Seamus has a proper Derby dog – and he bred it himself!
The least surprising thing about the 2020 Star Sports English Puppy Derby was the result. The first three in the betting took the tricast places and the most impressive of them all was the white jacketed winner, Surprising.
The winner’s time holds up well to inspection. Only track record holder Sparta Master has been faster over the course and distance (29.20) and Master won in 29.44 on the night.
Too old in the tooth to get too carried away, Seamus went as close as he dared to suggest the big black (5 wins from 7 races, and the youngest in the line up) might be stepping up the to the senior version of the Star Sports event next summer.
He said: “He looks a very good dog for the future. He might possibly lack a yard to the bend against top top class, but his pace along the backstraight and his strength coming home means it would take a very good greyhound to catch him over 500 metres.
“He has very little done of course. He was reared for me by the ‘Noirs man’ Liam O’Donovan, who is also a long time family friend. Liam schooled him and said he thought he had a bit of ability and he really impressed me when winning an A3 at Hove in 29.47. All being well, we will trial him at Monmore at the end of January with plans for the Monmore Puppy Derby.”
Puppy Derby Final winner SURPRISING (trap 3 rails) is led early by Puff The Tiger (t5) and Bockos Melody (t6) Photo: © Steve Nash
For those who hadn’t spotted it, there was an interesting connection between the first two home in the final. Both are offspring of Derby winning sire Droopys Sydney. In addition, Bockos Melody is out of Ballymac Razl, who is also Surprising’s maternal grand dam.
Surprising was from a litter of 12 pups (4d 8b) out of Seamus’s Brighton Belle winner Banabane (Droopys Scolari-Ballymac Razl), of whom 10 have made the track and nine have won races.
Seamus said: “One of the dogs broke a leg as a sapling and will never race. Another couple of the dogs are decent, one is running in A3. There are also three bitches running A2/A3 but are now probably finding it a bit tough. But with so few open races around, there are few other options for them at the moment.”
Star Sports Puppy Derby winner SURPRISING with trainer Seamus Cahill and kennelhand Darren White. Photo: © Steve Nash
