We continue with our new feature with the remarkable Harry Findlay. One of the world’s most flamboyant and charismatic professional gamblers in a variety of sports, Harry remains a ‘dog man’ at heart. We plan for one more next week, and then hopefully a series of regular monthly interviews.
You have been quite vocal in your admiration of greyhound racing in Australia. Without trying to directly compare two fundamentally different racing structures, can you give an example of something we can take from Aussie racing, and something that you don’t like about it?
Something positive? There are plenty of things but to name just one, their racing muzzle. It is a view I have held for 20 years. In fact, I was hauled in front of the stewards in London during my short training career for trying to use them on my dogs.
To be fair, the top class racing and coursing vet Frances Allen – who actually reported me – was a big fan of the Australian model and preferred them herself. But the rules are the rules and I was a serial offender.
The Australia racing muzzle
I just can’t find any fault in the Australian muzzle. Ask 1,000 greyhounds what they would prefer to race in and everyone of them would choose it.
I also think that the image of the sport is ever so slightly tarnished by the dogs racing with a small cage over their head when only the lower half is necessary.
It was something that the late, great Don Cuddy was adamant about. He could never understand why the UK, Ireland and America hadn’t just copied the Australian version. As soon as they first came out, practical and sleek, they are harder to notice but look good and are much easier to take off which was so important.
Nothing upset him more than not seeing the muzzles whipped off the dogs within two or three seconds of the leads being put on at the pickup!
As for negatives about Australian racing, I briefly mentioned the seeding – or lack of – last week. I stick by that.
I have enjoyed watching Australian racing for many years, but for obvious reasons, I have never watched so much of it as in the last two months.
And the more I have watched, the more convinced I am that the Australian stewards should be disqualifying more dogs.
They let the dogs wear blinkers in Australia and although I wasn’t sure about that idea at first, after watching Perth runner Flake Monelli race with them, she has won me over,
It also gives some dogs another chance of staying on the card.
But I doubt very much if they would work with a dog like William Rose. He destroys nearly every race he is in by gushing up to the pace and then just looking for a tear up when he gets there.
He wouldn’t even have graded on at Coventry!
Although, off the top of my head, he is as bad as any I can think of, he is definitely not the only one who deserves a red card.
It is a bad look when it happens. It doesn’t do the sport or the other dogs any favours.
In your book ‘Gambling for Life’, your talked about “running into one” For those who haven’t heard the expression, it basically means, coming across an opponent before anyone realises how good they are.
You tell the story of Karanja, and how his connections might have felt after coming up against an unexposed Denman in his second race at Wincanton.
But do you recall telling the story of Keeper Tom and the ultimate “running into three” at a dog track?
How can I forget? His trainer was the first of many that I wrote to asking for a job as a kennel hand when I was still at school (after my first night at The Stow).
He sent me back a lovely and funny letter saying that I obviously knew more about his dogs than he did and that was the very last thing he needed from a kennel lad!
Anyway, I’d seen Keeper Tom take off at Wimbledon in the 1984 Puppy Derby and then down at Hove in in the Cosmic Orbit Puppy competition over 515 metres.
Tom had been beaten in the heats by a young Irish dog winning his first open race in Britain. His name was Ballyregan Bob. Bob duly went on to win the final, getting up by three quarters of a length.
You didn’t need to be Alan Isherwood to know it was top form. But the 515m trip was clearly a step too far for him and he would be a nap in a puppy open over 50 metres less.
Two weeks later he was entered in a £1,000 puppy open at Reading over 465 metres. There was bound to be some stiff opposition with that money up for grabs but the dangers were unraced and it meant he might not be odds-on.
There was a great atmosphere in the ring and I had my case five hundred at the opening show of evens. That started an avalanche and he quickly settled at 1-2.
In the next two minutes genuine big money came for three other dogs in the race. But it didn’t stop me from being on more than good terms with myself when from trap three Keeper Tom broke more or less on terms and a neck in front of Daleys Gold.
By the first bend Daleys Gold was over a length in front and cleared Keeper Tom with ease.
The roar from his supporters was unreal but they soon fell silent when a brindle machine from Meriden (Geloffrey De Mulder’s kingdom) blew both of them away going into the third bend.
The winner was Fearless Champ who went on to win the Produce Stakes and Blue Riband. He also broke track records at Wembley and Wimbledon
In second place, was the future Scurry, Sovereign Stakes and National Sprint winner Daleys Gold.
Keeper Tom finished third and in fourth place was Hongkong Mike, just before he won the Romford Puppy Cup and Sporting Life Juvenile. The following year, he won the International and Pall Mall.
I suppose the only people who were more shocked than me and Gary Baggs, were the connections of Run Free and Tigress!
I was in a bit of daze but I do clearly remember walking out of the track and thinking “maybe Ballyregan Bob isn’t so special after all!”
Keeper Tom – with trainer Gary Baggs (centre) – after he had gone on to land the 1985 Monmore Puppy Derby
