1984 February 19-22 From the eve to the end of the Waterloo Cup at Altcar, hunt saboteurs cause constant criminal damage, trespassing and intimidation against coursing spectators. But despite their efforts the event is run off with Pat Kilcoyne and Terry McCann’s Tubbertelly Queen (Scotch Lundy-Miss Queenie) winning the final easily as her opponent and last year’s runner-up, Final Words, came home lame after a collision. Tubbertelly Queen, when winning the 140th running of the event, she became the first bitch to win since 1929, and her trainer Pat Kilcoyne, must rate as one of the youngest at just 17 years. Ace track trainer, Ger McKenna, tipped off Pat the previous year about Tubbertelly Queen, when she was known as Nothing On and had won a trial stake, and later reached the semi-final of the Oaks at Clonmel under her new name.
1937 February The GRA buys Battersea Stadium in Lombard Road, London SW11, for an undisclosed sum. The stadium opened in 1933 had been racing under independent rules, and the GRA are to convert it into an ice-skating rink for ice hockey and public skating.
1992 An enquiry is held into a BAGS race at Canterbury where five runners are found to have been doped. It is the start of an incredible tale of deceit, incompetence and failure. Incredibly, all six runners had all pre-race tested clean The five subsequent positives included 7-1 winner Jay Are were found to contain traces of ‘stopper’ Timolol in post race testing. The favourite, had not been allocated a regular race kennel, tested negative post race but still finished last. Bookies assess their liabilities on the race at in excess of £48K. BOLA advised its members not to pay out and eventually made the race void. At the resulting enquiry four months later, trainers Terry Rayment and Ray Dove are fined a total of £900. It emerges that the widespread betting on the race was on three-dog combinations (T2, T5, T6) forecasts and tri-casts resulting in the successful results 6-2-5 which returned at 7-1, 4-1, & 8-1. It also emerged that the original post race testing at Glasgow University had produced negative results. The positives were found after the NGRC were tipped off in a phone call and ordered more tests to attempt to trace the offending beta-blocker. One final revelation, BOLA were not even aware that an attempted coup had taken place until tipped off by the NGRC that they were suspicious of the race when the last three home had been beaten long distances. Within a month of the race taking place, the track had lost its BAGS contract. The track never prospered again and the attempted coup is seen by many as an apparent contributory factor to Canterbury’s eventual closure.
1967 February 25 A charity meeting at Clapton in aid of Guide Dogs For The Blind Association is an all-trophy occasion. Presenting the prizes is film star Richard Todd.
2000 Hereward Carter, son of Sheffield general manager Jon, and a familiar face and pair of hands at the track, dies following a car accident. He was just short of his 21st birthday.
1992 Plans by promoters to embargo race results are scuppered by Ladbrokes tracks.
1974 February 7 The National Greyhound Racing Club has set up a Retired Greyhounds Trust to take over the home finding for retired greyhounds previously don by the Animal Welfare Trust. National organiser Phillip Berrow has joined the NGRC full time to establish and run the trust.
1968 February 3 Film star John Gregson has a puppy called Robins Flight (bd d Hack Up Chieftain-Pleasure Flight, May 66) trained by W France at London White City. He is having his first race and is leading at the second bend, but cramps up and finishes last.
1956 February 18 Charlton Athletic are playing Arsenal in an FA Cup tie at the Valley. After the match hundreds of people decide to take in the last race at the greyhound track around the corner. This results in the tote forecast soaring to 12,000 units, double what earlier races took. This was not Charlton’s only gain. The car park at two shillings (10p) was full long before the meeting began with football fans cars, forcing regular punters who arrived late to park in nearby streets.
2004 GRA decide not to pursue their plan to build a new track in Liverpool. The local council blocked the plan despite the approval being given by the planning authority.
