There are times when frank observations are not always appreciated in journalism. But the Coral (Romford) Puppy Cup Roll of Honour is a mixed bag that includes outstanding stars such as Eden Star, Ravin Giovanni and Roxholme Nidge, to name but three. But also a number of less able hounds who relied on local knowledge and the luck of the draw to produce the peak performance of their otherwise unspectacular careers. Brookside Richie belongs firmly in the first category.
Drawn blue in the £10,000 Friday night decider, the 1-3f won in the style of a 1-5f after showing superior early dash to lead to the bend, his trademark first to third bend devastating burst, and then . . . well, the podium was already being prepared.
Given the recent calamity sustained with the apparent (!) career ending injury to his 2020 Coral Romford Puppy Cup winner Tenpin (see below), David Mullins was trying to rein back his natural exuberance as he held the post mortem the following morning.
He said: “I think you put up a bit of a brick wall so you don’t get too carried away after wins like this. But you want to enjoy it too, because you never know how long these things will last.”
When the son of Droopys Sydney added the Romford Cat One event to the Juvenile Classic collected in more heart-in-mouth circumstances at Towcester, he took his career record to 12 races: 9 wins, 3 seconds.
David said: “He crept up on us a bit to be honest. I don’t know how many times I’ve thought, ‘you’re better than I realised’. The thing is, with the exception of his first race, which was in A2, all the rest have been in competitions. It has been up against top class company too, none better than Bubbly Apache.”
This would be his last race in puppy company before taking on all-aged and David is both cautious and optimistic in equal measure.
He said: “We all know that it is one thing doing it against other pups, this will be his next challenge. But I’m certain that there is more to come from him. He is still to mature and also put on some muscle; that only comes with age. He is not the finished article.
“I haven’t spoken to Richie (Vickers) about future plans yet, and knowing him, he will probably leave the decisions to me. But there are various options on the cards including the Kent Derby, the Classic at Sunderland and the All England Cup. Richie lives in the North though it would never let it affect the plans; he would want the dog to run where was best for the dog.”
That winning feeling: Dave Mullins looks on with pride after daughter Rhianne paraded Romford Puppy Cup winner Brookside Richie Photo: © Steve Nash
It is impossible to not bring the subject onto the kennel’s former star Tenpin who went on from the Puppy Cup to be beaten favourite in the Kent Derby Final and was still only two years and nine months old when dislocating a hock and breaking a tibia in a trial at Perry Barr some 16 days ago.
Julie Mullins with Tenpin. What injury?
Shock turned to fear with concerns over the life threatening consequences of the injury. Since that very low point, as David tried to keep abreast of development via mobile phone, the whole situation has improved virtually daily.
He said: “Tenpin is in a really good place. We feared we might lose him, but the people at the Willow Veterinary Practice at Solihull were absolutely brilliant. We are very lucky to have some very good surgeons in the greyhound industry now, but these people are absolutely at the top of their game. He was with them for four or five days and I couldn’t believe what superb condition he was in when he returned home.
“He is still in a cast and he either isn’t aware of it, or doesn’t care. When I first spoke to the vets, I was worried what they were going to tell me, but their biggest doubts were whether he might race again. That had never occurred to me.
“To be honest, I’m still not building any hopes of it ever happening. By the time he is even in a position to consider it, we will be into the winter and you don’t know how he will respond in the cold weather. The other thing is, just because he was able to race, doesn’t mean that he would be the dog he was, so we are not thinking that far ahead.
“The after-care is still quite taxing, particularly in a busy racing kennel, but nobody minds, we are just glad to have him here.”
As for the cost of the operation?
“It is not cheap, somewhere between £5,000-£7,000 which has been paid by ARC.
“A number of tracks are supporting owners with these big veterinary bills but it seldom gets recognised or acknowledged – and I think it should.”
Oh that one – I refuse to accept it!
