Caption: Fire Legend takes out the Lismore Cup for Mark Moroney and is now being prepared for the Hobart 1000 (Photo: Box 1 Photography)

by Daryl ‘Albert’ Gleeson

Here we go again with Albert’s diary for December.

I had a couple of months off with some health issues, but I’m back as best as I can be.

I haven’t been to many meetings around my region, but I did happen to get to Grafton for a couple of meetings before they shut for work on the new track.

On Saturday the 17^th of October I also ventured to  the first TAB meeting at the spacious Wauchope track. What a sensational day with great fields. Mark Maroney, of Fire Legend fame, Julie King, Evelyn Harris, Reggie Gardoll and Manny Antonelli as well as Mick Eberand with the Ripper dogs, as well as Charlie Northfield and Robbie Andrews all made the 2-4 hour trips up and down the Pacific highway .

Congratulations to Rexie Nairn and his hard-working committee and also those hard working regulars –  Wayne Spurgin, Barry Coombes and Rick Taffe – who have been there for years. Racecaller ‘Brando’, you have Wauchope and Taree now mate so happy days. What about the dogs in that day at Wauchope. Proven city winner Ebby Infrared came from last winning that day in a flying 21.60 and at this early stage he would be my Wauchope Cup pick over the Christmas Carnival. Worth a cool $15k to the winner the Cup is certain to draw a very strong field .

Julie King’s team is absolutely flying down there and I am sure her dogs will be at Wauchope. Mark Moroney’s recent Lismore Cup winner Fire Legend is rumoured to be going to Hobart for the Hobart 1000. But geez ‘Yogi’ if you don’t win at Hobart I am sure you would be winning a nice little $15k at Wauchope. I am still scratching my head how they bet $7 Fire Legend to win the final of the Lismore Cup. Looking at his record when in Melbourne he chased home the absolute aeroplanes in Simon Told Helen, Black Opium, Shima Shine, Catch The Thief, etc.

My next trip was Lismore Cup night the 27^th of October and as I said previously Mark Moroney\’s Fire Legend was a sensational winner in 29.80. The quality of this final field was a absolute credit to John Zorzo and all his Lismore team. To get a final field like this with the Million Dollar Chase and Adelaide Cup around the same time was amazing. Queensland’s fastest two sprinters – Oh Mickey and Sequanna – where in the final as well as local champ All Hands Off .

This week as I write this diary I went to Wauchope Wednesday  and backed up at Casino Thursday, but that won’t be happening again for a while! My next visit to Wauchope will be Boxing Day for that fabulous Butch Monkley Maiden and Wauchope Carnival. Casino Friday is heats of the Casino Cup so I will try and get there for them.

What about all these track records that are getting broken at the moment? When I told Chase boss Pat ‘this is the Greyhound Punters bible and could we run the record sheet every month’, he was only too happy to oblige.

Well let me tell you, since we started this we must have changed about 30 records. Wiz Lincoln from SKY helps me each month, but as fast as we change them they seem to get broken!

Now onto the NRL. I changed my mind about 10 times throughout the year about who would win. Roosters looked morals three weeks out until I backed them at $3.50 to win the comp. As soon as I hopped on they where gone! Thank God I cashed out and done a bone. Then I thought the Panthers would win (NSW Northern Rivers racecaller Mark Arandale and myself were on Penrith the previous two years at about $14. Not a bean in 2020). Thank God we where on the Storm in the GF. I was not convinced Storm where morals but MA was sure. So I was happy to be with him.

What about Craig Bellamy? If he is not the best coach to come out of the NRL then I am a bad judge . Slater gone, Cronk gone and he produces Papenhuyzen. He is the next freak in our game and just another one the Tigers let go.