CHARMER LODGE NEWS

MAY 2009

Mooney wants another Cup Courtesy GRAQ website 25 May, 2009. OWNER Ian Morgan and trainer John Mooney like the idea of winning the Albion Park Gold Cup. They did in 2005 when Last Quoted led throughout and ran a race record to win the Group 1 Cup in 41.73. They are back this year with Others Quoted (History Lesson-Last Quoted) the Sydney Cup winner who trialled brilliantly at Albion Park last Friday. "She went 41.99 and her last section was very strong," said Mooney. He is very reluctant to compare Others Quoted, winner of 12 from 32 starts, with her Gold Cup-winning mother Last Quoted. "Two entirely different bitches," he said. "Others Quoted is a insomniac. It's not uncommon for me to have to get up at 2.30am to walk her. Most mornings it is 4.30." Mooney was overjoyed by the trial because it took him 12 hours to get from Sydney with her because of the heavy rainfall in northern NSW. Others Quoted has drawn box four in her heat of the Gold Cup on Thursday night and comes up against last year's winner Chinatown Lad and local champ Queen Lauryn. Mooney took great interest in Queen Lauryn's win at Albion Park last Thursday night in 41.63 the fourth fastest ever around the track. "If my bitch leads, nothing will ever run her down," said Mooney. "And if I'm just a couple of lengths off Queen Lauryn at the home turn we can run her down for sure." Mooney pointed to Queen Lauryn's final section of 13.57 when winning last week. "My bitch ran 13.34 and there will be a lot of improvement in her." He was adamant his bitch needed to draw from box one to four to be a chance of winning. "If she draws wide and gets back, she finds it hard to come home," he said. Others Quoted came to Mooney off a very ordinary break-in report. "I was told I might win a race with her," said Mooney. "She was only a baby then and has improved considerably since." She has now won 12 races and is a Group 2 winner. Shane Witney is happy with Chinatown Lad in his bid to win back-to-back Cups. "He had his back out with we've just fixed and I galloped him this morning and he flew," said Tasmanian based Whitney. Chinatown Lad recently trialled a record-breaking 34.28 for 600m at Hobart. The track record is 34.60. "He's going really well and I give him a great chance." The Brisbane Club has attracted three heats of the Cup with all the top stayers included. Mantra Lad, coming off his Sandown Cup victory, has drawn perfectly in box two for the third heat. Kiacatoo Pearl trialled 42.02 for Dave Pringle last Friday. He has box one in that heat. The first heat of the Cup includes Forty Twenty, coming off last week's Winter Chase victory, against Risk It from South Australia and Wayne Vassalo's Sirocco hero meeting local hope Lady Moscato. Four heats of the Mick Byrne Memorial will also be run on the night.

MAY 2009

Bob irate at 'flight' Courtesy GRAQ website 19 May, 2009. NORTH Lakes trainer Bob Wright will complain to Virgin airways over the treatment of his star staying bitch Lady Moscato. The daughter of History Lesson-Lady Kero was a great third to Mantra Lad in the Group 1 Sandown Cup in Melbourne last Thursday night. Jason Thompson trained the bitch for that series but Bob went to Melbourne for the race and also to bring her home for the up-coming Group 1 Albion Park Gold Cup. Bob arrived at Melbourne Airport at 2.30pm last Friday to put his valuable staying bitch into a crate and have her loaded on his 4pm flight to Brisbane. That was the last he saw of Lady Moscato until 10pm that night. "When I arrived at Brisbane, there was a call for me to come to the cargo area," said Bob. "I was told she had not been put onto the same flight as me. "But worse still, she was not put on any of the next three flights from Melbourne to Brisbane." This is Lady Moscato, one of the best stayers in the land, coming back home for a Group 1 race, and left at Melbourne Airport for hours. "Fortunately for us, the bitch is a great traveller, but that is not the point," said Bob. Bob said he would put in a complaint to Virgin Blue about the incident. "We never have any trouble flying greyhounds with Qantas," he said. Lady Moscato will trial, probably over 600m, before going into next week's Gold Cup heats. "We will keep her here now until the Nationals," said Bob. "She will miss the Maidment Memorial in Melbourne, but if there are races coming up for her, we will take her back south." Lady Moscato was spiked early in the Sandown Cup and Wright and Thompson were overjoyed with her third place in the final.

MAY 2009

Genista needs all to fall into place Courtesy GRAQ website 18 May, 2009. RIVAL trainers Neil Falls and Bob Giltinan have differing opinions of their chances of toppling raging hot favourite Forty Twenty in Thursday night's Winter Chase (710m) final at Albion Park. Falls will run likely leader Genista Reign, while Giltinan has three in the final, Smart Choice, She's A Penske and the second reserve Nicely Done. Giltinan won the Winter Chase in 2008 with Nicely Done before she went on to finish a game third to Chinatown Lad in the Group 1 Gold Cup. Youthful Northern Rivers trainer Neil Falls reported Genista Reign (Hallucinate-Smokey Flash) had pulled up well after his all the way heat win last week. "He's improved from that run because we were a bit easy on him after he came home from Victoria," said Neil. Falls believes Power Shift could play a major role in Genista Reign's chances. "Power Shift led in the other heat of the Winter Chase last week," said Neil. "Firstly I hope we can get around him quickly and lead in the final. "And then I hope Power Shift can run cover for us against the favourite. "I'd like to see a few get in Forty Twenty's road. "But if he lobs behind us, it's going to be very hard for any of us to hold him out." Giltinan agrees but he rates Genista Reign a chance of upsetting Forty Twenty. "The red box is a huge advantage for the favourite," said Bob. "Smart Choice is my best hope in the final, but I thought my bitch She's A Penske was doing more on the line that he in the heat last week. "I give Genista Reign a very good chance. "He broke 16 seconds to the first mark last week and if he can repeat that, he might just get away from them. "He can run a sub 42 second 710m and that will make the favourite's job just that little bit harder." Smart Choice has already won a couple of times at Albion Park in 41.97 and is favoured by a wide box in the final specially with slow beginners either side of him.

MAY 2009

"Queen of Taree" chasing country crown Written by: Ben Damon 20/05/09 Courtesy GRNSW website She's the "Queen of Taree" according to trainer Dianne Craig and this weekend Cashmere Queen (Over Flo x Tiffany Marie) could go to the top of the GRNSW Country Challenge standings, with victory in the final at Mudgee. With injuries to series leader Elite Flash, and leading contender Black Warhorse (Hallucinate x Tommie's Placard), the Country Challenge crown appears to be ripe for the picking, and Cashmere Queen is perfectly placed, just three points from the lead. "Well she'd get eight points for the win at Mudgee and that would put her nicely out in front, said Craig. “We've got a couple more races left so, touch wood, if she can stay fit and healthy then fingers crossed she might be able to do it." Cashmere Queen has drawn box eight for the Mudgee final, after an impressive heat win last week. Her main rival this weekend appears to be fellow series contender Drive Up (Hallucinate x Kalyara Belle), who currently sits 7th in the overall standings. "She can win from the eight box. If she jumps they will find it pretty hard to catch her, but she showed at The Gardens a couple of runs back that even if she misses the jump a bit she can cross behind them and win. She's a very smart dog," said Craig. Regardless of the result at Mudgee Craig plans to line Cashmere Queen up for Country Challenge events at Gunnedah and Kempsey. The top eight dogs will line up for the Country Challenge Showdown at Wentworth Park on July 11.

MAY 2009

Genista loves Albion Park Courtesy GRAQ website 13 May, 2009. NEIL Falls has learned the hard way. NEIL Falls has learned the hard way. Albion Park suits Genista Reign perfectly. The son of Hallucinate-Smokey Whisky led throughout to win a heat of the Winter Chase at Albion Park on Thursday night in 42.01. He scored by two lengths beating Smart Choice with a length and a quarter to She’s A Penske in third. It was his 13th victory and second over 710m at Albion Park. Falls took Genista Reign to Melbourne to contest a lead-up and then the heats of the Sandown Cup. “He got a bit worked up on the plane on both trips but he settled well enough,” said Neil. “But he normally leads in his races and he never came out at Sandown. “We had to give him a try at the big race but I think he got unsettled by the strange surroundings. “Albion Park is his track.” Genista Reign showed that on Thursday night by heading off the brilliant middle distance dog Black Ruler and then holding off a late challenge by Smart Choice in the straight. “I’ve done nothing with him since he came home from Melbourne so there is further improvement in him for next week’s final.” said Neil. Falls said Genista Reign has a tremendous record from box five, which he started from on Thursday night. “He jumps every time he draws the five,” said Neil. “I was confident when I saw that’s what he drew tonight

MAY 2009

Records shatter at Nowra Written by: Peter Davis Courtesy GRNSW website 11/05/09 Track records come and go but something really special happened at Nowra on Monday. Brett Lee’s amazing 28.88 seconds effort in an Adelaide Cup is, arguably, the most ‘untouchable’ in the land. That remarkable effort found not one but two close relations at Nowra. In race two, Dubbo 313m record holder Hesa Felon produced a quite stunning display of high speed to break - no, shatter - the 365m record held by Darcy Nimbus (at 20.57 seconds). The Darren Sultana-trained son of Hallucinate shanghaied from box one, was five lengths ahead of his nearest rival after 100m and tore away to score by 11 1/4 lengths in 20.24s. Countless top line sprinters have cut their teeth at Nowra over 365m and for Hesa Felon to slice .33s – or five lengths – from the March 2006 record is simply amazing. Just over an hour later, Smart Betsy maintained her unbeaten middle distance record when she lowered the 630m mark held by Golden Easter Egg winner Edie Beauchamp. The locally-trained black bitch, like Hesa Felon, shot to the lead at box-rise and that was the end of the section. On the wire, she had 14 lengths to spare of runner-up Big Boy Mariah. While the margin was impressive, it meant little by comparison to the time posted. Her 36.15s offering shaved .22s from Edie Beauchamp’s mark and re-enforced her standing as the most promising ‘stayer in-the-making’ in the land. Both Darcy Nimbus and Edie Beauchamp posted their records just seven days apart in March 2006. The 365m mark had been approached in recent times but 20.24s is in another world. Both record breakers need to take the next step - to win at 520m (Hesa Felon) and 720m for Smart Betsy but that looks a mere formality. Fast tracks induce fast times but at Nowra, the surface (while in excellent condition), had no impact on these stunning efforts. Take nothing away from the pair, they are the real deal.

MAY 2009

Hesa Felon Set To Steal Again Written by: Peter Davis 04/05/09 Courtesy GRNSW website He turned just 22 months of age on Saturday yet Hesa Felon has already won half as many races as his dam Shesa Que Tee and this evening at Nowra, the son of Hallucinate will put his unbeaten record on the line in the Greyhound Recorder Stake over 365m. Trainer Darren Sultana set the youngster for the Future Stars Maiden at Dubbo on Anzac Day and on the whispers of very fast trials at a number of venues, Hesa Felon started a 1/2 chance and delivered in spades. He quickly led from box one and posted a record breaking 17.78 seconds win on debut – a rare feat indeed. Just 48 hours later, Hesa Felon was beaten to the first turn by Neville Robson’s Supreme Allego but the 4/5 chance - which was safely away from box four - was not to be denied. At the 600m boxes, he wrested the lead and came away to score by a clear four lengths in 17.91s. At Nowra he moves out to box six but punters will rally to this classically bred youngster’s cause. Interestingly, Shesa Que Tee won four races from just eight starts – each on her home track at Lithgow over 287m – and is a half sister to Que Tee Dee. Breeding aficionados will quickly recognize a connection with Group 1 winning stayer Lilley Criminal. Lilley Criminal is also by Hallucinate, therefore a three quarter relation to Hesa Felon. Lilley Criminal has won from 400m to 720m and is all quality. It remains to be seen if and or when Hesa Felon can make a mark at the highest level but, at this stage, his star is on the rise. Nowra looks to be just a stepping stone on a path to greater glory.