JONATHAN HOBBS: Romford remains the place to be for greyhound fans on Friday nights. Its new grandstand continues to impress and, on the track, the London Road venue rarely disappoints and the Coral Romford Puppy Cup semi-finals take centre-stage this week.
There’s been talk of this year’s entry not being as good as recent years, but there were some excellent performances in the heats which suggest this batch of youngsters will make their presence known when it comes to later all-aged engagements.
So to Romford’s Friday night card – live on RPGTV – and the likes of Make No Apologie and Badminton Donal can strut their stuff in the Puppy Cup semis and, along with Droopys Carat, Billies Tea and Blue Tick George, could set up a great final next week.
As ever, however, the supporting card throws up a few eye-catching races:
Romford
7:33 Mark Wallis is making a concerted effort to close the gap on Patrick Janssens in the Trainer of the Year race, so his runners will be placed to get as many points as possible. Chubbys Turkana is back at Romford after a Henlow sharpener and should go well.
Play: Chubbys Turkana
7:49 The first Puppy Cup semi-final and Make No Apologie impressed in the heats last week and Heather Dimmock’s dog is quick enough to just edge rivals inside and out, although a smash break from Billies Tea would certainly make things interesting.
Play: Make No Apologie
8:06 The second Puppy Cup semi-final looks a great match-up between Droopys Carat and Blue Tick George. Preference is just for Angela Harrison’s dog who might just edge his main rival for early pace – although both have exceptional two-to-three pace.
Play: Droopys Carat
8:21 The third Puppy Cup semi-final sees the ante-post favourite Badminton Donal tough to oppose. Kevin Hutton’s dog posted the fastest time last week and another decent break could do the trick. Palatine Ander will improve for last week’s troubled run.
Play: Badminton Donal
8.38 Heat one of a 400m standard comp where Argentina could make hay. He’s a cracking early-paced runner of Kevin Hutton’s, winner of the Puppy Derby last year and hardly disgraced in the Yarmouth Derby. This trip looks more suitable.
Play: Argentina
Two short-shots later on the card also catch the eye, with Hutton’s Ballymac Diego (9.08) set to get first run on Champion Stakes third Newinn Cracker, while Pam Dolby’s track record holder Quantum Leap (9.26) could be sharper for some Henlow action.
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