Ryley Sams and Lithgow Panther emerged from Saturday night's Wentworth Park racing as genuine contenders for next month's National Sprint and Distance Championships in Sydney.
No Donuts, arguably leading NSW candidate for the Sprint series, sat right behind Ryley Sams in Saturday's Free-For-All but the latter, trained by Bruce King, held him at bay to win by a neck.
“Bruce plans to nominate the dog for this Wednesday night's meeting because he figures he will be eligible for a fourth grade race on that card,” Ryley Sams' owner Gary Oldfield said after the race.
“Then he will freshen up Ryley Sams to have him ready for the National Sprint Championship heats at Wenty. Bruce and I are rapt because Ryley Sams has now posted fastest time of the night in two successive Wenty wins, clocking 29.68 last week and 29.64 tonight.”
The locally-trained Blue Lorian (2010) and Smart Valentino (2013) have given NSW success in two of the past five National Distance titles but our stocks for 2015 seemed depleted until Lithgow Panther came on the scene.
The John Chapman-trained greyhound staged a sensational last-to-first performance to defeat a strong non-graded line-up on Saturday night, stopping the clock at 42.23, just 0.02 outside his personal best time.
“That was his sixth Wentworth Park 720m race and while he had recorded two wins and two seconds before tonight he has definitely improved with each run,” Chapman said.
“In his first couple of 720m races at Wenty the Panther tried to out-sprint his rivals but he has since learned to adapt to long distance racing.
“When Lithgow Panther was first tried beyond sprint races, over 618m at Richmond, he went like a rocket, but he was broken in on that track and knows it backwards. He is a dog who needs a few looks at a track before he produces his best form.”
Trainer Rod Metselaar's plans to switch Tap Out Rose to middle distance racing are likely to be put on hold after his home-bred greyhound scored a shock win in a strong fourth and fifth grade 520m event on Saturday night.
Tap Out Rose, whose best time in two wins from 11 previous WP 520m races was 30.08, began brilliantly from box eight and led throughout in 29.85.
“I used to think she wanted an inside box but her habits have changed and lately Tap Out Rose has been wanting to get a bit wide,” Metselaar said.
“I nominated her for a 618m race at Richmond this week but when they did not have a suitable race I sent her around in this 520m event at Wenty. It looks like I'll have to keep sprinting her now.
“I am absolutely stoked because I bred Tap Out Rose from my own bitch, Sweet Fenoir”
Queen Marina represented NSW in last year's National Distance Championship final in Perth but there are no plans to enter her for this year's staying heats after her impressive 520m win at Wentworth Park on Saturday night.
Queen Marina broke 30 seconds for the Wentworth Park 520m trip for the first time when she ran down pacemaker Isabel Enlim to clock 29.95 in a fifth grade.
“She has always been able to sprint and had won in 29.56 at Gosford,” Queen Marina's trainer Noelene Holloway said on Saturday night.
“But early in her career at Wenty she was galloped on from behind and needed several stitches in the wound so after that she was inclined to pull back when she was crowded for room.
“I thought she was unlucky not to have won when she finished second from box five over 520m at Wentworth Park last week so I expected her to go close to winning tonight when she drew box one.”
Run of the night from Saturday's beaten division was the second placing by Seven Jacks behind Black Lagoon in a fifth grade race.
Seven Jacks ran in and collided from box five at the start and came from last at the first turn to finish a super second. He'll win at Wentworth Park when he draws inside.
See you next week!
