Curraheen Park poised to stage first Tuesday night meeting next week

On a relatively quiet week on the greyhound front, it was good to hear a sponsor has been secured for the Laurels, albeit on a short-term basis. 

That the level of prize money remains the same is also a positive, and the stake gets underway on Saturday April 11. Entries are already being accepted for the Classic.

More immediately, the first taste of Tuesday night racing at Curraheen Park will take place next week, March 31. As expected, it will replace the Thursday night meetings we had become accustomed to.

It’s also a first move towards having live racing from the track being beamed into the betting shop. This process would seem to have dragged on forever but we’re within touching distance now, and the appetite for it will become apparent very quickly.

Recent reports suggest the trials, which were undertaken over a number of Friday nights in recent weeks, have been successful in terms of overrounds, quality of racing, results, and the competitiveness of the races themselves.

While the onus is on the managers to grade them as tightly as possible, there will still be opportunities for those regulars who know their Curraheen greyhounds. I would argue that, regardless of whether or not the bookmaking firms were involved, if a choice presented itself between continuing with the somewhat less stringent racing and overrounds approaching 200% or very tightly graded racing and percentages closer to 130, I’d take my chances on the latter every time.

While turnover is low, at these odds bookmakers will need results – and they will get them – but the overrounds are very much a part of the reason why turnover is so low. Something has to change, and if sufficient effort is given to make this work, we may have a solution which works for all sides.

The Racing Post, admittedly a trade paper with more than a vested interest, manages to make something more of the mundane fare which commands much of the air time on RPGTV. We could learn quite a bit from that.

This weekend’s racing at Curraheen features the semi-finals of the Pat Hennerty Sales Cork Oaks, for which Drive On Royal cemented her position at the head of the ante-post market courtesy of a tremendous display in the second round. She hasn’t been done any favours by the draw but, nevertheless, has been shortened to 5-2 favourite for outright honours.

The Gain Dog Food Irish Cesarewitch gets underway at Mullingar this weekend and surely it’s a very long time since an A7 greyhound has taken an audacious tilt at Classic success.

That’s the case this weekend when, according to the race card, a lightly dog who was A6 at best but is currently entitled to ply his trade a step further down the ladder, will line up against some top-class rivals.

Fair play to connections for paying the money to take their chance, but what does it say about the level of greyhound available to fill such stakes right now. The winner’s prize is a not-to-be-sniffed-at €9,000, and the eight first-round heats take place on Saturday night.

On Easter Monday, April 6, there will be free entry to Youghal track. There will also be free Easter treats for all children present, and a raffle for an Easter hamper. All of this comes courtesy of the Youghal Track Supporters’ Club, which continues to do sterling work for the track. There will be racing at the venue tomorrow night but none on Good Friday.

Youghal, like Curraheen, remains on track to have its pictures beamed live in the not-too-distant future.

At Newbridge, the Red Mills Unraced Bitch Stake has reached the final stage, the big upset being the absence of Droopys Streak, who was in the wars when long odds-on to win her semi-final.

In fact, there were upsets in both semi-finals, with the Donal Murphy-trained Badminton Maid also beaten at odds on, but she managed to qualify and is now the bookmakers’ favourite, at 7-4, to make a quick return to winning ways in tomorrow night’s decider.

Over at Limerick, the unbeaten Droopys Braedon has shortened considerably in the market for the €80,000-to-the-winner Kirby Memorial. Having drawn the inside rail for Saturday night’s second semi-final, the Robert Gleeson-trained runner is no bigger than 2-1 to win the stake, though as short as 11-8 in places.

Boylesports Jet (formerly Hoodwinked) caught the eye in defeat behind Droopys Braedon last time, and could represent value at 5-1.