1972 The closure of Rayleigh officially makes 1972 the worst ever year for the greyhound industry. Within the previous six months, the industry has lost West Ham, Henlow, Glasgow White City and Carnytyne. There are now only 45 tracks racing under NGRC rules. Rayleigh promoter Tom Stanley admits that a lucrative offer for the 12 acre Essex site, was simply too good to refuse.
2010 World renowned vet Jim Gannon dies aged 80. Among his awards were an Order of Australia medal and an Australian Sports Medal, presented by Prime Minister John Howard.
2010 Dual Derby winner Rapid Ranger dies after suffering a stroke aged 12. The son of Come On Ranger had been living out his retirement with Tony Collett’s kennelhand Lorraine Patient and was visited by owner Ray White on a regular basis. In addition to his two Wimbledon victories, he also ran second to Judicial Pride in the Irish Derby Final.
1995 Bill Glass is promoted to Racing Controller at Hackney following the resignation of Stephen Rea.
1995 Flying Amy passed the all-time prize money record of Highly Blessed when winning the Coca Cola Cup followed by a three runner match. Her tally to date is $AU292,915. With bonus add-ons for track records etc, the final figure was a little over $AU301,00
1990 A new NGRC track opens at Perry Barr under the direction of Maurice Buckland. It replaces the previous stadium, half a mile away, which closed in 1984.
2010 The GBGB announces that the cost of most licences, registrations and transfers of ownership will be reduced in 2011.
2011 Trainer Mark Wallis praises the GBGB’s new ‘Point of Registration’ sampling procedure following a positive test on recent Irish import Confident Ramona. The bitch had swabbed with the anabolic steroid Nandrolone following a trial at Yarmouth, but a sample taken at the time of registration showed that the drug was already in her system. At the following inquiry, the stewards decide to take no further action.
1988 Tragedy hits Rye House trainer ‘Boy’ Green when a kennel fire kills two brood bitches and 16 pups.
2010 Joint 2011 Derby favourite Rayvin Giovanni sustains a double fracture of a front leg when knocked over in an open race at Wimbledon. He will never race again.
1995 Kevin Wilde faces fierce opposition after putting Brough Park on the market for a figure believed to be in the region of £1.75m. He paid around £1.4m for it. Local bookmaker Alan Roberts accuses Wilde of deliberately running the place down since he bought Sunderland the previous year. Brough has lost its BAGS contract and Wilde has scrapped the All England Cup and Northumberland Gold Cup.
1965 Wimbledon trainer Phil Rees issues an unusual challenge – £50 per side for two of his kennelhands to take on a pair from another kennel over 500 or 525 yards.
1971 Santas Emblem, as April 70 bitch by Movealong Santa out of Merry Emblem and owned by the Sporting Life Editorial Staff, wins at her second attempt at Wembley. She comes from last to first to take the 525 yard race by a head in 30.24. Trained at Wembley by Tom Johnston, she starts 6-4 favourite but only paid 18p to a 10p stake on the Tote win.
1954 Wembley had five runners in the Cesarewitch final at West Ham, including the English Derby winner Pauls Fun and the St Leger winner Pancho Villa, but they all finished behind the odd man out, Matchlock, trained by Ted Brennan at Owlerton.
2009 Airport Pilot and Drumna Thistle dead heated for the TRF Shelbourne 575 and were both disqualified for fighting
1967 Brighton become the first track to enforce mandatory inoculations for leptospirosis for all new dogs entering the track kennels.
