1979 Nameless Pixie completes her unbeaten run through the Irish Oaks. With the Dundalk International already in the bag, she goes on to get the Irish Greyhound of the Year award.
1964 It is revealed that two litters registered in the first American Stud Book, as being bred by ‘W F Cody’ were indeed bred by William F Cody, otherwise known as Buffalo Bill.
1988 The biggest racing shock of the year occurs in the Grand Prix Final at Walthamstow. Hall Green A4 runner Digby Bridge who reached the decider without winning a heat (5-1, 25-1, 25-1) was returned at 50-1 for the decider where he led home Bad Intentions (25-1) with favourite Waltham Abbey KO’d. In the history of classic finals, only 1966 Cesarewitch winner Rostown Genius (66-1) has started at a bigger price. An original £5,000 purchase for owner Alan Birch, Bridge was beaten in his first 18 graded races.
2007 Reading are forced to stage a trial to decide the second semi final of the Masters after a hare breakdown. It is won by Fear Haribo from Brickfield Class. Haribo starts as favourite for the final two days later but finishes third.
1971 Derry greyhound track, or ‘Brandywell’ as it is known to the locals, closes down. The Ulster circuit has lost 20 meetings during the years to ‘the troubles’. The ICC’s Joe Fitzpatrick states “It came to the point when racegoers were afraid to leave their cars in the street outside the track.”
1973 Country Maiden (Spectre-Lazy Pet, May’69) trained by Frank Baldwin, wins the Cesarewitch over 880 yards at Belle Vue at the age of four and a half, after having the bad luck to be withdrawn lame from the previous year’s competition.
2008 Former Stow trainer Stacey Baggs is forced to relinquish her license after losing her kennels.
1980 Bristol and Monmore are the new additions to the forthcoming BAGS season. They join Wembley, Manchester White City, Hackney and Harringay.
2008 The popular ‘Teletext 592’ greyhound page is scrapped. Among its columnists is Greyhound Star editor Floyd Amphlett
1952 Romford and Dagenham Stadiums are to expand their ‘rear and race’ programme successfully introduced two years earlier. In that first trial, the track bred a litter out of their own ex-racer Barefooted Trix and gave away the pups to existing owners, subject to them proving that they would have them correctly reared. All six pups subsequently qualified for racing. When the track announced that they were taking applications for a second litter, they were so oversubscribed that they had to arrange to have another four bitches mated.
1990 Ladbrokes offer a ‘Beat That’ stopwatch to any racing manager who beats the feats of the Monmore racing office who manage to get a whole field home within seven spots. The prize is claimed within a fortnight by Hove’s Jim Layton. An afternoon BAGS crowd see a finish: hd, hd, dht, sh, dht. Five spots covered the field. Ladbrokes spokesman Phil Talbot says: “That’s unbelievable – a brilliant grading feat. I think Gordon Bissett, our Head of Racing, had the Monmore photo pinned on his wall. I suppose this will ruin his day.”
2010 Wimbledon bookie Del Nash, the widely respected ‘judge’ and tissue maker among the Wimbledon bookies when a layer there for 30 years, dies in Spain aged 78.
1973 Bungay Joker (Fawn Prince-Cloneyfad), a 57 pound (25.8 kilo) dog wins the East Anglian Derby for local butcher Jack Lambert. Yarmouth promoter Len Franklin reports a crowd of over 3,000 for the decider.
