The Stage Is Set For The 2014 Great Chase Final
One of the more unique finals of the Group racing calendar takes place at The Meadows on Wednesday afternoon when the Group Two Great Chase is run.
The $45,000 to-the-winner event, which started in 2003, takes place over a four week period with the heats and semi finals all being held at various venues around the state of Victoria.
Heats were conducted at Sandown, Warragul, Healesville, Sale, Cranbourne, Ballarat, Horsham, Warrnambool, Geelong, Bendigo, The Meadows and Shepparton.
The unique thing about The Great Chase is the community involvement. Each greyhound throughout the event is registered to a participating community group that cares for the intellectually or physically disabled. Those groups get the opportunity to earn money based on the results of the greyhound assigned to them.
The diversity of the heats also allows these groups the opportunity to get out and see their greyhound race.
The 2014 final sees some very promising young dogs engaged including the boom pups Dewana Result and Darcy's Entity.
Half the field will also be made up of dogs from just two kennels and litters. Brendan and Matthew Dewan will rug up two runners from the Cosmic Rumble – Wildcard Lass (Primo Uno – Pauline) litter while Lovely Banks mentor Kelly Bravo has a duet of finalists by Bartrim Bale – Witch Fantasy (Premier Fantasy – Witch Magic).
It should be an absolute cracker.
The Great Chase is race eight on the card and is scheduled to jump at 2:08pm.
Here is a look at the field and the current Centrebet fixed odds market;
1 – Rinash ($8.00) – Graham Laidlay – A winner of six from 17 including his last two straight who qualified for the final with a slick 25.71 win at Warragul. He has won three of his six races from box one and, if he begins, he is right in this. His Achilles heel may be his hit or miss box manners but there is no doubting his ability.
2 – Hekate Belle ($3.00) – Kelly Bravo –The only bitch in the field and a winner of six from 20 who comes into this after winning her semi-final at Geelong in 25.72. She is a fairly reliable beginner who has been placed in four of her five starts from box two. She looks an each-way proposition.
3 – Darcy's Entity ($11.00) – Michael Wallworth – A very promising pup and half brother to Evie's Entity who has six wins and a second placing to his name from just seven starts. He is a good beginner and won his only start from this box. This is his biggest test to date but it is hard to fault his efforts so far which include a 25.72 semi-final win at Geelong.
4 – Dewana Result ($2.90) – Brendan Dewan – The Warragul track record holder who also won the listed Northern Districts Cup at Shepparton all in the space of just seven starts. Barring one fall he is undefeated and he is capable of running the hands off the clock. The only issue is that he's never the first to leave the boxes but tends to hit the ground running. He may need a little bit of room early from box four and, if he gets it, the race is his for the taking.
5 – Quicker Than Al ($34) – Alan Hanson – Has plenty of race experience compared to many in this field with 34 starts to his name. The big concern is that he has only won three of those races. He managed to run a close second in his semi-final at Geelong behind Top Secret but will need to improve to be a wining hope here. He appears to be a rough place chance at best.
6 – Dewana Hitman ($16) – Matthew Dewan – A winner of six from 11, including his last two, who took out his Warragul semi-final in 25.90. He tends to be a little tardy early which is the biggest hurdle that he faces from this box. He may find this assignment too tough.
7 – Top Secret ($8.00) – Kelly Bravo – Chasing his fourth win in a row after two slippery efforts at Geelong and a win here at The Meadows. He has won six from 28 and looks like he is starting to mature into a handy race dog. He is the most reliable beginner in the field and could well give them something to catch.
8 – All Strung Out ($8.50) – Glenn Rounds – A winner of five from 15 who has been placed twice in Group finals. Recently finished second in the Group One Peter Mosman at Wentworth Park and also finished third in the Group Three Mega Maiden there at Easter. He is only a moderate beginner and is yet to win from box eight in five attempts. He is likely to need a bit of luck from the draw.
Reserves
9 – Lektra Hawk – ($18) – Ian Cockerell – A consistent run-on type who is never far away. He has won five from 22 but tends to need luck in transit in his races. He is a place hope if he gets a start.
10 – Bremer ($19) – Darren McDonald – An ultra consistent dog who has only missed a place once in 13 starts. Finished second to Dewana Result in his semi-final and could be right in this if he happens to jag a start.
The outcome of this race will depend a lot on how much room Dewana Result (4) can get early.
Top Secret (7) looks the likely leader and could be off and gone if a couple of these find trouble.
Hekate Bell (2) and Darcy's Entity (3) will be big hopes if they can find the fence and be prominent early.
All Strung Out (8) has the ability but looks poorly served by the draw and will need luck to get through the first turn unscathed.
Selections: 4-7-2-3