Elwick Chris becomes Laurels champion
Many had predicted an incredibly tight Stanjames.com Laurels Final because of the head-scratching draw, but Elwick Chris put those thoughts to bed as he flew out of trap three to leave the opposition trailing in his wake to land the £6,000 prize fund.
The Steel City Cup runner up was in no mood for second prizes this time around as the race was over within the first few strides. Bolting out of trap three he avoided all of the expected trouble inside of him, as Magna Buddy and Bucks Yahoo came together which put pay to their place chances. Michael Walsh’s runner then led the charge home, with November Weather running on for second, three lengths back and Yahoo Jamie making encouraging late headway to steal third.
Earlier in the night young trainer Andy Taylor celebrated a double on the card. Taylor is far from a household name in greyhound circles, but he trained the winner in the Stanjames.com Proud Sponsors Of The Road To Cheltenham as Union Jak Jackson gave a strong front-running performance to hold off a defiant late surge from Charlie Lister’s Final Boe. The winner was knocked out of the Laurels at the semi-final stage, but showed he can cut it at this level by blasting out of the boxes and making all in eye-catching fashion. He was tiring in the final stages and was nearly caught on the line by the Lister runner, but his fantastic early dash meant it was one of those ‘race over’ scenario’s by the first bend.
Taylor was at it again in the Stanjames.com Ladies as Milly Marina continued her impressive season by getting up late in the day to deny Sniper Petra, who had made all the running. Gary Carmichael’s speedy Petra was having her first run for three months, and looked to be soaring away to an easy victory after smashing out of the boxes, but a lack of race fitness was apparent in the dying stages as Milly Marina found a way upsides the red jacket on the line. Taylor in the wake of victory suggested that the Oaks at Wimbledon is next on the agenda for the progressive b***h.
Crown Rover was back on the winners’ podium, for the 29th time to be exact, in the Stanjames.com Stayers after disappointing in the Three Steps to victory final two weeks ago. Jimmy Wright’s hound was the only odds-on runner on the card and didn’t let down his supporters, including a punter on the track who had got £1000 on at 1.50, by making all from the front and holding on from Swift Lewis by half a length.
Tags: