PORTLAND greyhound trainer Robert Halliday dominated this week’s Wednesday race meeting at Tara Raceway when Odd Boots, Hutch and Molly’s Wally all scored dominant wins.
The treble for the long-time trainer was his first at Tara Raceway since Friday, December 9, 2016 when Odd Boots, Homer and Yella had been successful.
Halliday’s standout performer on Wednesday was Odd Boots who brought up a hat-trick of wins at the track when leading all the way in the 600-metre South Eastern Hotel Mixed Stake, eventually running out a 10 length winner over Fiorelli Rose in a smart 35.48 seconds.
Odd Boots, a son of Cosmic Rumble x Guru Doll, will now go into another 600-metre South Eastern Hotel Mixed Stake on Sunday with a record of six wins from 10 starts over the distance, but taking on one of the best middle distance fields assembled at Tara Raceway in quite some time.
Interestingly, Guru Doll is a daughter of Flaming Doll who is also the dam of Star Project, winner of the 400-metre Trackside Meats Stake earlier in the day for Garry Marshman and Vikki Jaensch of Heathmere.
Molly’s Wally, after three well-beaten runs, kicked off Halliday’s treble in the 512-metre Laser Electrical Maiden after overcoming a slow start, railing through mid-race before taking the lead off the back and then running away to a seven-and-a-quarter length win in 30.35 seconds at the big odds of $31.
And Hutch has set himself up nicely as far as “beating the grader” is concerned after he defeated Big Lebowski for the second time in 12 days, this time by seven-and-three-quarter lengths in 29.97 seconds.
The win came in the grade five 512-metre Produce Store Stake, with the son of Premier Fantasy x Cairnlea Ellie now looking well placed in another grade five 512-metre Produce Store Stake on Sunday by virtue of the fact that this race had been drawn prior to Wednesday’s having been run.
Meanwhile, Portland trainer Nicole Stanley has won this year’s Trainer-of-the-Year, while her Anniversary Cup winner Fiorelli Rose cannot be beaten in the Greyhound-of-the-Year.
Heading into Sunday’s final meeting of the season, Fiorelli Rose, who ran second to Odd Boots on Wednesday, leads the Tracie Price trained Baz’s Moment (third behind two of his kennelmates in Banjo Queen and Swift Limes) by four points.
With both greyhounds racing on Sunday, Fiorelli Rose will need to run unplaced and Baz’s Moment to win for there to be a dead-heat in the Greyhound-of-the-Year.
GREYHOUND IDENTITY LOST
SOUTH East greyhound racing has lost one of its long-time participants in Peter “Spider” Whitehead who died last week at the age of 68.
A 1974 South Gambier Football Club premiership player, Whitehead also won a Mail Medal while playing for Nangwarry and at one stage of his successful local football career was playing coach of Glencoe.
But by the time greyhound racing was ready to start at Tara Raceway’s Lake Terrace East venue in early 1997 he had developed a keen interest in the “longtails” with Blue Gothic being one of the first dogs he trained.
Blue Gothic, a son of Tantallon x Clovalley Haze, won four of his 24 race starts with Whitehead always maintaining that he would have been
his best dog but for the rookie trainer having no idea what he was doing.
In the early 2000s he enjoyed success with Awesome Trev (Awesome Assassin x Delicate Deb) who won a heat of the 2003 450-metre Warrnambool Classic as well as races at Tara Raceway.
Earlier this year, when acting as a caretaker trainer for Tracie Price, he kept the winners coming through Summer Raine, Goldie’s Run, Swift Limes, Shannah’s Might, Sophie’s Moment and Fear The Rascal.
Peter Whitehead’s funeral service will be conducted at Carinya Gardens, Mount Gambier, at 10am this morning.
He is survived by his widow Gidget, two children and seven grandchildren.
