BOB MAY
SUNDAY night saw the running
of the first ever match race series
at Gawler greyhounds with the
Eastar Match Races.
The series is normally run at Angle
Park, but because an extensive
upgrade of that track is about to
start, it was transferred to Gawler.
Entry to the series was reserved
for the greyhounds that ran the fastest
times recorded over a qualifying
period at Gawler, while there was
also an opportunity for greyhounds
to try to better their times by running
a solo time trial last week.
The eight greyhounds were then
matched into four pairs to race
against each other, with the overall
winner being the greyhound that
was able to run the fastest time on
the night.
In race one, Lily Pad defeated
Burning Nitro, while in the second
race, Threaten was too fast for Velocity
Bottino.
In the third race, Stress The Point
accounted for All Show, and in the
final event Barbados Express was
too good for Ned’s Choice.
The times recorded were then
assessed, resulting in a very tight
finish as Lily Pad, trained by Lisa
Rasmussen, was declared the
overall winner with the fastest time
of 30.77 seconds. The time just
edged out Ben Rawlings’ Barbados
Express, running 30.78, while
Stress The Point ran 30.79 to take
third placing for Nicole Price.
Winning trainer Lisa Rasmussen,
who is also a member of the Razza
Syndicate of family members,
said she was very happy with the
result.
This race has only been run twice
previously, with husband Tony
winning the inaugural event, giving
the team two wins out of three.
Lisa is a big supporter of the race
concept, as it gives every greyhound
a chance to show their true ability,
and build their confidence, without
having any race interference.
Lily Pad had finished the six fastest
of the qualifiers, and Lisa said
she had been a little concerned that
others may qualify in a faster time
to deny her the run.
However, that didn’t happen, but
Lisa said she still felt nervy after
winning the first race and having
to wait three more races of nail biting
times before being declared the
winner.
Lily Pad has now won eleven
races in Lisa’s care after purchasing
the black female in September
2020.
Bought by Lisa as a future breeding
proposition, Lily Pad has certainly
shown with her ability that
she has every chance to be successful
in that role.
Going forward, there will be
major race day changes coming to
Gawler during the temporary closure
of Angle Park.
Racing at Gawler will continue
on Sunday nights, but there will be
extra meetings on a Tuesday and
Friday afternoon, and every alternate
Saturday morning.