1990 After two months of recommending their member not to pay-out a reputed ‘five figure’ gamble on Hackney grader Quick Delivery, BOLA, reverse their decision. Janet Tite’s dog tested negative having clocked 32.92 for the 523 metres. His previous races were clocked at 33.37, 33.34, 33.15 and 33.09.
1993 Wembley trainer Terry Dartnall announces he has no plans to quit Wembley and take up a position at Hall Green as demanded by GRA.
1984 The Irish Derby final is won by the Seamus Graham bred and trained Dipmac (Sand Man-Kind Of Luxury, May 82), owned by Paschal Taggart and Noel Ryan. The English Derby quarter finalist holds of Glencorbry Celt and favourite Count Five in 29.15.
1929 Levator destroys his field by 12 lengths to run away with the Grand National Final at White City. It is the 13th win of his 29 race career and his last. Soon afterwards he is killed in a kennel fight.
1967 While Tric Trac, Spectre and Forward Flash are all retired to stud with injuries, litter brother Forward King sets a new Wolverhampton 700 yard track record when winning the Stewards Cup. King was of course the last member of the litter to reach the track having spent several months living wild on the Yorkshire moors before his eventual recapture.
1958 Fodda Champion, dubbed “the greatest hurdler of all time” is retired to stud with winnings in excess of £4,000 (index linked to roughly £79,000). The holder of six track records over jumps, the Jimmy Jowett trained star was the 1956 Scottish Derby runner-up.
1991 Romford GM Bill Hiscock takes over grading responsibilities at Romford following the suspension of racing manager Jim Simpson and trainers Padddy Coughlan and Bill Foley.
1938 Mick The Miller achieves his greatest success as a sire when his daughter Greta Rosary wins the St Leger at Wembley. The 7-4 joint favourite is out of the 1935 English Derby winner Greta Renee.
1935 The St Leger at Wembley has drown the best 700 yarders in training, including last year’s winner, Bosham, and the 1933 winner and 1934 runner up The Draw, Together with other prolific open race winners, Maidens Choice, Gold Badge, Mick The Moocher, Flying Wedge and Satans Baby, it’s widely regarded as the best line up of class runners for many a year. The four dog final on the 23 sees Miss B A Whitley’s 10-11 favourite Satans Baby (Blower-Golden Blow) trained by Les Parry at London White City, beat Bosham and The Draw, to pick up the £500 first prize in the best time so far in the final of 40.95.
1987 September 19 Towfiq Al-Aali wins the second classic of the year, when Half Awake (Sand Man-Fenians Minnie, Jan 85), half-owned by his trainer Barry Silkman, wins the Gold Collar over 555 metres at Catford. Towfiq had earlier won the English Derby with Signal Spark
1958 Dail Airann introduce The Greyhound Act, a statutory instrument for controlling greyhound racing in Ireland. Until now, racing has been run by the Irish Coursing Club. The act deems that greyhound racing comes under the portfolio of the Minister Of Agriculture who invites six people to become the inaugural Bord na gCon. The first chairman is a former Royal Navy surgeon and retired Dail member Dr P J Maguire. His board of six includes three private citizens and three members of the Irish Coursing Club including Captain John Ross, who was representing the interests of Northern Irish coursing. The new organisation is widely welcomed in Britain amid tales of fraudulent form and doubts about identities of greyhounds.
1987 Owner Larry Gresham was fined £500 and was disqualified for six months after admitting running greyhound Kerry Move On in a race at independent Wisbech.
1952 West Ham stewards notice that two runners on parade are in the wrong racing jackets. They order the jackets to be switched and the race goes ahead. Following the result, a group of punters begin a trackside protest claiming that they had placed their bets before the mistake had been spotted on the basis of the appearance of the runners. However, the trouble was mild compared to that at neighbouring Clapton. Racegoers were furious when after the traps opened prematurely in a graded race but the result was allowed to stand. Around 150 patrons stormed on the track, smashing the winning post, track lighting and throwing stones at the stadium clock.
1990 Unidentified saboteurs sprinkle a hundredweight of broken glass on the track and cut through floodlight cables two nights before Newton Abbot Derby Final. The track management repair the damage but despite apparent police protection the following night, the wreckers return and cut through the hare wire. The damage is spotted by promoter Jim Newbould and the meeting goes ahead without any further incident.
1956 Private trainer Joe Booth from Wombwell, near Barnsley sends out first and third in the St Leger Final at Wembley. First home is Jackfigaralt, a £1, 000 purchase from Ireland, he is followed by favourite Gulf Of Darien (one of four Wembley dogs in the decider) and Booth’s second string Black Envoy. The winner is owned by Mr T Watford, the same owner/trainer combination that landed the English Derby with Pauls Fun two years earlier.
1948 Sir William Gentle, one of the founders of greyhound racing and the first chairman of GRA dies aged 83. A former military officer who served in South Africa, Sir William later became a police officer and was Chief Constable at Brighton from 1901-1920. Son Francis Gentle is the current GRA managing director.
2011 Harlow stage their first and SKY Sports’ 400th greyhound meeting.
1993 When trainers of two runners with runners in heat two or the Irish Derby explain that they will find it difficult to attend the Friday evening meeting, the Shelbourne Park management agree to swap in with heat nine and stage the race the following night.
