said, "I'm sorry, but the pup thinks your dog is dead too."

My mate finally accepted the diagnosis and asked how much he owed.

The vet answered, straight as you like, "call it €400".

My mate went mental and asked how on earth it could be €400 for 5 minutes consultation to tell him his dog was dead.

"Well," the vet replied, "I would only have charged you €50 for my initial diagnosis. But the additional €350 was for the cat scan and lab tests."

Rip Off Ireland is alive and well. You couldn't make it up.

Paddy back to winning ways

Bantiss Jennings (Never Give Up x TMs Last Laugh) has had a rough time with niggles in the last few months, but was back to his best last night winning at Coventry in 30.06. A very decent effort for Martin Drake's brindle.

Another injury plagued dog,Bantiss Rescueme (Ningbo Jack x Bantiss Princess) will be racing soon at Romford.  He is long out of puppyhood and still unraced, but he won a 3 dog trial at Romford yesterday in 25.19 which bodes well.

Kiowa Myth - a truly international challenger for Irish Derby glory

This year's Derby is shaping up to be an international affair with US tracker Kiowa Myth taking his chance in the biggest competition in the world, the Paddy Power Irish Greyhound Derby.

The dog has joined the Kerry kennels of Mossie O'Connor and is currently schooling behind the outside lure, acclimatising in preparation for his classic tilt.

Owned by Fr. Bryan Dalton (of Deerfield fame) and Mrs. Pauline O'Donnell (nee Wallis), this dog has illustrious connections both human and canine.  Fr. Dalton is no stranger to success on the track - his Deerfield Sunset (pictured) for example won the Irish St Leger a decade ago as well as finishing 3rd in the English Derby. Deerfield Mover broke the 525yard clock at Tralee (28.14).  These are just a couple - he has had a lot of success.

Pauline Wallis owned the famous Yellow Printer (winner of the 1968 Irish Derby and track record holder at White City, and widely regarded as one of the fastest ever). She took him to the USA to stand at stud.

As you can see, this is a partnership well accustomed to success!

The pedigree of Kiowa Myth is very interesting too.  I noticed some familiar names in the back breeding and quizzed my walking encyclopedia Brian King on the breeding.

Bred by the highly regarded US breeder Kay Smith (prefixes Kiowa and Mohican), Kiowa Myth brings together the best Australian and American sirelines with a rock solid Irish damline.

His sire, the 'All American' Dragon Fire is by the wonder dog himself - Brett Lee - out of a Molotov bitch, Hoops Slamdunk, whose backbreeding includes that influential bitch Rikasso Bunny. Bunny was brought over to the States by Brian King - you can read more about that in the Breeders Series Interview or by typing Rikasso Bunny into the search bar on the top left of the page.

On the dam side it doesn't take a breeding genius to immediately notice the Westmead bitches along the bottom line.  Brian brought Westmead Flirt to the States after acquiring her from Nick Savva - one of several bitches that entered US pedigrees via this route.

Myth's dam VJ's Kintes Gal is by Flying Train out of a bitch called Kintes Flirt.  Kintes Flirt came about when breeder Wayne Strong asked Brian if he knew of any top drawer bitches that he could use his vial of Kunta Kinte semen with. Wayne Strong bred, among others, Rooster Cogburn, Highway Robber and the legendary sire Sand Man (coincidentally also owned by a priest - Fr Dan Green).

Kunta Kinte is in the US Hall Of Fame, one of the great US sires, and his semen was much sought after (this was back in the early days of FSI).  Brian recommended he approach Vince Berland at Flying Kennels about using the new arrival, Westmead Flirt.  A deal was struck and Westmead Flirt produced a bumper litter of 9 pups.  Strong's end of the deal was a pup which he sold for $8,000 as a young puppy to Francesca Field (of Cayman Went fame).  Remember this is 13 years ago - that's how good the breeding was considered.

The litter was very decent indeed and the bitches 'threw on'.  One of them, the fabulously named TM's Shag It, went on to throw some brilliant greyhounds, with cracking monikers : Kiowa Shag Sue, Kiowa Shag Speed, Kiowa Shag Sally, Kiowa Shag Shag, Kiowa Shag Snips and my personal favourite, Flying Shag.  One of TM's Shag It's grandsons is current Derby Lane Grade A dog Kiowa Shagginboy, who is owned by Kiowa Myth's co-owner, the aforementioned Pauline O'Donnell.  Anyway, apparently 'shagging', to US greyhound folk, does not mean what it does on this side of the Atlantic.  It is a term used for unsettling rabbits etc from ditches - something akin to the Irish coursing boys rising hares.

So, back to Kiowa Myth.  Let's hope he takes to the Irish tracks and is the first in a long line of international challengers for this famous race.  I am told the trip from Kerry to Dublin is a fair ordeal for a greyhound that does not travel well, but rest assured Kiowa Myth will be well used to making long journeys in his home country.  I am quite excited to see this dog to be honest - I hope the Irish Greyhound Board make a big deal of it too.  We need a bit of razzmatazz right now!

And if Kiowa Myth was to be successful on September 12th, the Irish, English, Australian and American greyhound communities could all claim it as their own - not to mention a certain Cypriot!

Big Thumbs Up for the Good News Man!

Credit where credit is due, the IGB website goes from strength to strength and in particular Michael Fortune's 'Talking Dogs' column is regularly updated - often a few times a day - and has a new module now which concentrates on the Paddy Power Irish Derby 2009 which starts in a fortnight.

There is lots of information and photos (such as this great shot of leading contender Wise Thought with assistant trainer Carly Philpott) and really is a must read for me.  This photo is in the section focusing on all the recent Irish Derby Trial Stakes Winners.

Make Talking Dogs the 2nd site you check every day!

 

BANTISS BLOG EXCLUSIVE: Ginger allowed back on UK Tracks

BREAKING NEWS: 'My source' has told me that this afternoon John 'Ginger' McGee has been given the go ahead from GBGB officials in London to bring his Irish trained runners over to race in GBGB competitions.

This is the latest in a series of moves heralding a 'fresh start' by the fledgling governing body for greyhound racing in the UK.

Droopys Maldini sires Group 1 Finalist in Australia

Thursday night (or Thursday morning actually) sees the final of the Group 1 Winter Carnival Cup at Albion Park, Brisbane.  A very interesting runner in the Queensland event is Dyna Forte who is sired by Droopys Maldini.  Already victorious in 9 of his 18 races, and with a Group 3 win already in his locker, he is not unfancied for success in a race previously won by Hades Rocket and Pure Octane.

RACE 08  MIXED FINAL  520M  9.10PM

GARRARDS WINTER CARNIVAL CUP GROUP 1

 1  CINDEEN SHELBY      1 KELVYN GREENOUGH

 2  MATCHING OUTCOME    1 TINA WOMANN

 3  TURANZA BALE        1 GRAEME BATE

 4  PADDY BELL          2 PATRICIA CARRINGTON

 5  HIGH EARNER         3 CHRISTINE ROBARTSON

 6  VELOCETTE           1 GRAEME BATE

 7  TREW MILLIONS       1 TINA WOMANN

 8  DYNA FORTE          3 GRAEME BATE

Romeo Expert

Is this the new superstar of UK greyhound racing?

Bred by Dave Firmager from his bitch Fabulous March, Romeo Expert is a hot favourite to land the UK Produce Stakes after winning his only 2 races to date in sensational times.  He is by Awesome Assassin dog Collision - a half brother of Ace Hi Rumble - out of Rumble Spirit who is a litter sister of Toolibuk and a half sister of the great Smmoth Rumble.

This dog is of great interest to me as he is closely related to my own Bantiss Jymmi, being a grandson of Fast March who is a litter sister of Jymmi's dam, Expert View, and of course the brilliant Airport Express.

Dawn heads to the UK

Shelbourne Dawn (Boherduff Light x Queen Survivor), a bitch that I have high regard for, and who I was banging the drum about a lot last year, is switching kennelsand will be trained in the UK by Tony Collett.

This cracking bitch will be running in the ownership of Nik Budimer and a certain Harry Redknapp who have been fairly successful in their partnership in recent years.

Let's hope Dawn can perform well for her new connections.

Scolari looking good!!!

The in form sire Droopys Scolari (Droopys Kewell x Little Diamond UK) had a bonanza last week. 

First up Exciting Dec won the €10,000 to the winner Oran Majestic Open Unraced Final at Galway and went through the stake unbeaten producing some superb performances and a best time of 28.42 (fastest ever by a puppy).

Up at Dundalk the night before a pup made his debut and won in 21.39.  That run (earning a 103 rating on G-Data) was by Carrigoe Bigphil and this pup should be followed closely.

On Thursday night at HQ it got better again.  Hypernian was having his second start but blew his rivals away with a sensational 28.77.  And on the same card the 'talking dog' Scolari Me Daddy added to his 28.54 and 28.33 heat wins in the previous weeks when winning an A6 stake in a brilliant 28.50.

It was almost an unbelievable night for Droopys Scolari as over the Irish Sea at Sunderland, unheralded pup Blood Of Kings finished runner-up after trouble in the £40,000 to the winner William Hill Classic Final.

Now before anyone comments NO I HAVE NOT USED DROOPYS SCOLARI!! I wish I had though.

This is simply a sensational crop of pups and it gets better.  If you look at the 5 pups named above (and they are all inexperienced pups open to huge improvement maybe) none of them were bred by the Dunphys (that old stick that is so often used to beat any of the sires performing well at Portlaw).  And the dams of these wonderpups have not previously thrown anything as good as their Droopys Scolari litters.

• Exciting Dec and Blood Of Kings are from the first litter out of Youraisemeup (by Droopys Woods).  Their comrade Rotar Wing is a flyer as well - he did 18.58 around Lifford a while ago.
• Carrigoe Bigphil is from Droopys Sailing's debut litter - she is by Johannestown Cash.
• Hypernian's dam  Droopys Betty (by Knockeevan Major) threw a good litter to Droopys Kewell
• Scolari Me Daddy is from the second litter out of Lemon Abby (Mustang Yank). The first litter by Hondo Black appears to be small in numbers and hasn't thrown the quality of this bunch.

I was at Galway on Saturday night and was trialling a dog before racing.  I managed to catch Guitar Moment whizz around in an unreal(!!!) 17.54 - only 4 dogs have ever gone faster. His dam Sues Mad Moment is by Droopys Woods - her debut litter by Go Wild Teddy was useful though not in this league.

I kid you not - Scolari is the real deal.

Decision time with Annie

Annie trailed home in 6th last night.  She broke well and made the bend level enough, shipped a big bump losing a couple of lengths, but regained her composure to come out of the 2nd bend in 3rd, but from there she showed nothing at all.

She will be going to a good vet this week for a full series of blood tests as I am not happy with her - in particular her coat is very dull and I can't work out why she is not staying stronger.  I will take her to Tony Collins for a good checkover as well.

She started her career well with 4 wins from 10 and a best time of 2890. 2 of her wins were fastest of the night efforts and her last one was in A1 company.  But since she was off for 6 months through injury she came back into training with me and although she has done some very decent trials, she has not transferred that to race night.  I am confident she is hunting the hare mad - she was in at the box again last night - but I want to make sure she is doing 29 seconds over 525 before I race her again, and if not I will retire her before I do any more damage to her card.

She will be bred in time, being a half sister to an Oaks winner and a 2890 bitch herself, from the Lanigans Ball branch of the Skipping Chick damline.

The next couple of weeks will tell me a lot - I'm hoping the vet can find something not quite right.

Runners

Bantiss Annie has drawn trap 4 in a fairly hot A1 at Galway tomorrow night. Anyone attending should watch her tomorrow rather than gambling her - she could very well lead these home, but I still have a doubt over her strength. She is staying better now than a month ago, but she may need another 4 bend race before I can say she will break the 29.00 barrier again. As it is tomorrow she will have a job making the bend ahead of Queen Jeannie.

Bantiss Dermot and Bantiss Allblack have tough tasks in their opens at Romford tonight, but at odds of around 4/1 and 3/1 respectively, they could be worth including in multiples. From the same Maxine Locke kennel, Winch Woody goes in a good A1 at Romford tomorrow and will have a chance if trapping.

Boylesports Champion Stakes 2009

Champion Stakes Draw

The draw has been made and the 2nd heat is worthy of a Derby Final - in fact 3 of last year's finalists are there - Advantage Johnny, Slip The Lark and Shelbourne Aston take on Skywalker Queen.

Defending champion Shelbourne Aston was in the wars in Sunday's Boylesports International at Dundalk and recieved 3 stitches to a toe injury.  He would certainly not be one I would be backing with confidence.  You would have to fancy the Queen to go well in this.

Syndicate Pups Update

Am heading up to look at the Westmead Hawk x Ms Firecracker pups tonight.  A double English Derby winning sire out of an Irish Oaks winning bitch. Can breeding get any better?  I think not.

The Westmead Hawk pups out of Shelbourne Nina have now got thier eyes open - I will be picking a pup at about 10 weeks of age.

Update on Angel

What a difference a week makes. She is now 5 and a half weeks gone and she is swelling up. Looks like we could be in for a bumper litter here at Bantiss.  The Hawks are really doing the business on the track so well looking forward to these pups.

Some winners

I was hoping that Bantiss Dermot and Bantiss Allblack would win their opens at the weekend but Dermot - despite running a gallant race to finish 2nd in a brilliant time - was just out of luck as he met the prolific Romford sprinter Lazy Magic. Allblack missed the kick when warm favourite and that was that. But their litter sister Bantiss Alice won at Kinsley on Sunday in 28.48 and made it 6 wins from 19 since she went to the track near Pontefract, Yorkshire. Winch Woody won earlier in the week in a hot A1 at Romford.

I am having mixed fortunes with my Droopys Vieri pups out of Highgate Albion - there are a few really fast ones but there are some slow ones and non chasers also. A bitch from Highgate Albion's debut litter is notching up the wins at Pelaw Grange. High Class World won last Tuesday and Friday at the Durham track and is really paying her way in graded company and in regular handicap racing from off the back. She has now won 17 of her 69 races which is 1 in 4. A great return whatever way you look at it.

The 2nd pup from Bantiss Jymmi's first litter started her career at Coventry at the weekend. Bantiss Clodagh was thrown straight into A6 for Martin and Karen Drake, and she finished 5th in what was by all accounts a brilliant schooling trial for her, meeting lots of trouble along the way. Expect to see good reports on this bitch in the coming months.

Bantiss Bone : Irish Greyhound of the Month June 2009 SKYWALKER QUEEN

Bred in Shinrone by the Harte family, owned by Ray Patterson and trained by Frances O'Donnell, Skywalker Queen earns the coveted Bantiss Bone for June 2009 after becoming the fastest bitch ever to run Shelbourne Park when she won the Sporting Press Irish Oaks in a gobstopping 28.24.  A simply amazing feat by the daughter of Razldazl Billy and Nifty Princess.  I was in attendance at HQ and it really was a great run - although the track was running fast on the night.

But that is to take nothing away from a true champion, she went on to prove she is a great bitch when she went to Dundalk at the weekend and won the Boylesports International beating the best dogs in training in the process.

It is interesting to read the Sporting Press of a fortnight ago.  Matt O'Donnell said that he wants the bitch to go for the Irish Derby next month, and as the bitch was due to break in season, he was going to suppress her.  Well whatever suppressant he used it certainly didn't take the edge of her.  Matt said that he picked the bitch out on behalf of the owner at 16 weeks of age and reared her himself in Tipperary.  Other recent Oaks winners reared in the Premier County include Ms Firecracker and Shelbourne Becky.

A brilliant bitch, and possibly a live contender for the Irish Derby.  Wouldn't you love to own one like her?

Other contenders this month could have been Maireads Fantasy and Droopys Moira, but really, the Queen rules the roost.

Annie back in business

We travelled to Galway in hope (rather than expectation) on Saturday night as Bantiss Annie returned to the scene of her most recent victory - an A1 win back in October last year. 9 months without a look at a track would normally concern me but Annie is able to run a track well first time.

Her race looked winnable on paper. She had drawn trap 1 which was not a massive hindrance, but it is rare to see dogs ping from that box at any track. And so it proved. Annie broke poorly and was probably last to get into her stride. But a super burst of early pace saw her make the bend in 2nd place behind eventual winner Blame The Traps. Annie railed like a cat, almost magnetically easing around the bend,and emerged in the back straight 2 lengths in front. She stayed in front until the 3rd bend where Blame The Traps overtook her, but again scraping the paint of the rail she was in front entering the home straight.

At this stage the trap 6 runner Tell Me Skinner was closing, and as the 3 runners approached the line, Annie was overtaken by both and lost by a length and a bit in 29.12. A dissapointing way to lose after all her hard work - a decent exit from traps might just have been enough for her to win. But I was delighted with the way she ran, passing dogs in the run-up with relative ease and not hesitating on 2 occasions when overtaking on the inside. She barely gets 525, but I expect this run to bring her on a massive amount..

She was jumping out of her skin on Sunday and her card will stay at Galway for a while as we try and get a few 525 races into her to see if we can get her breaking 29 seconds again. Incidentally if she finishes outside the first 2 in her next race she will automatically be backgraded to A2, but that is not our aim. I fancy her to go very close to winning next time out if the standard is similar to Saturday night's race.

It was a big night at Galway on Saturday as the final of the Oran Majestic Open Unraced Stake was up for decision, and there were no surprises on that score as the Droopys Scolari pup Exciting Dec remained unbeaten when winning easily in 28.65.

Half-Term Report: Top 30 Open Race Sires UK & Ireland 2009

Top Sires of Opens in the UK and Ireland Jan1 - Jun30 2009.  Figures from Greyhound Star and Den Morrin.

1	TOP HONCHO	291
2	DROOPYS VIERI	241
3	BRETT LEE	210
4	DROOPYS MALDINI	178
5	HONDO BLACK	143
6	CRASH	131
7	DROOPYS KEWELL	112
8	HEADBOUND	103
9	WESTMEAD HAWK	99
10	HONCHO CLASSIC	98
11	DROOPYS SCHOLES	97
12	PREMIER FANTASY	84
13	TOP SAVINGS	78
14	BIG DADDY COOL	76
15	DAVES MENTOR	74
16	LARKHILL JO	59
17	BALLYMAC MAEVE	57
18	JUST THE BEST	55
19	BOHERDUFF LIGHT	50
20	YEAH MAN	47
21	DROOPYS SCOLARI	46
22	KNOCKABOUT WOK	44
23	TYRUR TED	43
24	TUCKS MEIN	43
25	HALLUCINATE	38
26	ACE HI RUMBLE	37
	GO WILD TEDDY	37
	ROANOKEE	37
29	TOMS THE BEST	30
30	COME ON LLEYTON	29

Woody makes it 6

Winch Woody, bred and reared here, won an A1 at Romford last night in a very good 24.43.

The early paced blue son of Bantiss Princess by crack sprinter Ningbo Jack was winning for the 6th time in 21 starts - a very nice record.

Oi Oi Woody.

SCOLARI ME DADDY

What can I say?  I did post up not long ago that Droopys Scolari was making a big impact. Well he really IS making a big impact now.

Hot on the heels of Westmead Grant's brilliant performances at Shelbourne Park, and Exciting Dec's domination of the Oran Majestic Unraced Stake at Galway,  another son Of Droopys Scolari is the new 'Talking Dog' of Irish greyhound racing.

Scolari Me Daddy, a blue son of Scolari out of Lemon Abby, out of a long line of Lemon bitches (of Lennon fame), has simply blown the sport apart with 2 blistering runs on the last two wednesday nights at HQ.

For anyone who is not familiar with Shelbourne Park, Wednesday night traditionally runs 20 spots or more slower than a Saturday night.

Well last Wednesday Scolari Me Daddy won by 13 lengths in 28.54.  A reputed €35,000 was turned down by the all female Glamour Paws Sundicate.  Then last night, Scolari Me Daddy catapulted himself into superstar status when winning by 14 lengths in an unbelievable 28.33.  This is an incredible run - just 6 spots behind Priceless Rebel's longstanding Shelbourne Park puppy record of 28.27.

This line throws really good dogs - maybe not as heralded as other lines - but the likes of Droopys Merson and Lemon Rambo were top drawer.  Scolari Me Daddy could be the best of them all.

Top 10 Sires June 2009

Here are the top 10 sires of Open Race Winners in the UK and Ireland for June 2009

1	TOP HONCHO	51
2	DROOPYS VIERI	43
3	BRETT LEE	37
	DROOPYS MALDINI	37
5	HONDO BLACK	26
6	DROOPYS KEWELL	20
	WESTMEAD HAWK	20
8	CRASH	18
	DAVES MENTOR	18
	PREMIER FANTASY	18

Tipperary Cup 2009

I attended my local track Thurles on Saturday night for what was the first round of the Tipperary Cup. The Tipperary Cup is an old and famous competition, and this year's entry is up there as probably the best of recent years.

Times were good on a warm night at the Towns Park and the biggest crowd of the year so far witnessed some great racing.

Impressive on the night were St Louis Spirit who came from behind to win in 28.60 - the fastest of the night, Lleytons Dote who put a disappointing performance in Shelbourne the week before behind him (when I backed him) to blitz his rivals in 28.74, and Magical Stan who despite only clocking a satisfactory 29.20, did it the hard way coming from last to first. I really did not expect that from this early-paced dog. He is a half brother of Bantiss Annie and a full brother (repeat mating Magical Captain x Aughavas ) of Irish Oaks winner Ms Firecracker, who I have just purchased a pup out of for the syndicate.

What impressed me was the ongoing maintenance of the racing surface througout the night. Track staff were taking no chances with the track drying out as the sprinklers were turned on at least four times during racing, and the tractor went around between almost all races. Well done to all at the track for what was a very enjoyable evening.

Latest flying machine from Jymmi's damline

A pup very closely related to my own Bantiss Jymmi is making waves in the UK.

Taken from the Racing Post

ROMEO EXPERT recorded a flying 28.76sec in Tuesday's batch of warm-up trials over 480m for the 63rd Two Year Old Produce Stakes at Swindon.

Dave Firmager's dog was fastest of the session, and his calculated time of 28.36sec (going -40) dipped under the official clock of 28.44sec held by Rhyzome Wizard. Kennelmate Romeo On Air was next best with 29.17sec, followed by Fabulous Verity who clocked 29.18sec.

The Swindon event, for British-bred puppies, kicks off on Saturday. The £15,000 final takes place on Saturday, July 23.

2 Bantiss bred runners tonight

Bantiss Dermot runs in an open tonight at Romford, bidding to add to his win 11 nights ago when winning in 24.50 (GDRating 99).  Another runner bred here makes her debut tonight when Shoeless Julie takes her bow in a novice contest at Harolds Cross - she is from the Droopys Vieri x Highgate Albion litter that started with a bang last week when Flying Dart won in a splendid 19.20 - that merited a Greyhound Data rating of 100!

Other recent winners bred by me include Alice And Me who won in 29.43 at Newcastle on Saturday night, Bantiss Alice (28.53 Kinsley 27/6) and Black Betsy who won her debut at Longford on the 26th in 29.50.

Hawk meets his match with Nina

From yesterday's Racing Post.

SHELBOURNE NINA, winner of the Brighton Belle and Midland Oaks for Hove trainer Brian Clemenson in 2005, has whelped a litter of 11 to Westmead Hawk - ironically, the winner of the last race she ran in.

"And she might well have beaten him that night" said part-owner  Nick Budimer about the choicely-bred daughter of Knockeevan Star and Expert View, who broke down off the last bend when in front at Wimbledon on Trainers' Championship night in 2006.

"Fear Me was in the race, and Ronnies Champion, as well as the Hawk.  It was the top heat of the 480m in the Trainers' Championship and she led them a merry dance, certainly to the home straight when the injury happened.  She broke a hock.

"We'll never know if she'd have got home, but I always believe she'd have held on!"

The litter were whelped at the Shelbourne Stud in Nenagh, Co. Tipperary, where Brian King reports mother and pups in fine form.  "I'm not too sure Nick (Budimer) expected so many.  He planned to keep them all, but now I think there's a plan to have them syndicated, or to sell a few," he added.

I was down at the Stud last night and saw the pup - HUGE they are at a week old.  Blacks and brindles. As most of you probably know one of these little beauties has been purchased by me for a syndicate.

Who is your real friend?

This really works.  If you don't believe it, just try this experiment. 
     
Put your dog and your wife in the boot of the car for an hour.
  
When you open the boot , which one is really happy to see you?

Flying Dart 19.20 Debut

Great news last night from Galway as Flying Dart (owned by Seamus Fahy) won his debut race - a sprint over 350yards - in a very decent 19.20.  Putting that time in context it is the same as a 17.90 spin over the 325 trip or an 18.16 over 330yards.

Of 1074 dogs to race over that trip this year at Galway, the time has only been bettered by 20 dogs. It was bettered by a similar amount last year also.  This is a very promising pup.

Fying Dart is from the December 2007 Droopys Vieri litter out of my fast bitch Highgate Albion.  'Julie' was a very fast bitch in her own right - her 29.01 run at Galway was not bettered for 2 months and she had an unreal burst of early pace that saw her more often than not at the first bend before her competitors. She clocked a 3.14 split one night which is whoooosh!  Julie's mother was the great Park Jewel who won and ran-up the Easter Cup Final as well as making the Irish Oaks Final.

Sadly Julie passed away last year when whelping a litter of pups.

This pup is the first to run in the litter.

Setanta Tipping League is back: Round 3

PLEASE REMEMBER TO SUBMIT YOUR ENTRY FOR THIS FRIDAY'S SETANTA SPORTS TIPPING COMPETITION AT HAROLDS CROSSHERE

Syndicate Oversubscribed

We have anywhere in between 10 and 15 members currenty for my syndicate which I opened yesterday.  Please contact me immediately if you are interested in joining.

It is quite likely that we will have 2 pups as opposed to just one onless members are opposed to that idea.

Rest assured this syndicate will be well run and hopefully the pup(s) do(es) what they say on the tin.

Oaks Final Night Report

Was in Shelbourne on Saturday night for the Irish Oaks Final.

Skywalker Queen was amazing as she routed her opponents in fine style winning in 28.24, fastest time of the year, knocking 2 spots off Maireads Fantasy's fresh mark that had, only the week before, recorded her as the fastest bitch ever around Shelbourne Park.  A great performance, and a real good result for Ray Patterson who puts a lot of money into the sport, and only last week announced that his star Skywalker Ace was retired through injury.  A great result also for breeders the Hartes in Shinrone not too far from me. Matt O'Donnell of course was turning out yet another classic winner.

Wise Thought showed he is a true contender for the Irish Derby this year when beating a good field in a sensational 29.54 which is the fastest time of the year over the trip.

A word of caution though, the track was at least 20 (or 30) spots fast on Saturday night. When I raised this matter I was told that the dogs were all open class and there was very little point in rating the track fast. If it was graders it would be different. I beg to differ - I can't remember Shelbourne ever being rated fast.  In my humble opinion Shelbourne is now on a par with Cork and Limerick - especially on Saturdays.  If a dog does around 29.00 up there in an A1 on a Saturday night, and he travels down to the likes of Thurles, I would not expect him to break 2930.

Another very good performance on the night came from Westmead Grant who lost five lengths at the first bend before unleashing a thunderbolt of backstraight pace to come and win as he liked in 28.92.  A very very good run and certainly one for the notebook. A point I also made on this dog - is he actually still eligible for an A1?  Answers on a postcard please.

Droopys Moira (an older niece of Grant) looks a special bitch over 6 bends and her 41.90 win will be the first of many stayers opens at Ringsend in my opinion.

Droopys Kina was a warm favourite but showed no early pace at all to the bend in the 575yard contest and was put on the deck (comments EvAw, Blk1).  If stepped up she will be a force, and we may yet see her fly over the 575 yard trip.  Discount this run.

King Style should also be kept the right side of next time out. He suffered a similar fate to Kina.

Farloe Newborn ran an absolute blinder and also recorded the fastest time of the year for the 575 yard trip - a brilliant 31.14.

Off the grub.....

Bantiss Slimline is hopefully nearly 4 weeks in pup to Westmead Hawk. All going well her litter will be due on the weekend commencing August 8th.

She has only eaten half her dinner for the past 4 nights so I am hoping that is a sign she is in pup - I will be getting her scanned at 5 weeks anyway for peace of mind.