Mount Gambier Greyhound Racing Club

Tara Raceway, Lake Terrace East, Mount Gambier, SA

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Telling the story of SA greyhound racing

Ray Fewings is a Greyhound Racing SA board member, a licenced trainer and one who has lived the past 50 years as a passionate devotee of greyhound racing.

In Chasing A Dream . . . 50 Years of Racing at Angle Park, he has dusted down a lifetime of memories to tell the story of greyhound racing in South Australia.

But it’s a story that goes back to 1940 when the Adelaide Greyhound Racing Club first set up racing behind a pilot dog at Payneham Oval – and later at Cavan and Waterloo Corner. Other clubs had later raced at Campbelltown Oval, Thebarton Oval and Elizabeth.

The first mechanical lure meeting was conducted at Bolivar, adjacent to the Globe Derby Park trotting track. However, rather than develop the track, the AGRC opted for the Harold Tyler Reserve at Angle Park.

And not even a malfunction of the starting box during the main event on opening night – Thursday, April 20, 1972 – could ruin a sensational start to legalised betting on metropolitan greyhound racing in Adelaide.

Fewings covered the opening night for the Adelaide Advertiser.

“A crowd estimated at more than 15,000 stood in confusion for almost an hour at the opening of the Adelaide Greyhound Raceway at Days Road last night.

“They stared in disbelief as the boxes flew open for the start of the feature event, the Commonwealth Invitation Sprint, and the tin hare failed to move.

“The greyhounds completed a lap of the course fighting and bumping as they searched in vain for the lure.

“One greyhound, Mulga Clown, pulled up and ran back to the winning post where he stared into the mirror of the photo finish camera.

“It was almost an hour before the stewards announced that the race would be re-run at the end of the night but the star attraction Victorian champion Gerard The Gent was a scratching.”

But for all that, committeemen were overwhelmed by the crowd. Traffic conditions were chaotic as cars drove bumper to bumper.

Chasing A Dream covers some of the champions to have raced at Angle Park – Brett Lee, Bristol Sue, White Panther, Bay Road Queen, Kate’s A Scandal, Fernando Bale, Top Honcho, Ginger, True To Do, Scenic Spa, Rapid Journey, Ernie Bung Arrow, Silver Saul and Sir Truculent.

And the trainers – Doug Payne, Tony Rasmussen, Cameron Butcher, Don Foster, Bernie Neal, Blair Cross, Jack Godfrey, Ray and Troy Murray, Betty Brown, Des Delaine, Colin Wachtel, Petar Jovanovic, Judi Hurley, Gavin Harris, Ray Jolly, Laurie and Terry Cahalan and Howard Gray.

There’s plenty more covered in Chasing A Dream, though, with chapters on the long journey, the fight to race, the right stuff, the racecallers, the mischief makers and the memories.

GRSA Chairman, Grantley Stevens, sums up Chasing A Dream pretty well.

“It’s a story that recalls the men, women and greyhounds who have filled our hearts with joy and our minds with great memories across the past 50 years. And it’s a book that will spark many grand recollections of a ‘night at the dogs’ at Angle Park.”

Chasing A Dream . . . 50 Years of Racing at Angle Park can be ordered at the Mount Gambier race day office at a cost of $25.


Departure Gate to chase second cup win

Departure Gate’s outstanding win over 600 metres at Sunday’s Category 2 Tara Raceway meeting now has Moorak trainer Jason Newman setting his sights firmly on next month’s Exchange Printers Anniversary Cup (512 m).

Departure Gate . . . all set to tackle July’s Exchange Printers Anniversary Cup.

The all the way win was the fifth over the middle-distance at Mount Gambier for the son of Fernando Bale x Tarks Nemesis. Since joining Newman’s kennels in November last year he has raced on 27 occasions for 13 wins and 11 minor placings.

A sensational winner of this year’s Carlin & Gazzard MG Mount Gambier Cup (512 m), Departure Gate will now be looking to emulate the Terry Scanlon trained Ripin Ruby and Peter Franklin’s Mojito Mayhem who won the cups double in 2005 and 2016 respectively.

Raced by the Lain Beckett-managed Yeah Nah Syndicate, Departure Gate’s win yesterday now has the black dog on 42 points and holding a commanding lead at the half-way mark in the Mount Gambier Greyhound of the Year award.

Doing the chasing at the moment are the Tracie Price-trained littermates Minnie Banjo, 35, and Giant’s Flash, 34. And Koroit trainer Ray Mahony’s Tapering Off moved into fourth spot with 29 points after a good win in the Commercial Hotel Grade Six final (512 m).

Meanwhile, earlier in the day, first starter Mr. Anderson – reported to have been trialling well – was a big winner by 10½ lengths in 17.78 seconds in the Swallow Drive Meats Maiden Stake (305 m).

Bayle, Jason and Zari Newman pictured at Tara Raceway on Sunday with first-up winner Mr. Anderson.

Mr. Anderson, a December 2020 whelping, is raced by Newman and Melissa Freitag, in partnership with former Callington greyhound trainer Derek Anderson.

The red fawn dog is by Bernado out of Dusseldorp, a beautifully bred daughter of Barcia Bale x Call Me Gee who was purchased outright by Newman nearing the end of her 47 start-eight win career.

“I liked the line and with the litter having produced the likes of Nadali, Sweet On Me, Call Me Billy and Aston Express I figured Dusseldorp certainly had breeding potential,” he said.

“Also, I have to give credit to John Little for his help in rearing the litter at his Kongorong property until breaking-in age. He obviously did his job well after reports later from the breaking-in establishment suggested they could be something special.”

Two Wells trainer Jack Trengove, back at Tara Raceway for the first time since February, took training honours for the day with Extremely and Redeem A Prize.

Two Wells trainer Jack Trengove with Redeem A Prize, the second leg of a double on Sunday.

Extremely, a son of Black Magic Opal x Veetee Saharrah and with Trengove since May, was chasing his first win since last August. And he made up a stack of ground to grab Velocity Cleo on the line in the Williams Crane Hire Stake (512 m).

NSW owner Adam Powell’s phone call from out of the blue to Trengove resulted in Redeem A Prize finding his way down to SA and, in the following race, opening his winning account in the Todd’s Photographics Stake (512 m).


First-time success for visiting trainer

Bendigo owner-trainer Nathan McKay, accompanied by wife Natalie, daughter Sophie and greyhound Mad Brax, didn’t really know what to expect last week when he arrived at Mount Gambier’s greyhound track for the first time.

But he had been pleasantly surprised. “This is a really good set-up,” he said. “Good amenities, good track, friendly people and a playground for the kids. I’ll be back, for sure.”

Sophie, Natalie and Nathan McKay pictured with Mad Brax at Tara Raceway on Thursday.

And, of course, things got even better later in the day when Mad Brax stepped out from box seven in the Rocks Tavern Stake (400 metres) at the Thursday time-graded meeting.

Always on the pace, the black dog found the front off the back before running away to a 3¾ length win over Crusoe Kid in a smart 23.03 seconds.

For the black dog it had been more than four months since he had last been successful – at Bendigo where he had won over 425 metres in a tidy 24.07 seconds. However, a month later at Ballarat when a short-priced favourite, he suffered an injury that sidelined him for three months.

“To be honest, I didn’t really know how he would come back,” McKay said. “But I was really pleased with his first two runs back over 385 metres at Shepparton where he ran close-up minor placings prior to today’s win in good time.”

Mad Brax, a son of Fabregas and Scott A Secret, was bred by McKay in partnership with Mark Anstice, their association going back to when they were kids.

McKay, 40, who first became involved in greyhound racing as an owner back in 2009, has been training since 2019.


One-dog trainer making up for lost time

Warrnambool-based Kevin Finn, one of the real gentlemen of greyhound racing, is finally making up for lost time with Orson Gift, the only dog he has in work.

Finn, and his daughter Marita (Byron), were over on Thursday with the son of Orson Allen x Mepunga Fame who was engaged in the Progreyhoundtips.com Stake over 400 metres.

And the black dog, after an ordinary start from box five, quickly worked into second spot behind Zambora Jade before finishing strongly in the home straight for a two-length win in 23.56 seconds.

Kevin Finn and Marita Byron pictured with Orson Gift after his win at Tara Raceway on Thursday.

The win – Finn’s first at Tara Raceway since Blackjack Cruise was successful there three years ago –was Orson Gift’s second for the month after he won his maiden over 390 metres at Ballarat on June 4.

Speaking after the win on Thursday, Byron said Orson Gift – a half-brother to the Group 1-winning Untapped – had come via Mepunga East-based breeder-owner Barry Smith, the man behind the “Mepunga” greyhounds.

“Barry had known that Dad was looking for a greyhound to train. So when one of the black dog pups from the litter didn’t appear as though he would measure up to city class it was suggested that he could be worth having a go with,” Byron said.

Come the end of November and Finn was dusting off the collar and lead in readiness for yet another return to the training ranks. And runs at Geelong and Horsham in December kicked off the career of the Smith-bred youngster that had been appropriately named Orson Gift.

“Things were going along pretty well but at his third start, this time at Warrnambool, he fell and suffered metacarpal damage. It would be five months before he returned to the track,” said Byron.

“Dad enjoys the involvement at the country tracks and likes to keep active so it’s been really pleasing that he has been able to get Orson Gift back on the track again and win a couple of races.”

He also enjoys the family involvement, Finn training him for the Three Gen Syndicate which comprises his wife Lorraine, daughter Marita and grandson Anthony Laing-Smith.

And Orson Gift was in for a well-deserved treat on the way home. Byron said there was always a stop at Heywood to purchase a Dixie Cup ice cream for the greyhound on board when returning from Tara Raceway.


1000 winners for local trainer

Kevin Patzel pictured at Tara Raceway yesterday with Compton Ruby after she brought up Tracie Price’s 1000th winner since 2009.

According to Greyhound Racing SA records, it was back in 2009, after relocating the previous year from Branxholme in Victoria, that Tracie Price trained his first SA winner.

And by the time yesterday’s seventh race had been run and won at Tara Raceway those GRSA records had the Compton-based trainer sitting on 999 winners.

The sense of occasion had not escaped Price. But as right-hand man Kevin Patzel was leading Compton Ruby to the boxes for the following race, the Hyland Fox Stake (512 metres), Mount Gambier’s leading trainer was on his way to Angle Park with his kennel star Giant’s Flash.

Compton Ruby, a daughter of My Redeemer and Headline, did the right thing, though, scoring an easy six length win in a tidy 29.98 seconds.

Price, of course, had been training greyhounds long before 2009. In fact, his first winner was in 1988 when Proud Priscilla, a son of Proud Paul and Priscilla, won a Juvenile Stake over 450 metres at Warrnambool.

“That was in my first year as a trainer when I finished with 19 winners,” he recalled. “One of my most successful runners that year was Fullkiri Kate who won seven races from 13 starts.”

Bred at Serviceton by Claude Merrett, Fullkiri Kate boasted outstanding bloodlines, being a granddaughter of Border Fullkiri who in turn was a litter sister to SA superstars Bristol Sue and Ascapella Miss.

In an involvement spanning almost 35 years, Price rates his best dog as Giant’s Flash. And the son of Banjo Boy x Navada Flame showed why last night at Angle Park when registering his third successive win over 595 metres at the city track.

“Not only has Giant’s Flash been a terrific dog for us but when he goes away to race at Angle Park he’s also been great promotion for greyhound racing in Mount Gambier. And I’m certainly proud to be a Mount Gambier trainer.”


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