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It is the Greyhound Derby final tonight.
I wonder how many people realise? I used to follow the sport quite closely but was only vaguely aware that the competition had started a few weeks ago.
To think it used to be screened live on the BBC! Times and tastes have changed and now it is on an obscure channel buried away in the Sky guide.
The sport is in terminal decline. If only it could do something to attract a new audience.
I know! How about a glossy, expensive video fronted by Jermaine Jenas…
Funny you should mention that, CAS, I just noticed myself and should have remembered as this was always traditionally triple Derby day – Pitman’s Irish and Greyhound.
It hadn’t registered with me at all.
If anyone has a link to the contest, now at Towcester, I will watch it tonight.
I am "The Horse Racing Punter" on Facebook
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It's the "Millwall FC" of Point broadcasts: "No One Likes Us - We Don't Care"Westmead Hawk won the last one I watched. Maybe Ballymac something or other
Didn’t realise it was tonight either.
If betting people don’t know it’s on how are they suppose to let Jo public know it’s on.
No wonder it is going to the dogsGaelic Warrior Gold Cup Winner 2026
If you have Sky, the programme starts at 5.30pm on Channel 437 SportyStuff.
I assume the races can be watched online on Betfair.
I never experienced the White City Derbies. But Wimbledon rocked on Derby Night. The atmosphere was pulsating.
I can remember dashing from Epsom on Derby Day to Wimbledon twice, in 2004 and in 2006. The latter was to see the great Westmead Hawk win his second Derby, despite being weighed down by my ante post wager. Great days:
Great stuff.
I am "The Horse Racing Punter" on Facebook
https://mobile.twitter.com/Ian_Davies_
https://www.facebook.com/ThePointtoPointNHandFlatracingpunter/
It's the "Millwall FC" of Point broadcasts: "No One Likes Us - We Don't Care"I have decided that Trap 3 Hello Hammond in the value bet in the contest.
I am "The Horse Racing Punter" on Facebook
https://mobile.twitter.com/Ian_Davies_
https://www.facebook.com/ThePointtoPointNHandFlatracingpunter/
It's the "Millwall FC" of Point broadcasts: "No One Likes Us - We Don't Care"I doubt I will get involved but I will put up Trap 6 as a token selection. Kennel mate of Trap 3.
Both trained by Paul Hennessy, who knows what it takes to train a Derby winner.
Has anyone else trained a Greyhound Derby winner and a Cheltenham Festival winner?
Someone emailed the programme earlier and asked if there would be any fireworks before the Derby.
I have always liked Towcester as a venue.
I am looking forward to watching this.
I am "The Horse Racing Punter" on Facebook
https://mobile.twitter.com/Ian_Davies_
https://www.facebook.com/ThePointtoPointNHandFlatracingpunter/
It's the "Millwall FC" of Point broadcasts: "No One Likes Us - We Don't Care"I hold CAS directly responsible for the sorry fact that I just spent the last 15 minutes watching greyhound races at Betfair Exchange from Romford, Yarmouth and now this.
Narrow but decisive win for the 4 – my 3 missed the break, went wide, but stayed on.
Clearly wants further!
I am "The Horse Racing Punter" on Facebook
https://mobile.twitter.com/Ian_Davies_
https://www.facebook.com/ThePointtoPointNHandFlatracingpunter/
It's the "Millwall FC" of Point broadcasts: "No One Likes Us - We Don't Care"The 3 dog was in front at the pick up. Never mind Westover for the St Leger – Trap 3 for the Greyhound St Leger!
Great win by Trap 4 and pleased for connections, who have been trying to win the Derby for years.
Enjoyed the coverage tonight on RPGTV. Pity Errol Blyth is stuck in the studio rather than commentating but he has been a good host.
Towcester did a fair job at staging the Derby tonight but the open air arena and the distance of the track from the stands means it is a struggle to replicate the atmosphere of Wimbledon and the “Derby Roar”.
No dog tracks anywhere near me but the one time I did go I really didn’t enjoy it, I don’t really know why. I just didn’t. This was a Saturday evening meeting, albeit a run of the mill one. Maybe the bigger meetings are, or at least were, better.
I used to regularly go to Wimbledon greyhounds when I lived in London. The standard, graded race meetings were OK but it was much better when it was quality, open racing with dogs from other tracks running. The Derby, from the opening heats through to the quarters, semis and then the final was great.
I cannot remember how it happened but I must have put my name down on some sort of mailing list because every month I would get a letter which had vouchers for free admission for two meetings, together with a free drink and £2 bet on the Tote. And the Derby meetings generally had a voucher for free admission in the “Racing Post”. I hardly ever paid to get in!
I did venture to Walthamstow a few times but it was a pain to get to. Travelling home on the Victoria Line with a wallet full of money late at night did not always feel like a good idea either.
I had some, err, “interesting” nights at the dogs in the 1980s.
I used to go with Roger Jackson, greyhound tipster on the Racing & Football Outlook.
Three short stories – the good, the bad and the ugly.
The Good: we drove from London to Milton Keynes because Roger specialised in Open and Intertrack races and he reckoned he had a moral certainty in the Open. Opened 6/4, I had my humble £60/£40, Roger had £450/£300 and its price collapsed to about even money. 660m+ race, broke well enough, but then almost got knocked over on the bend turning into the back straight and must have lost six lengths. But it then took off, led turning for home and won four lengths. Happy days.
The Bad: Roger did this 70% book tissue for graded races and only bet if a dog was its tissue price as he reckoned he had 30% over the odds if it did. One rainy miserable Saturday night we deployed this system at Catford and had TWENTY consecutive LOSING bets on ten races. I did £200 in cold blood betting a tenner a time. We had one beaten half a length at 25/1, but it was – and thankfully remains – my worst ever trip at the races. Beyond brutal. Roger reckoned it was because “these Catford graded races are bent.” But I was by now at the Racing Post and chatting about it on the Monday to Jim Cremin took on board Jim’s view: “course it’s not bent. Roger doesn’t have the handle he thinks he has on the graded form there – he should stick to Open races.”
The Ugly: we went to Wembley because there was a Wembley v Hove inter track race and Roger reckons a Hove dog will turn over the Wembley jolly. One problem, though, it’s the sixth race on the card and by the fourth Roger has done his entire betting tank on the graded races. He’s in a right strop and going home. Although he was my lift I decided to stick around on my own. The Wembley Dog opens 4/5 and the now departed Roger’s dog is 4/1. “Roger has zero discipline but he knows these Opens,” I thought. So I had £160/£40. It annihilated the Wembley dog by EIGHT lengths. Dazed, confused, but happy I stumbled out of the ancient stadium, saw a restaurant called The Ugly Duckling and went in for an excellent duck in port sauce dinner and then got a cab all the way back to London Docklands where I lived.
Dog racing – it’s never the same thing twice.
Anyway, me and CAS are all over this Hello Hammond for the St Leger – you heard it here first!
I am "The Horse Racing Punter" on Facebook
https://mobile.twitter.com/Ian_Davies_
https://www.facebook.com/ThePointtoPointNHandFlatracingpunter/
It's the "Millwall FC" of Point broadcasts: "No One Likes Us - We Don't Care"Great stuff.
The horses are still the best but punting on the dogs was tremendous fun.
I grew to be very fond of Wimbledon. There were some great characters there and some fearless punters. I knew one fellow who got 66/1 about Westmead Hawk before the 2005 Derby, which made me very jealous!
I got to know a few of the bookmakers quite well. The idea that Tony Morris or Dell Nash would ever restrict anyone! Proper bookmakers.
I was saddened when Wimbledon closed. It was a disgrace the way the track was left to run down. But it still had a great atmosphere on the big nights.
Unfortunately, I never managed to get to Wembley. Incredible to think that one match in the 1966 World Cup had to be played at the White City because Wembley’s owners would not reschedule a dog racing meeting!
I watched this clip last night of the great Scurlogue Champ at Wembley. By his standards, he actually laid up quite close to the pace.
Great story’s Ian.. Roger sounds a character
reminded me of my brother (only horses), mainly the bad and ugly bits as he use to bet more than he could afford to lose but we once smashed Black Hercules out of the park when he beat Bristol De Mai and L’ami Serge at Cheltenham festival one year.I’ve never been to watch the greyhounds
Was too young when they have a track at Somerset county cricket clubGaelic Warrior Gold Cup Winner 2026
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