1962 Corsican Reward, bred by the GRA at their Irish kennels in Naas and trained by Gordon Hodson at White City is a lucky winning favourite of the Grand National. Some five lengths adrift going into the backstraight, he went to the front when the early leader Stanbrook Rob fell and badly hampered his two closest challengers.
1947 Government fuel restrictions have decimated the open race calendar with an average of only five or six being staged every week. Wimbledon are restricting some of the their major competitions to local runners. When Leeds fail to attract a single entry for a £35 open (with inflation now roughly £1,740), the management turn it into a graded race with the same prize money.
1956 Despite a gang of wreckers who destroy electrical equipment and remove some overhead cables, Ashfield hold the first meeting. Track owner Jim Donald employs two police-trained Alsatians to do night patrols in the week leading up to the opening.
2002 Kinda Magic is made the 5-2 ante post favourite to retain his title in the Golden Sprint at Romford. Despite one defeat, the Linda Jones trained dog is awesome throughout twice breaking 24.00 for the 400m trip.
1976 Stay In Business (Valiant Ray-Sheilas Prize) is sold at Shelbourne Park Sales for 600 guineas and ends up on the British independent circuit. She later returns to Ireland and throws Produce Stakes winner Game Ball
1992 Farloe Melody becomes the first dog to break 29.00 at Shelbourne Park on four consecutive occasions on is his way to landing his second Easter Cup.
1949 Figures released by the NGRS reveal an 11 per cent increase in attendances in 1948. A total of 25,264,011 punters went racing.
1939 April 4 Dagenham Stadium is officially opened by Lord Denham, Senior Steward of the NGRC. Built by the owners of Romford Stadium, on a site that had previously been home to another small track, the Ripple Road track has taken nine months to build. It has two grandstands (200ft and 120ft) a £20,000 totalisator, 100 tote windows and car parking for 400 vehicles. The racing circuit is raised four feet above ground level thanks to 3,500 tons of earth filling, 2,500 tons of ash and 3,000 tons of hard core. It is covered by 16,000 turves. The totalisator ‘adding machine’ is powered by a 30 horse power (HP) motor, while the indicator board uses one 4HP and four 2HP motors. All races are worth £10 to the winner (approx £529 at current values).
1985 1985 Derby and Laurels winner Lauries Panther (Shamrock Sailor-Lady Lucey) collapses and dies following a ruptured blood vessel in his neck, while at vet John O’Connor’s stud kennel in Ireland. Reputedly sold for for £50K for stud duties, he was barely five years old at the time of his death. During his brief stud career covering just 90 bitches, he threw Kingsmeadow King (Northern Flat) and the brilliant Mollifrend Lucky.
1992 John McGee takes the Trainers Championship at Reading. He has four of the eight winners and beats closest rival Patsy Byrne by 56 points to 34.
1949 Local Interprize and Village Major are 8-1 joint ante post favourites for the 1949 English Derby. 60 runners are quoted at odds up to 5,000-1 – but no sign of eventual winner Narrogar Ann.
1973 The BBC Television Trophy is revived after a two year absence and for the first time is in colour (for those who can receive it). But the BBC do not show the heats form Leeds on April 9, Bristol on 11th, and Brighton on the 12th. The final at Wimbledon on the 18th is won by Leading Pride (b wb Spectre-Conigar Goddess, Feb 71). Trained by George Curtis at Brighton, the 2-1 favourite wins by a length in 51.16 for the 880 yard race.
1985 John Curran and Keith Morrell are the new promoters at independent Kinsley.
1935 April one of the best hurdlers in training at Clapton is the aptly named Greyhound Express, a son of Mussolini (yes honestly) out of Knockbeg. The dog has a 33% win record.
1954 West Ham switch track surfaces from coir matting to all grass. The dictionary defines coir matting as “A thick, hard-wearing material made from the coarse, hairy covering of the coconut.” They also change from a sleigh hare to an inside hare. Exactly eight years later they switch to the outside McKee-Scott.
2003 Noreen Collin, one of the first female greyhound trainers in Britain dies aged 84. During a remarkable career the former Stow handler trained a string of top open racers including Magourna Reject, Super Rory and Hi Joe.
1993 The Other Court made the top price at Wimbledon Sales. The former Matt O’Donnell trained dog made 6,250 guineas after recording 27.69. That would be worth approximately £16,100 today.
1962 Palms Printer and Clonalvy Pride jointly share the 1961 Greyhound of the Year title at an awards ceremony at the Dorchester Hotel. Printer, was owned by Plaistow grocer Alf Heale and trained by Paddy McEvoy when he won the Derby. When Paddy moved to Ireland, the dog switched to Gregory Doyle and won the Scurry. He broke a hock in a trial in September leaving a record in the year of 12 wins from 22 races and prize money of £3,465. Clonalvy Pride was owned by Portsmouth metal merchant Harry Seymour and trained by Jack Harvey. Pride’s ’62 record was 19 wins from 32 outings including the Laurels, St Leger and Olympic. He won £3,190 in prize money. The Best British Bred was Oaks winner Ballinasloe Blondie and the Dam of the Best British Bred litter was Jean Chapelle’s Daybreak.
2012 Harlow attached Chris Mosdall is to join Wimbledon following Norah McEllistrim’s move to Hove. The McEllistrim family have had runners at the track since the first meeting in 1928.
2012 Trap six runners in the first set of heats will be wearing a special Union Jack racing jacket to celebrate the Queens Diamond Jubilee celebrations.
1950 Following protests from Harringay punters, and the owners of local runner Harringay Gallant, the stewards at the track of the same name, decide that they may have acted unfairly in disqualifying the dog for fighting. They apply for, and are given a reversal of the original decision.
1974 Frisky Black, the dog who has the fastest ever time over 525 yard hurdles in Britain, 28.91 at Brighton, receives his second disqualification for fighting in a trial at Harringay.
2004 Walthamstow receive the largest prize money grant for 2004 – £148,415. Henlow receive the least, just over £39K.
1934 Enniscorthy hold their first meeting. Despite a heavy downpour, the crowd see six exciting races. The honour of winning the first race, the Kilkenny Stakes over 525 yards, goes to J Byrne’s Queen Of The Line by a length in a time of 31.89.
2013 Former Romford handler Tony Dennis dies aged 81. During a career in which he trained at Rayleigh, Rochester, Ramsgate and privately, the shrewd Dennis handled a string of top stars including Kilcaskin Kern, Sundridge Bet U and Sados Choice. He was regularly implicated as being involved in the famed Rochester coup, something he always denied.
1964 Cranog Bet, bought with another young greyhound, for a combined £400 by owner Sam Gee, is unveiled as the 1963 Bitch of the Year at the annual awards at London’s Grosvenor House Hotel. Trained by Phil Rees, the youngster won 13 of her first 26 races including the Oaks, followed by the Puppy Oaks. She also won the National Sprint Championship at Clapton. The dog’s award went to the lower profile We’ll See winner of the Scottish Derby and Edinburgh Cup for trainer Joe Pickering. The top British bred bitch award went to Precious Margo (Mile Bush Pride-Precious Princess) with the dog’s title going to the Wimbledon Produce Stakes winner Tripaway. Bred by Viv Pateman, the son of Low Pressure won the Stamford Bridge, Wimbledon and Brighton Produce Stakes.
