Give Us Peace, who cost her owners $100, is in line to land a big windfall in the Bathurst RSL Soldier's Saddle this afternoon.
Give Us Peace, who is trained at Dubbo by Charmaine Roberts for a syndicate from nearby WELLINGTON, will jump from box six in the feature race after winning her semi final in 30.08 last week. She was slowest of the three semi-final winners but her first "split" of 4.22 was the quickest.
"Nobody wants to get box six in any final but the only greyhound with the early zip to match Give Us Peace should be Sky Wave and she is out in box seven," Roberts' partner Shayne Stiff said.
"Give Us Peace can begin a bit faster than she did when she won her semi-final as she did not hit the lids running last week like she can sometimes do.
"Realistically Give Us Peace is not quite up to the class of a couple of her opponents but Bathurst is a renowned leader's track so she is in with a chance."
The group of friends who own Give Us Peace purchased her for only $100 when she was four months old. They had purchased another pup from a litter for around $600 and when they were about to leave the breeder offered to let them take Give Us Peace - also a puppy at the time - for only an extra $100.
Omen bet for the Soldier's Saddle would have to be Little Digger.
Little Digger took his record to a formidable five wins from nine starts when he won his semi-final last week in 29.90.
"Little Digger has box eight in the final and while I would have preferred to see him drawn on the rails, the outside alley is better than boxes five, six or seven," the greyhound's trainer Ray Smith said.
"In any case, how can a dog named Little Digger not be entitled to win a race called the Bathurst RSL Soldier's Saddle?
"I won the race last year with Midnight Treat but the 2017 lineup is outstanding. Apart from the other semi-final winners Sky Wave and Give Us Peace, I believe Pride Of Charlie will also be hard to toss.
"He finished second to Sky Wave in the fastest semi-final and if Pride Of Charlie can regain the form he was displaying a month ago he is going to be a real threat."
The Vic Sultana-trained Sky Wave was fastest semi-final winner, stopping the clock at a sizzling 29.79 to take her record to six wins from six races.
Sky Wave, who will jump from box seven in the Soldier's Saddle final, recorded not only the quickest semi-final time but also clocked 19.09, fastest second split sectional figures.
Darren Sultana, a successful trainer in his own right, believes his father Vic's greyhound is a big chance to win this afternoon.
"Sky Wave had box seven when she won at Maitland on November 9 and in that race she ran in a straight line from the boxes to the first corner," Darren said.
"The outcome of the Saddle final depends on the start, on which dogs fare best when they jump away. Give Us Peace has terrific early speed and from box six she might give my father's greyhound a good cart across to the first turn."
Box draw for the $10,000 Bathurst RSL Soldier's Saddle is:
1. Elmagordo
2. Luminescence
3. Pride Of Charlie
4. Ask King Jeff
5. Dynamical
6. Give Us Peace
7. Skywave
8. Little Digger.
Reserves:
9. Wighton
10. Black Jillak.
The race is race eight on the card and jumps at 6.02pm.
