Trap draw gives Millridge Bryce the edge over Disco Pants to win Dowling final
EVERYTHING is very nicely in place for a big money-spinning meeting at Tralee Track next Friday night that centres around the final of the John and Mary (Killeacle) Dowling A1 570 Sweepstake.
The Dowling sweepstake is worth €2,775 to the winner and the supporting programme is going to have two 12-greyhound sweepstake finals that carry winners’ purses of €1,000 and eight other races are going to be worth €700 to the winners.
It’s all down to the generosity of Liam and Declan Dowling. They both sponsor the A1 570 sweepstake honouring their late parents and Liam is sponsoring all the supporting races under the banner of the Ballymac @ Stud Festival Of Racing. Fair play, bigtime, to both of them.
Needless to say, most interest will centre on the final of the A1 570 sweepstake final and the greyhound we headlined last week, the Michael Daly-trained Disco Pants, did the business really well in the first semi-final last Friday night.
Housed in trap 5 and sent off the even-money favourite, he achieved the start that was required and led around the opening bend from Millridge Lily and Champhers Puma. In that scenario, nothing was going to catch him and he powered home three lengths ahead of Millridge Lily in 30.83, with a length and a half back to Ballymac Whispa, the 2/1 second favourite which had only one greyhound, Coosey Hall, behind her leaving traps.
There was another even-money favourite in the second semi-final in Saleen Pearl, but she was always fighting a losing battle from trap 6 behind the fast-starting Millridge Bryce (2/1), which led the charge to the opening bend from trap 3.
Indeed, such was the dominance of Donal G O’Mahony’s charge that he was able to hit the finishing line seven lengths ahead of Saleen Pearl in 30.87, with three-quarters of a length back to Blackies Ranger.
A decisive beating, yes, for Saleen Pearl, but she did really well to fill the runner-up position after being baulked on the back straight and you certainly couldn’t rule her out from trap 3 in the final.
However, it’s very hard to go against the two semi-final winners and, simply because he has the best draw of the lot in trap 1, Millridge Bryce can upstage Disco Pants, which will be right outside him in trap 2.
It’s most certainly a final worthy of the handsome prize money on offer and, with such a brilliant – and valuable – supporting programme, it will be disappointing if the Oakview venue doesn’t attract a very big crowd.
The draw for the final is (trap order)): Millridge Bryce, Disco Pants, Saleen Pearl, Blackies Ranger, Ballymac Whispa, Millridge Lily (W).
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There will certainly be variety aplenty on Friday night and the final of a 750yds novice sweepstake will be commanding plenty of attention. It was quite something by Honest Endevour, trained in Abbeyfeale by Jack Foley for a syndicate headed up by himself, to win the first semi-final by eleven lengths in 42.01 and this wide seed has to be fancied to win the final from another greyhound trained in Abbeyfeale (by Jerry Griffin), namely Gortroe, even though this lady also had a massive winning margin of ten lengths in the second semi-final, with the clock stopping here on 42.49.
The draw for the final is (trap order): Lassinagh Kimi, Spruce Zacopane, Slippy Lulu, Gortroe, Smart Sally, Honest Endevour.
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Last Friday night’s 11-race programme ended with two semi-finals of a 12-greyhound sweepstake for A1 class over 525yds and Noel O’Leary’s Loher Rebel fairly excelled in beating his main market rival, Letterbox Shelia, in the second semi-final by three and a half lengths in 28.84, reversing the result when they last met on March 22.
A trap 1 draw was important to Loher Rebel and it will be much more difficult for him from a trap 4 draw in Friday night’s final.
The first semi-final saw Maurice Harty’s Lassinagh Dream come from out of the clouds, as it were, to score by a length from the front-running In A Lifetime in 29.03, but it could well be that the Cahersiveen-owned Letterbox Shelia will get back on the winning trail from a trap 2 draw in the final.
The draw is (trap order): Millridge Cora, Letterbox Shelia, Lassinagh Dream, Loher Rebel, In A Lifetime, Homestead Blonde.
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Last Friday night’s programme also featured four second round heats of a 525 sweepstake for A5 class which has a winner’s purse of €1,800 thanks to sponsorship by Kerry GOBA and the winners were Ardrahan Ambush (28.90), Fire Height Diaz (29.38), Misty Hector (29.17) and Vale Ranger (28.82).
The semi-finals take place this Saturday night and the draw is (trap order): First semi-final: Tuckers Sydney, Steeple Rd Alice, Leahys Sysco, Misty Hector, Coldwater Rolo, Fire Height Diaz.
Second semi-final: Vale Ranger, De Tron, Ardrahan Ambush, End The Lies, Saleen Candy, College Street.
Last Friday’s programme was completed by a 325yds race for S2/ S3 class and the most thrilling of finishes saw Feora Bono and Ballymac Kinga dead-heat in a really hot 17.57 for this class.
Altogether, a night of plenty of highs at the Oakview venue.