The only Graeme Bate prepared chaser to make it through to the rich final, Radley Bale will run from the white box and is being quoted at $2.

On Monday night the son of Big Daddy Cool recorded the time of 29.91 in winning his heat from the blue box and no doubt will be improved by the experience.

The fastest qualifier on the night was the Graeme Moate prepared Shanlyn Hirdy, which sizzled around the circuit in the time of 29.69.

The son of Slater has drawn the green box in the final and is on the second line of betting as a $4.50 chance.

In a night of surprises on Monday night, Tasmanian champ Rewind failed to qualify for the Launceston Cup, when defeated in his heat by the Brendan Pursell prepared Lika Whisper.

Pursell, a former leading harness racing trainer-reinsman, has been responsible for a great training performance with the son of Solve The Puzzle, which made full use of the red box to score in the time of 30.13.

Lika Whisper has drawn the blue box on Monday night and is being quoted at $11 in the Cup market.

Leading trainer Ted Medhurst’s runners are invariably very short in the market, but that wasn’t the case with the smart performer Sandbanker, who won his heat on Monday night paying the huge dividend of $53.30, despite having good recent form.

The son of Collision recorded the time of 29.86 and will occupy the check box on Monday night at odds of $9.

Medhurst’s neighbour at Mangalore Mick Stringer, also qualified one of his kennel occupants for the Launceston Cup when New Recruit recorded the time of 30.21 in winning his particular heat.

The son of Paddy’s Flame has drawn the yellow box next Monday night and is being quoted at $17.

In another surprise, the Dale Hammersley prepared Strapper’s Angel also qualified by winning his heat, paying a lucrative $38.60.

A member of the outstanding Collide – Ricky’s Angel litter, Strapper’s Angel recorded the time of 29.87 and has drawn the coveted red box in the final at odds of $9.

Exeter trainer Anthony Bullock will be represented on Monday night by heat winner Classic Camdale, which will run from the pink box at a quote of $15.

The son of Collision recorded 29.90 in winning his heat and could prove to be the surprise packet in the rich final.

Last but certainly not least is the Max Auld prepared Max A Zillion, which gained a start on Monday night with the scratching of Au Revoir, but was still able to win his heat impressively in the time of 29.79.

The son of Bombastic Shiraz will start from the black box in the final and is third pick in the early market at odds of $8.

$57,000 Tasracing Group 2 Launceston Cup Final (515 metres)

1. Strapper’s Angel
2. Sandbanker
3. Radley Bale
4. Lika Whisper
5. New Recruit
6. Shanlyn Hirdy
7. Max A Zillion
8. Classic Camdale
Reserves
9. Strong Intention
10. Three Tradies

The panel – made up of representatives from The Meadows and the GRV Grading department – cut the original group of 66 greyhounds down to create three mouth-watering clashes over all distances at the Broadmeadows circuit, with over $200,000 in prizemoney on offer on the night.

The contenders from the three invitation-only finals have amassed a combined prizemoney total of almost $3.9 million, won 28 Group races and broken a whopping 13 track records, underlining the remarkable talent on show for the start of the three-week Australian Cup Carnival.

The headline act will undoubtedly be Australia’s newest staying superstar Miata, a winner of 19 races from just 22 starts, including a Group 1 win in the Galaxy on Saturday night and six track record-breaking efforts to date in her home state of Western Australia. The daughter of Bombastic Shiraz and Winsome Bluebird will assuredly start favourite in the Group 2 Macro Meats Zoom Top.

This year’s Zoom Top will also create history with the first ever New Zealand-based chaser (Thrilling Brat) making the final field for trainer Karen Walsh.

Please note: Fields are not in box draw order. Box draw to take place on February 11.

G1 Temlee – 525m ($75,000)

Bogie King 30.22
Cape Hawke 29.73
Dyna Tron 29.89
Glen Gallon 29.69
Godsend 29.96
Mystic Apple 29.90
Oaks Road NBT
Radley Bale 29.84
Shereen Bale 1st Res 29.68
Prince Diablo 2nd Res NBT

G2 Rookie Rebel – 600m ($40,000)

Don Chendo 34.35
Dyna Morris 34.72
Kalden Mayhem NBT
Lektra Jay 34.36
Noble Pedro NBT
Stack ‘Em Flat 34.20
Strong Intention NBT
Cousin Callum 1st Res NBT
Shintaro Samurai 2nd Res 34.74

G2 Zoom Top – 725m ($40,000)

Bling It On 42.64
Bobby Boucheau 42.29
Crafty Lady NBT
Granduer 42.61
Key To Eden FSH
Miata FSH
Shimaguni 42.41
Thrilling Brat FSH
He Knows Uno 1st Res FSH
Mist Opportunity 2nd Res FSH

Evidence was taken from trainer Mr Keith Boan, ARFL Science Manager Dr Adam Cawley and written evidence was entered from the Australian Racing Forensic Laboratory’s Senior Veterinarian Dr Craig Suann, the ARFL, Chem Centre WA, Veterinarian Dr J Sommerville, and meat wholesaler Mr Warren Dunn.

Mr Boan was subsequently found guilty of a charge under GAR 83 (2) (a) in that he presented Holiday Impact for the race in question other than free of a prohibited substance in that the urine sample taken from the greyhound was found to contain procaine.

Mr Boan was fined $500. In determining penalty Stewards took into account Mr Boan’s exceptionally good record in over 30 years of licensing history, which include a very high number of samples being taken without abnormality, his personal circumstances, inclusive of his large investment in the industry and high number of greyhounds in training, previous penalties in relation to this substance, the fact of little support for Holiday Impact on the day, the nature of the substance involved and the relatively high reported level in this sample, and the likelihood that contamination of meat supply was the source of the result of analysis.

It was also considered that Mr Boan had fed meat with little quality control applied, a practice he has amended in response to this abnormality.

Under GAR 83 (4) Holiday Impact was disqualified from the event and the placings amended accordingly.

The large crowd that gathered at the home of Western Australian Greyhound Racing were there to see one dog, and they certainly got what they came for. The quadruple record-breaking bitch that has captivated a state was always going to be hard to stop after a blitzing 14-length heat win, and was to be sent out the $1.40 favourite as a result. With the likes of Zipping Lad ($5.80), Shimaguni ($7.40) and Kalden Mayhem ($19.30) engaged, it was certainly no forgone conclusion, and the winner was always going to have to work for the $120,000 cheque.

When the lids opened Miata had begun reasonably, and gave the locals a few anxious moments when she navigated traffic to get through to third. Zipping Lad had taken up its usual leading position and with Shimaguni sitting second, the pace was red hot up front.

The stage was set to see if Miata could put it all together when it mattered, and show her class when the opposition was at its best.

The three runners out of Abbadale Gold that had qualified for the final were all poor to begin, and were facing an uphill battle to catch the accomplished trio up ahead.

Along the back stretch, the favourite was making its’ move. Once pressing the button and slipping into overdrive, Miata asked the question of the interstate visitors, and it proved to be one they couldn’t answer. Once on the bunny it was all Miata’s show, as she careered away to belt the quality field and win by almost ten lengths in a dazzling display.

Despite that W.A had found another local Galaxy champion, it was the fact she had equalled her own track record of 41.30, which really made the occasion something to behold.

Shimaguni was certainly not disgraced by running second for Andrea Dailly, while third place went to the $51.90 outsider, Freeway Fame for Keith Harding, who had come home hard to knock the tiring Zipping Lad off the podium.

But in the end, the night belonged to Miata. Paul Stuart’s star performer looks to have an almighty future as a stayer, and continues to build the incredible record of 19 wins from 23 starts after Saturday’s victory. The Bombastic Shiraz-Winsome Bluebird litter, from which Miata is a part, has been a revelation this week, after Sure As took out the Nation Derby at the Gardens one day before the Galaxy final.

Next on the staying calendar is the invitation-only Zoom Top at The Meadows, where many of the Galaxy finalists will most likely clash again. It promises to be a great race, and the Victorians will do their best to make life difficult for Miata once she steps onto foreign ground.

Trainer Mark Gatt had this greyhound prepared beautifully for the occasion, as he came into the race in peak form, with success in his previous four starts which included a 30.28 heat win. When it came time to step up and shine on the grand stage, the son of Spiral Nikita and Leprechaun Pace did not let him down, jumping to the lead and making his own luck on a way to a dominating win.

While much of the pre-race betting revolved around Heston Bale ($2.00 fav) and Glen Gallon ($3.30), Oaks Road was kept safe on the third line of betting, eventually starting the race at $5.80.

Anticipation was high to see if Glen Gallon could handle its middle box and repeat the flying 29.87 heat run, but unfortunately for connections it wasn’t to be. Glen Gallon began poorly and darted left into Mepunga Geordie ($27.00), allowing Oaks Road to fire to the front from box two. Heston Bale had begun fairly and was trying to muster along the rails, while local hope Uno Reltub ($18.80) had shown its customary dash from out wide.

Around the first turn and Oaks Road was in front by a length, however the race was about to change complexion. Uno Reltub pushed down hard towards the rail checking Heston Bale. This caused the record-breaking Victorian chaser to stumble and crash into Mepunga Geordie, who was again in the wrong place at the wrong time. Glen Gallon, Things Missing ($17.70) and Autoamerican ($23.70) were all then hampered by the faltering Heston Bale, and now the field had strung right out.

Oaks Road continued on its merry way, oblivious to the carnage behind it and was nearly six lengths in front by the time they entered the back straight. Uno Reltub was trying to bridge the gap, but it was a large hill to climb, as Victorian Lektra Jay ($28.00) started to warm up behind it.

Turning for home and it was a one-act affair. Oaks Road had run them ragged and gone on to win by seven lengths stopping the clock at 30.22. The $140,000 winners’ cheque is the fourth biggest in this country, and will progress the bank balance to a healthy $290,000. Owned by Edwin Kingswell, the November 2008 whelping has now amassed 14 victories and 15 placings from 37 racetrack appearances.

Outsider of the field, Lektra Jay, was a strong performance to gain second place for Andrea Dailly and owner Phil Lenehan, while the consistent Autoamerican for Steve McKenna and Tony Forte recovered to get third place prizemoney. Littermate of the winner, Things Missing, followed them in fourth place ahead of the tiring Uno Reltub in fifth.

Meanwhile earlier in the night, the consolation event was won in grand style by local chaser Hot Irish. It was a fitting result, as the Ben Abercrombie runner had been narrowly beaten by Things Missing the week prior, and was listed as first reserve for the main event. Winning by a length and quarter in 30.47, the son of Premier Fantasy is now up to 13 wins from 25 starts for owner Damon Fardig.

Do you know that, on average, one in three TAB races (including last Saturday Perth Cup) is badly affected by interference? A dog falls in one in every twenty races. But the averages disguise a lot.

These are interim conclusions from a statistical analysis of race results from all states for the last six months. Much more data will need to be examined so as to provide sufficient samples for reliable conclusions – certainly another six months’ worth.

The main purpose of this project is to try to identify where interference occurs, and hopefully to guess at why that happens. This information could then help with the design of new tracks or the refurbishment of old ones. And lower interference levels would do wonders for the confidence of both punters and dogs.

In some cases, getting good data has been difficult because of the varying habits of different clubs and states in the presentation of results. Codes can vary from one area to another. Another limitation of the study is that reported figures by no means cover all the interference that occurs in a race – far from it. A run-of-the-mill bump can well relegate a dog a couple of places or stop it from winning. So, too, for a dog that runs into a blockage or chops and changes its course. Or a dog which has no field sense and simply keeps running into other dogs. However, the major incidents will rank tracks, or particular trips, in order of importance.

Meantime, there are some standouts.

First, the major capital city tracks quickly fall into two groups. The number of falls is at about the national average at Angle Park, Albion Park, Cannington and Wentworth Park. Poor results – up to double the average – are evident at Launceston, The Meadows and Sandown.

Elsewhere, Bathurst, Gosford, Dapto, Nowra, Richmond and The Gardens have similar problems. Others may join this list but we will talk about them when more samples are available.

At the other end of the scale, the relatively new Mandurah track in WA is delivering excellent results over its main 405m and 490m trips. Adjustments to the turn over a year ago significantly improved interference levels.

In Tasmania, Hobart is even better, as we all expected, but so is Devonport, both in contrast to the newly built Launceston track where first turn scuffles are routine. One clue there is that, like The Gardens in Newcastle, the run off between Launceston’s first turn and the pen poses questions. Dogs effectively make a small right turn after passing the post, rather than continuing on around the turn, or finishing on the lure, as they do elsewhere. It is likely that this topography is contributing to a poorly contoured turn.

A similar problem is evident on some home turns where the gradients are too flat, perhaps in consideration of nearby starting boxes (eg those used for a 500m or 600m race on a circle track). Angle Park, Albion Park and The Gardens are cases in point. In these cases, hard railers can gain an extra advantage over centre or wide runners which tend to veer off, thereby losing distance.

So much for falls. However, we are also looking at the proportion of dogs which finish 20 lengths or more from the winner. There has to be a specific reason for performances like that and the indications are that interference is at the top of the list.

Certainly, injuries will play a part but, even so, a number of those would have been caused by interference in the first place.

Generally, it is notable that the tracks with the highest number of falls are also those with most 20 length margins. Messy tracks tend to have double the proportion of long margins, compared with better tracks. In several cases, 60% to 80% of all races are involved – for example, at Bathurst 520m, Dapto 520m, The Gardens 515m, Nowra 520m and Richmond 535m.

In practice you might call these the “usual suspects”, as race observations at these tracks regularly reflect first turn disruptions.

Other factors which might bear on the subject are the class of racers, the distance to the first turn, the nature of the lure, the radius of the turn, and the positioning of boxes.

Either way, it would be good to hear what other folk have to say on this subject. Just email us, and tell your friends to do the same.

The Andrea Dailly trained star put his head down and after giving away many lengths to the leaders somehow found a way to win by half a length in 30.72. It was a huge run. Heston Bale the brother of Sandown Park 515 metre record holder Bekim Bale has always from his very first start shown way above average ability and in his short career so far has put up some brilliant performances. However he does seem to find trouble in a lot of his races.

This is his second Run of the month award for Heston Bale he also shared the December 2011 award with Noble Pedro after he smashed the Meadows record recording an extraordinary 29.45.
Heston Bale is a Black Dog whelped October 2009 by Bartrim Bale from Amelia Bale (Sonic Flight x Evonne Bale) he is raced by Paul Wheeler and trained by the Dailly team at Anakie in Victoria. He has raced 18 times for 11 wins and four placings his overall stake earnings stand at $65,660.

As usual there were some outstanding runs recorded in January in fact there were some fantastic performances on various tracks around Australia. However given the importance of the race and quality of the field Heston Bale has started where he finished last year with the monthly award.

AGRA congratulates the owner Paul Wheeler and trainer Andrea Dailly after being judged the AGRA Run of the Month for January 2012. He is the first this year with 11 more to come.

It was a remarkable month for the hard chasing Spiral Nikita dog trained by Mark Gatt for Ed Kingswell. He has always shown he was a serious greyhound after racing in top company from early on in his career. However perhaps 2012, his connections may enjoy what they know their star sprinter is capable off.

Oaks Road started the month winning the Gosford Cup Consolation in outstanding fashion recording the fastest time of the night of 29.79, Fancy Dean was second. He then went to Wentworth Park for his heat of the Bob Payne and again returned the best time of the night 29.64.

Beginning ideally from box five in the final a week later, last year’s Group 2 Megastar winner (Dapto) and Group 1 Paws Of Thunder runner-up (Wentworth Park) gave nothing else a look-in, streaking away with the $40,000 winner’s prize in 30.28s. On a track not conducive to fast times, Oaks Road defeated Fancy Dean by four lengths, with Young Snozz third another three and three quarters lengths away.

At his next start in the heat of the Group 1 Perth Cup last Saturday night he put in a tradesman like effort first up on the track to win from box one in 30.28. Oaks Road has an excellent chance of bringing home his first Group 1 trophy when he takes his place in the final this Saturday night from box two.

Oaks Road is a Black dog whelped November 2008 by Spiral Nikita from Leprechaun Pace (Brett Lee x Leprechaun Yap) Oaks Road is raced by Ed Kingswell and trained by Mark Gatt he has raced 36 times for 13 wins and 15 placings. His stake earnings stand at $153,070.

The month of January has seen a number group races decided. Oaks Road beat Group 1 winner Godsend. Plus group 2 winners Mystic Apple, Stagger, Crafty Lady and Prince Diablo for the monthly award.

AGRA congratulates the owner Ed Kingswell, trainer Mark Gatt and Oaks Road on being awarded the AGRA Greyhound of the Month for January 2012.

CASE 1.
Earlier (see Truth is Better than Fiction, 30 Jan) I suggested that, amongst other operators, Betfair did not publish turnover figures. A couple of readers took me to task, pointing out that a query of its website would reveal all. Well, they are part right. Yes, if you are a qualified Betfair customer, you can look up what bets were placed on a given race. But not if you are Joe Blow off the street. And nowhere can you locate figures for a given year. To further check this, I queried Betfair directly.

Absolutely, their spokesman replied, “we are not guarded in respect of our results”. However, responding to my twice repeated request for 2010/11 turnover data by code, he directed me to pages which simply showed race by race turnover. These included “matched amounts”, as Betfair terms them, and other information. Very nice, but not what I asked about. And I am hardly in the position to add up thousands of individual race figures.

Apparently, Betfair offered the ARB Fact Book people details of their annual “revenue” rather than a total of the amount bet (which is what the Fact Book shows in respect to TABs and oncourse bookmakers). Naturally the ARB people had no use for this as it is not what it shows for all other betting operators. They simply want to reflect how much Australians bet. “Revenue” to Betfair is in fact the difference between the amount bet and the amount paid out and, incidentally, is the core of many debates between Betfair or NT bookmakers on the one hand and racing authorities on the other. Indeed the High Court is shortly to rule on some aspects of this subject.

Either way, Betfair has twice declined to advise what its annual betting volume is. Therefore, my original claim that it does not publish figures is pretty right.

“Publish”: to make public or generally known (Macquarie dictionary).

CASE 2.
The GRSA annual report says that it has created “a wagering environment which is more attractive, more accessible and more tailored to the individual wagering consumer”, but there is no information on what, if any, changes occurred to the nature of those consumers – mugs, serious punters, professionals? Then it says local TAB turnover went up by 3.8% in 2010/11 over the previous year. Well, yes, but SA also ran more meetings. How many is uncertain as the report contains no information about the number of meetings or races. However, cash flow did fall significantly when compared with the previous year.

CASE 3.
Outgoing GRNSW chairman Percy Allan has just pointed out that prize money increased at an average of 7.5% pa between 2004 and 2011, well above the inflation rate of 2.8%. That’s nice, but the number of TAB meetings rose by 40.8% over the same period, thereby generating more gross income. Obviously income per meeting would have declined at the same time. The increase in costs to run these meetings is not stated.

By the way, this is the same Percy Allan who a few years ago made a speech at the Greyhound Social Club advising everyone to steer well clear of Betfair, as they were a clear and present danger to racing as we know it. Betfair is today a major sponsor of GRNSW.

CASE 4.
Queensland Racing chairman Bob Bentley in 2010 said the Logan option for a new greyhound site for Brisbane was dead in the water. He then launched an elaborate infrastructure review which took several months and looked in detail at three possible greyhound locations. One of these was Deagon, which was eventually selected in late 2011 and became the subject of very expensive planning work by engineering consultants. Much publicity ensued. Last week, Deagon was dumped and Bentley advised the Minister that Logan was the pea.

CASE 5.
For reasons best known to itself Tabcorp tells lies on a daily basis. Its dividends are always posted on the basis of a $1 investment, except for First Fours. When the First Four has jackpotted, and sometimes even when it hasn’t, Tabcorp dreams up its own dividend and puts it on screen in results pages. Sometimes the figure is based on a 50 cent investment, sometimes on some other basis (no doubt prompted by the fact that customers can select any old investment amount when they fill out the Flexi ticket), but never on a $1 investment. Occasionally, even Exacta and Trifecta dividends can suffer this fate. Invariably, the posted (imaginary) dividend is inflated above what $1 would pay. What possible reason is there for Tabcorp to mislead the public?

CASE 6.
Finally, it is hard to resist the temptation to show how Racing Ministers and their department heads were thinking in 2003. This is an excerpt from the report of the Betting Exchange Task Force, which contained representatives from all Australian states.

The State and Territory controlling bodies of racing – with direct input from their respective head stewards – generally opined that betting exchange operations on racing give rise to serious potential threats to racing’s actual and perceived integrity. Further, the respondents – with the exception of Racing Victoria Limited – were generally sceptical as to the existence of any cost-effective measures to satisfactorily address these threats.

It is worth noting that the BETF (and local racing authorities) took no notice of the findings of the UK racing authority – The Jockey Club – or relevant UK police reports, all of which are on the public record, and all of which complimented Betfair.

Of the two futurity semi-finals conducted last week, Geoff Collins Victorian star sprinter Zara Zulu began quickly to sit in second position behind the leader at the first turn before shooting away to win by six lengths in a very smart 29.61. Midnight Capers who finished in second position was equally as gallant as last week’s performance finishing behind Avondale Queen in 29.51.

After beginning well from box two, the daughter of prominent sprinter Midnight Movie, made solid ground on the winner and now holds the ace in this week’s final after coming up with box one. Zara Zulu will have to use her early pace to overcome a difficult box five draw.

Olive Millie, an outside chance in heat one of the National Futurity last week used her box one draw to perfection to sit behind second favourite By Starlight before mowing her down in the latter stages to score by ¾ lengths in 29.81. Jason Mackay’s Witch’s Potion was equally impressive to finish in second position and has drawn a favourable box two in this week’s final.

It was the McElle show in the fastest of the National Derby semi-finals with the Reg Kay hot shot pinning the lids again to blow away his rivals with impressive early sectionals once again to score in 29.78. After coming up with box three again in this week’s final, he should give trainer Jason Mackay a great sight out in front at the first turn.

Semi-final number two was an action packed event with Anthony Azzopardi’s speedster Free Will leading for the majority of the race to be pipped at the post by a neck from the flying Sure As in 29.93. He slowly reeled in his opponents and has come up with a handy box two in this week’s final. Pure Instinct was just as impressive and scored his place in this week’s final after finishing in third position.

The Friday night meeting with kick off at 7.08pm with a large crowd expected to see some of Australia’s hottest young dogs fight it out for first prize. The box draws as always will prove vital to punter with Midnight Capers installed as the $3 favourite in the Futurity and McElle at even shorter odds at $2.80 for the Derby.