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).
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).
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.
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).