Caption: Typhoon Sammy with trainer Jason Thompson (Photo: Bluestream Pictures)
By Andrew Thomson
PEARCEDALE trainer Jason Thompson will be after a breakthrough win in the Warragul Cup this month.
The Group 2 Cup heats were set for January 7 with the final on January 15.
Thompson has never won the Cup, but partner Seona led in Aston Dee Bee in 2018.
\”My main contender will be Typhoon Sammy and possibly Aussie Secret,\” he said on the way home from trialling at Ballarat.
\”I\’ve got some good dogs at present but nothing breathtaking.
\”We lost Rebellious in a heat of the Melbourne Cup with a hock injury and then Equaliser tore a triangle. He\’s finished and gone to stud.
\”And then on top of that Aston Fastnet has had a screw put in a hock. That all happened in a two-week period.\”
Thompson said anyone involved in racing knew there were highs and lows.
\”We all know how it fluctuates. The idea is to spend more time up than down,\” he said.
\”We\’ve got a couple of nice pups coming through; one heading to the Geelong VicBreeders, Rio Bhodi.
\”He has a lot of ability, but we need to get some racing into him to see if he\’s the real deal.
\”He ran second in a heat of the breeders at Shepparton and he\’s had a few weeks off.
\”He\’s by Bernado and has shown a lot from day one. We\’ve had him about three months and he has plenty of natural ability.\”
Rio Bhodi goes back to great broodbitch Spanish Dance on the dam side.
\”Seona is pretty quick to tell me she\’s won a Warragul Cup, but I like to think the family has won it once – it\’s all a team effort,\” Thompson said.
\”Aston Dee Bee won the Melbourne Cup (2017) and then the Warragul Cup the following January.
\”She does like to rub that in,\” Thompson said with a laugh.
N ON A side note: this is my last column for The Chase after more than 30 years.
The first was in mid-1985 on then-greyhound newcomer AFL footballer Tony Lockett.
There were stories on Richard Kurkowski, who sold champion Brett Lee after a handful of starts, Kevin Richard on his decision to spend big on potential stud dog Chariot Supreme, the Pringles, Worth Doing and most of the champions who have raced and been outstanding Victorian stud dogs.
The two best wins I\’ve seen were Super Max at The Gabba and Tangairn winning the 1984 Australian Cup.
Both copped half-a-dozen checks but still saluted.
My family\’s break in greyhound breeding came with a close association to then stud dog Chariot Supreme, followed by dogs stood by the Pringles and then race freak Worth Doing followed by Head Honcho and then Bombastic Shiraz.
There were 25 consecutive trips to the Ipswich auction as well as sales at Adelaide, Dapto and Sandown.
Helen and Michael Ivers bought their first dogs from us and we stayed with them for a number of years after the Ipswich auctions and later Mick and Selena Zammit.
The best dog I saw race was Worth Doing. He was a freak and just as good a stud dog, followed by Brett Lee.
One of our first pups by Worth Doing was Worth Backing which dead-heated in the first TopGun with Golden Currency.
The old man (Jimmy) initially stood Golden Currency at stud before encouraging Kevin Mugavin to send the star sprinter to NSW as a stud dog.
Golden Currency dominated breeding for years in Sydney.
You live and learn over the years.
Breed with city-winning bitches or sisters to star performers to Group 1-performed dogs, keep conformation at the forefront of your thinking.
Feed them well and pups need plenty of exercise and even more care.
Back good dogs from good boxes, and never be frightened to risk a dog after it breaks a track record – they usually get beaten next start.
I\’ve enjoyed every minute of my involvement in greyhound racing and the relationships that were formed.
A colleague – Nick Ansell – is taking over and he\’ll do a great job.
