Lassa Exquisite’s A1 sub-29.00 runs stands out
NO rest for the wicked, or so they say anyway. Wicked, though, is hardly an expression you would apply to Liam Dowling (except in terms of all he has won, maybe), but when it comes to the rest part, well, you’d wonder how the man finds time for any rest at all between all the runners he has on the track and up the coursing fields?
There he was at Tralee Track on Friday night dominating the first-round heats of the Tilemaster Kingdom Derby . . . and 24 hours later he had seven runners on the card at Shelbourne Park!
Unfortunately, it turned out to be a journey in vain for the greyhounds being brought to Shelbourne Park because the programme there had to be aborted after just two races because of a rain/tractor problem.
Things can go wrong like that and we had our own tractor problem in Tralee a while ago, but business nearly always runs very smoothly at the Oakview venue and, in doing so on Saturday night, one winner stood out above the others, namely the locally-owned Lassa Exquisite.
This fellow is in the joint ownership of Michael Costello and Frank O’Donnell and, on going rated .10 slow, he clocked a fastest of the night 28.72 in beating Swiss Storm by three lengths in the tenth race (A1 525), justifying even-money favouritism in the process.
One other winner got inside 29.00 seconds and that was Clonkil Blackie, which John Kelliher trains locally for Patrick O’Callaghan, of Macroom. One of three 6/4 joint favourites, this lady won the sixth race by four and a half lengths from Hawthorn Wonder in 28.98.
The odds for all the races were made possible by the only bookmaker in attendance, Patsy Browne. What would Tralee Track, and interested punters, do without Patsy (or Berkie Browne) on a Saturday night?
Other winners were Yorkville Blaze, 18.20; Upward Apollo, 29.61; Cassies Las, 18.02; Millridge Cody, 29.36; Irremore Phebe, 29.23; Rathronan Blitz, 17.99; Ballyard Paris, 29.19; Steeple Rd Ethan, 18.05; Watergate Mike, 29.68.
The going was .10 slow for all 525yds races and .o5 slow for the 325yds races.