Koroit owner-trainer Peter Byrne’s association with the Mount Gambier Greyhound Racing Club goes back a fair way. In fact, in March 2016 Unsub Andy ran a track record of 35.04 seconds at Tara Raceway over 600 metres.

And the following year Byrne followed up with a second placing behind Fabregal in the Mount Gambier Cup with Arabella Figg.

A couple of years ago Byrne was over with a winner in Kick It Home, better known around the kennels as Tilly and whose ownership had quickly been claimed by his then 11-year-old daughter Tessa.

Netball commitments had kept her away from the track on that day but soon after Tilly’s win Byrne received a short text from his daughter for the benefit of a forthcoming article – “Tilly is my most favourite greyhound in the world. She wags her tail every time she sees me.”

Now 14, Tessa was over with her father last Sunday with Saint Finnie and Saint Cassidy who were engaged in the first two races – the Metal Worx Maiden/One Win Stake (512 m) and the Williams Crane Hire Maiden Stake (305 m).

Saint Finnie, a daughter of Bernardo and Saint Maddie, had won her maiden over 390 metres at Warrnambool in July at her 18th start and was chasing her second win last Sunday at start number 28.

Away well from box four, the blue bitch led all the way, defeating Compton Rocky by 1¼ lengths in a steady 31.13 seconds, although she does have a personal best time at the track of 30.25 seconds.

The Byrne family is certainly greyhound racing inclined. Peter and his wife Narelle are both licensed trainers as is 19-year-old son Connor while brother Talor, 16, is a licensed handler. In a matter of only a couple of weeks, Tessa also will be a fully-fledged handler.

And it’s a fair bet the first greyhound Tessa catches in a race will be Saint Cassidy who gained a start off the reserve bench in the second race.

“I actually named her after Mrs. Cassidy, my favourite teacher while I was attending St. Patrick’s Primary Koroit,” she said.

Saint Cassidy, having her first race start, certainly did Tessa’s former teacher proud when leading all the way and defeating Cheques To Burn by 2¼ lengths in 17.80 seconds.

Bred by Byrne, Saint Cassidy is by Fernando Bale out of six-race winner Mepunga Stellar who ended her racing career in Adelaide with Laurie Cahalan.

Meanwhile, come race 11, the Winning Post Supplies Stake over 600 metres saw the Byrne-owned and Dean Fennell-trained Saint Raine make an impressive middle distance debut.

Back in July, Byrne bought the litter sister of Saint Finnie over for the John Reid Memorial Maiden heats (512 m) and chose to leave her with the Glencoe-based Fennell.

Fennell had been saying for a long time that Saint Raine had been crying out for 600 metres but he had been unable to get her into a suitable race at Tara Raceway.

But she certainly found the right race last Sunday when winning the grade five event by 6½ lengths in a very tidy 35.27 seconds.

Not only that, Fennell took two winners back to Glencoe when Byrne opted to also leave Saint Finnie with him.

It was a good day for the Koroit participants when the Garry Anders owned and trained Chester Deeds strung together his third successive 400 metre win at Tara Raceway after a great battle with Myall Jack in the Cadillac Racing Open Stake.

In the end, only a nostril separated the pair with $19 chance Chester Deeds getting the nod in a time of 23.48 seconds. By Sennachie, the white and black dog is out of Beaut Deeds who won her maiden at Tara Raceway back in 2018.

Causing another upset when defeating a top field in the Greg Martlew Autos Mixed Stake (512 m) was Sweet Secret, owned and trained down the road from Koroit at Southern Cross by Ray Mahony.

Not without her share of problems early in her career, Mahony’s decision to now race the daughter of SH Avatar and Zipping Tatum more or less exclusively at Mount Gambier’s finish-on-lure track is paying off given her seven wins have all been at Tara Raceway.

In a race that included Chapel Road, this year’s Mount Gambier Cup winner and SA National Sprint representative, Sweet Secret finished strongly to defeat Top Cadillac and Purified in a quick 29.78 seconds.