With the TAB Million Dollar Chase semi-finals just around the corner, on Friday October 11, a number of greyhounds who have qualified for the night, will have the opportunity this Saturday to take a look at the Wentworth Park track.
Five semi-finalists - all who have not previously raced at the Glebe circuit - will trial solo on Saturday night before the first race, including the Jeff Britton-trained, National Sprint Champion, Premium Share, who qualified after finishing fourth behind Shima Shine in the Bulli Regional Final.
Premium Share will be joined in solo trials by three interstate greyhounds, and also the Northern Rivers’ dog Smooth Act (pictured), the Robert Cooke-trained greyhound the winner of the Lismore Regional Final last Friday night.
Also trialling will be the Deb Coleman-trained Immediate who won a Goulburn heat in fast time, then advanced to the semis after a strong third in the Goulburn Regional Final last Sunday.
Coleman’s partner Rob Camilleri, will trial Zipping Norton, who was a strong second in the Nowra Regional Final behind Banjo Tifia.
The other semi-finalist to the trial will be the Ray Henness-trained There’s A Catch. The Victorian won a heat of the series at Wagga, then ran a great race to qualify by finishing third to Ultimate Speed in the Wagga Regional Final last Saturday.
The five greyhounds will trial alphabetically, with race rugs matching the trial number. In order they are
1 Immediate, 2 Premium Share, 3 Smooth Act, 4 There’s A Catch, and 5 Zipping Norton.
A notice to all trainers that to accommodate these trials, kennelling closing time has been brought forward by 15 minutes, to now be 45 minutes before the first race, with kennels closing at 5.21pm.
While eight semi-finalists will come out of the six city qualifiers being run on Saturday, a handful of greyhounds already qualified for the semis will have one final hit-out before October 11.
Goods Odds Harada (Regional Final winner at Bathurst), Good Odds Buddy (Dapto Final winner), Kraken Spike (second at Dapto), Federal Lilly (second at The Gardens), and Dam Slippery (third at Lismore) will all clash in the Free-For-All.
Impressive winner of The Gardens’ Regional Final Get It Gizmo, and Ronny, third in the Maitland Final, will both have their first runs at Wentworth Park in a fifth grade event.
At Wentworth Park on Wednesday night, four semi-finalists had a last hit-out before the semis, with the Ron Marsden-trained Cee Jay’s Boy - who had qualified with a second placing in the Maitland Final - impressive in leading from the post the first time, and clocking a slick 29.74s, the same best of the night time posted by Feral Franky last Saturday night.
Second was Pindari Express - who qualified when second to Shima Shine at Bulli - who after running off on the first corner, powered home but had given the leader too much start.
Flying Bazza, the Maitland Regional Final winner, was last to jump, and was still last on the top turn, running on late to finish fourth, while the speedy Caishen – who qualified with a fourth in the Nowra final – battled away to finish fifth.
The box draw for the semi-finals will be conducted on Sunday after all 64 semi-finalists have been decided the night before.
