The Newman McDonnell Memorial, along with the Mount Gambier Cup and the Anniversary Cup, is one of the Mount Gambier Greyhound Racing Club’s longest-running feature events.
This year will mark the 40th running of the time-honoured event. Heats will be conducted over 512 metres for grade five greyhounds on Sunday, November 16 and the final a week later.
Newman McDonnell was at the public meeting held on September 14, 1972 in the Mount Gambier City Hall where he was elected onto the inaugural committee of the South East Greyhound Racing Club.
Almost seven years later he was president of the club when greyhound racing commenced in the south east at the Glenburnie race track.
And long before that, in 1964, he had owned Tara Princess, the inaugural winner of the Sandown Laurels. Glenburnie carried the Tara Raceway name as does the current venue on Lake Terrace East.
The first McDonnell Memorial was run in November 1986 when won by Kenzel Lad. Subsequent memorials to be conducted at the original track were won by Bozie Flyer, Irkanda Leo, Invercoe Riot, National Ribbon, Foxtrot Oscar, Bush Pepper, Larradinya, Wild Welcome, Colin Ian and Ashanti Gem.
In 2012, Camo’s Lucky, trained at Penshurst by John Cameron, won the first memorial conducted at a TAB meeting. Winners since then have been Bourne Again (David Peckham), Boris Bekim (Brian Fish), Glenville Jester (Richard Clayfield) and Lektra Stomp (Brian Lenehan).
Then in 2018 followed Banjo Lass (Tracie Price), Spring Value (Kevin Mugavin), Midnight Daisy (David Peckham), Crush Your Enemy (Tim Richards), Classic Moment (Kevin Mugavin), Malevolent Girl (Laughlin McLean) and last year Wild Milly (Tracie Price).
As far as the Newman McDonnell Memorial is concerned, Price probably best summed it up at Banjo Lass’s presentation.
“Those of us involved in greyhound racing today owe a great debt of gratitude to people such as Newman McDonnell. I’m sure he would be suitably impressed at the progress that has been made since racing commenced all those years ago at Glenburnie.”