David Lewis
LAST Sunday’s Category 2 greyhound meeting at Tara Raceway was a day when the favourites just could not take a trick.
When John Little’s $100 outsider Bungaloo Darcy took the lead down the back in the 400-metre Greg Martlew Autos Juvenile Stake – which included a $1.35 favourite in Mister Banjo – things certainly did not look to be getting any better.
In the end it was the $9 chance Artificial Blue who finished the stronger to score by three-quarters of a length in 23.06 seconds.
Only Steve Bartholomew’s Mary Bridget ran quicker on the day when winning the Cadillac Racing Open Stake.
Whelped in December 2020, Artificial Blue is owned and trained in the Victorian Central Goldfields town of Simson by 24-year-old child care worker Jaz Warzywoda, who has only one dog in her kennels.
Warzywoda, involved in greyhound racing for the past five years through her association with Calum Blake, said she had picked up Artificial Blue as a giveaway prior to racing.
“To be honest, initially he was pretty ordinary, but he continued to improve and last month he won his maiden over 425 metres at Bendigo,” she said.
“I believe much of the improvement has come due to Calum’s assistance.
“Then, earlier this month he ran third here behind Mister Banjo in a personal time of 23.26 seconds before improving on that in today’s win.
“We’re absolutely thrilled with the improvement he’s continuing to show.”
Another recent Tara Raceway winner for sire Raw Ability, Artificial Blue is out of Dubovka, a 17-race winner who accumulated $30,000 in stakemoney.
He was the only dog in the litter of 11.
It took until race 9, the Trackside Meats Stake (600m), for a favourite to finally win.
The Shelley Trengove trained Mr. Ibrox clocked a quick 34.97 seconds when defeating Rusty Zan by 4½ lengths.
But at $1.45 it may well have been too little, too late.
Anyway, how did the Tara Tipsters handle the rough results of the day?
Not too well, it seems.
With the exception, of course, of Kevin “KD” Douglas who is so far in front he no longer counts.
He led the way with 22 points which continued his outstanding run of tipping at Tara Raceway’s twice-weekly meetings.
So far he has not said much, but wait for it.
While on the subject of the Tara Tipsters, a couple of weeks ago Robert Halliday received a round of applause when it was announced, after two long and lonely years, he had finally lifted himself off the bottom of the competition.
However, Halliday’s tally of nine points last Sunday has seen him once again relegated to the bottom after Dean Fennell outscored him by six points.
The current series ends on Sunday, October 30.
The following week will feature the running of the 512-metre $1540 Quaran Care Tara Tipsters Cup for grade-six greyhounds.
Complementing the race will be the presentation of a cheque to representatives from the local charity.
