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JIM CREMIN |
Weblog: At large in the greyhound world
Whhooooopppeeeeeeeee sums up the Derby news
RALPH TOPPING, chief executive of Hills, last rang me the Saturday of the WilliamHill.com Derby final, to discuss the race and its future. He had concerns about Wimbledon (haven’t we all) but was kicking around a few ideas. He was also fully aware of the 120,000 euros first prize for the Ladbrokes.com Irish Derby (and that ten per cent goesto the breeder).
By the end of our conversation, I felt Ralph was either going to walk away entirely, or do something special. It was a time to wait, see and hope.
Nearly a month later, on the road between Kilkenny and Limerick (having visited Phil Meaney, new chairman of the Irish Greyhound Board, and then trainer Paul Hennessy), my phone rang again.
He was going to tell me the result of his internal review into the future of the Derby sponsorship, and started off “Never mind 75,000, never mind 100,000, we are going to make the 2012 William Hill Derby worth £125,000 to the winning owner and the richest race in the world.” I had pulled over to the side of the road, calmly took notes, thanked Ralph, and contacted the paper to explain a story was coming.
I never got the chance to express what I actually felt . . . so I’m going to do it in this blog. It was a bit like being one of the radio quiz winners who had just been told they’d won the star prize. Whhooooopppeeeeeeeee!
Hardened professionals too have been left stunned by the announcement.
It is fantastic news for the entire sport, especially Wimbledon and the Greyhound Board. They have a partner who is keen to make it fun, to make it special. The Derby is unique, it is the one national event that greyhound racing boasts in terms of producing far broader interest. It is also the event that every owner dreams of as they sign the registration form for a pup. You pray for something who might be good enough to run in it, to maybe qualify, to win a heat, to reachthe final, and then . . .
I have listened to a lot of moans and groans about Wimbledon, and of course do understand many of them. We all want to see a modernised stadium that will showcase the sport the way say Limerick does for the Kerry Agribusiness St Leger. But a bit like the reasons why Limerick for years was less than ideal, we and Wimbledon will have to wait until a better longer term solution emerges. But the track itself, and the excitement surrounding the Derby, is world class.
It’s safe and, despite the ridiculously over the top comments of Steve Taylor (who, bless him, still keeps banging on about it) fair. We can debate fine points of track preparation and bowsering, and while personally I love arguing about whether the track should be very marginally firmer (if Mr Topping can write that into the contract, it would be helpful!) but overall, the venue is great for greyhounds and produces good greyhound racing.
That seems to be a factor that has helped win over Ralph, but he genuinely likes greyhounds too and wants to see the sport prosper. It represents an important part of his business, and a healthy sport has to be a good thing.
Getting the Derby right is crucial, the passion for that simply drives the rest of the sport. Now the Greyhound Board, with the extra Fund spend it has managed to secure though a welcome stabilisation and upturn in greyhound business in the shops, including Ralph's, can further reflect on how best to make further progress. We are entitled to feel optimistic.
Whhooooopppeeeeeeeee!
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