For the purist, the brilliant English Derby Final and Eclipse wins for Dorotas Wildcat represent the pinnacle of racing. If the racing public were asked to choose the race of the year, the Ladbrokes TV Trophy Final won by Savana Winner would take some beating.
Owner Kevin Boothby and trainer Diane Henry were thrilled by the performance
Spot the TV Trophy winner! With one lap remaining, Tellhersomething (t6) leads the way as Savana Winner (trap 4 far left) trails the field. Photo: © Steve Nash
Winner’s time of 56.87 was calculated to within four spots of her trialstake victory where she clocked a fastest-of-night 56.53 (+30). The fastest time of the year was Slippy Maggie’s 56.47 (+30). The four year old track record is Burgess Borna’s 55.89 (+40).
Diane Henry has 20 greyhounds in her kennel – and three of them are TV Trophy winners.
On Saturday night, Savana Winner joined King Kane (2014) and Borna Mindy (2016) after a short sharp induction course as Diane Henry’s Yorkshire ‘boot camp’.
By her own admission, Diane is not a graded fan and literally felt her prayers had been heard when Kevin Boothby phoned to tell her that he had bought her a potential marathon star. . . .and then the hard work began.
With a determination and attention to detail, that by her own admission, can sometimes border on ‘OCD’, Diane set out to prepare the newly names Savana Winner for the most gruelling Cat One of all.
She said: “The timing was perfect, at least six weeks before the start of the competition. When she arrived she was a bit dehydrated. Once we got her over that, we started out on the roads with lots of walking and jogging.
“We would go every day. If we went one morning, then we would be out again the following night in all weathers. Gradually building up the stamina. I was getting as fit as she was.
“When Winner arrived, she wasn’t a particularly good eater. She would turn down steak, fish, and virtually everything else. We gradually weaned her onto best butcher’s mince, and surprisingly, she is actually quite keen on veg like broccoli and carrots.
“Everything was geared to winning the TV Trophy. Every detail and every bit of preparation, even down to where we would give her a chance to empty out on en route to Crayford, which is a four and a half hour journey. When it comes to my dogs, yes I am obsessional. Thankfully, like the pieces in a jigsaw, it all came together perfectly.”
Diane admits that at one stage, even she had doubts that Winner could deliver.
She said: “She must have been 15 lengths behind, and I started thinking, ‘well girl, you need to get going now’. But I knew from the heats where she found so much trouble, that she would finish very strongly. Even coming to the winning line though, it was so exciting. I thought the six ran a fantastic race.
“When you spend so much time with a dog, you build up a special bond and when Winner came to the pick-up, the first thing she did was look for me. She always does.
“I am so excited to have the chance to train a greyhound of her quality. I was also so thrilled to win a first Cat One race for Kevin. He has influenced so many people’s lives in a positive way. He puts such a lot back into the game and he really deserves his success.”
Savana Winner’s owner Kevin Boothby holds the famous TV Trophy alongside trainer Diane Henry Photo: © Steve Nash
