# 2000 UK & Ireland Greyhound Racing Year

The 2000 UK & Ireland Greyhound Racing Year was the 74th year of greyhound racing in the United Kingdom and Ireland.

## Roll of honour

Major Winners :
| Award | Name of Winner |
| 2000 English Greyhound Derby | Rapid Ranger |
| 2000 Irish Greyhound Derby | Judicial Pride |
| 2000 Scottish Greyhound Derby | Knockeevan Star |
| Greyhound Trainer of the Year | Linda Mullins |
| Greyhound of the Year | Palace Issue |
| Irish Dog and Bitch of the Year | Judicial Pride / Marinas Tina |
| Trainers Championship | Nick Savva |

## Summary

The National Greyhound Racing Club (NGRC) released the annual returns, with totalisator turnover at £86,014,070 and attendances recorded at 3,697,939 from 6643 meetings.
Palace Issue trained by Linda Mullins was voted Greyhound of the Year after winning the St Leger at Wimbledon Stadium, defending his Grand Prix title at Walthamstow, winning a third successive Hunt Cup and second WJ & JE Cearns Invitation. Mullins also won the Greyhound Trainer of the Year for the fifth successive year and then announced her retirement, the kennels and licence was switched to one of her sons John.
El Tenor owned by Mario Lanfranchi and trained by Mullins brought up the magical 100 open race wins to write his name in the history books as one of the greatest hurdlers. Rising star Rapid Ranger was third in the Scottish Greyhound Derby behind Knockeevan Star and then went on to win the 2000 English Greyhound Derby.

## Tracks

Irish tracks were subject to changes. The Dundalk Ramparts Greyhound Stadium closed on 20 November in order for the major rebuild to take place. Curraheen Park opened on 8 April as a replacement for the previous track the Cork (Western Road) Greyhound Stadium, the sale of the old track enabled the Irish Greyhound Board to fund a new stadium with modern facilities. The Kingdom Greyhound Stadium in Tralee also underwent a major refit as the stadium was redesigned for the new Millennium.
Swaffham ceased to race after the promoter Tom Smith and the holder of the lease Vince Moody had a disagreement, the track had raced for 13 years and was turned into a schooling facility. Tom Smith and son Gavin Smith would leave a lasting legacy however as they were responsible for producing the 'Swaffham hare'. During a ten-year period they had produced a hare system that would replace just about every other hare system; the McGee, outside Sumner, inside Sumner and Bramich would all but disappear.

## News

The Supertrack competition inaugurated in 1994 is officially ended by the British Greyhound Racing Board. Harlow lost three trainers in quick succession; Jean Carter moved to Crayford, Wayne Wilson to Catford and Kay Wyatt to Sittingbourne. Wyatt would soon give up training and Maxine Locke would take over the kennels and contract at Sittingbourne. Hazel Dickson retired leaving Wimbledon for other interests outside of greyhound racing; she had never recovered from the day that Wembley closed.
Nick Savva won the trainers championship and trained 93 British Bred winners in one year, only Trevor Cobbold in 1994 had produced a more. Catford Racing Manager Phil Donaldson left for a career in journalism with the Racing Post with his assistant Derek Hope taking over. Crayford also lost their Racing Manager after Paul Lawrence left to be replaced by deputy Harry Bull with Danny Rayment promoted to deputy.

## Competitions

Catford hosted their last Cesarewitch before it switched to Oxford.

## Principal UK races

Grand National, Wimbledon (Mar 28, 460m h, £7,500) :
| Pos | Name of Greyhound | Trainer | SP | Time | Trap |
| 1st | Tuttles Minister | Tom Foster | 3-1 | 28.36 | 5 |
| 2nd | Catunda Leonardo | Terry Dartnall | 13-8f | 28.37 | 6 |
| 3rd | Apple Rambler | Tom Foster | 6-1 | 28.39 | 3 |
| 4th | Lenson Eddie | Ray Peacock | 9-2 | 28.55 | 2 |
| 5th | Silbury Willow | Tom Foster | 7-1 | 28.81 | 1 |
| 6th | Kennyswell Smoke | Tom Foster | 3-1 | 29.23 | 4 |
Regal Scottish Derby, Shawfield (Apr 15, 480m, £20,000) :
| Pos | Name of Greyhound | Trainer | SP | Time | Trap |
| 1st | Knockeevan Star | Tom Flaherty | 3-1 | 29.19 | 1 |
| 2nd | Ryefield Snowy | Paul Stringer | 20-1 | 29.35 | 4 |
| 3rd | Rapid Ranger | Charlie Lister | 3-1 | 29.37 | 3 |
| 4th | Knockanroe Rover | Paul Stringer | 2-1f | 29.39 | 2 |
| 5th | Fat Boy Slim | Jim Reynolds | 7-2 | 29.55 | 5 |
| 6th | Spring Time | Gerald Watson | 4-1 | 29.91 | 6 |
Scurry Gold Cup, Catford (Jun 24, 385m, £3,000) :
| Pos | Name of Greyhound | Trainer | SP | Time | Trap |
| 1st | El Boss | Linda Mullins | 5-4f | 23.65 | 2 |
| 2nd | Regal Eagle | Tony Taylor | 10-1 | 23.97 | 1 |
| 3rd | Lenson Sunny | Ray Peacock | 8-1 | 23.99 | 6 |
| 4th | Ceephil | Linda Mullins | 10-1 | 24.19 | 5 |
| 5th | Rachels Miller | Dave Hopper | 9-4 | 24.21 | 3 |
| 6th | Glowing Wave | Barry Wileman | 8-1 | 24.53 | 4 |
Reading Masters, Reading (Jul 9, 465m, £20,000) :
| Pos | Name of Greyhound | Trainer | SP | Time | Trap |
| 1st | Jicky | Brian Clemenson | 11-2 | 28.16 | 6 |
| 2nd | Glenholm Duke | Nikki Chambers | 7-2 | 28.38 | 3 |
| 3rd | Fervent Flash | Jo Burridge | 66-1 | 28.42 | 5 |
| 4th | Hedsor Sheila | Keith Howard | 33-1 | 28.62 | 2 |
| 5th | Smoking Wardy | Derek Knight | 10-11f | 28.70 | 4 |
| 6th | Carnalecka Chief | John McGee Sr. | 4-1 | 28.80 | 1 |
BT Gold Collar, Catford (Sep 16, 555m, £7,500) :
| Pos | Name of Greyhound | Trainer | SP | Time | Trap |
| 1st | Castlelyons Dani | Arthur Hitch | 5-4f | 35.04 | 6 |
| 2nd | Gold Bullet | David Mullins | 7-2 | 35.08 | 1 |
| 3rd | Romany Lad | Daphne Mann | 6-1 | 35.16 | 3 |
| 4th | Astoria Noir | Terry Dartnall | 15-2 | 35.34 | 5 |
| 5th | Allez Vieira | John McGee Sr. | 5-1 | 35.44 | 2 |
| 6th | Fawn Nikita | Paul Young | 25-1 | 35.48 | 4 |
Evening Standard TV Trophy, Wimbledon (Oct 3, 868m, £6,000) :
| Pos | Name of Greyhound | Trainer | SP | Time | Trap |
| 1st | Sexy Delight | Charlie Lister | 9-4f | 54.51 | 1 |
| 2nd | Spenwood Wizard | Jo Burridge | 3-1 | 54.53 | 6 |
| 3rd | Hollinwood Poppy | Mick Clarke | 3-1 | 54.83 | 5 |
| 4th | Drumsna Cross | Charlie Lister | 33-1 | 54.95 | 2 |
| 5th | El Poker | Linda Mullins | 8-1 | 55.07 | 3 |
| 6th | Spenwood Gem | Ron Hough | 4-1 | 55.11 | 4 |
Laurels, Belle Vue (Oct 10, 465m, £6,000) :
| Pos | Name of Greyhound | Trainer | SP | Time | Trap |
| 1st | Courts Legal | Linda Jones | 7-4 | 27.86 | 1 |
| 2nd | Wrenbury Rin Tin | Mick Cliffe | 33-1 | 28.20 | 2 |
| 3rd | Smoking Bullet | Derek Knight | 4-5f | 28.24 | 5 |
| 4th | Brickfield Bonus | Patsy Byrne | 12-1 | 28.48 | 6 |
| 5th | Wrenbury Rebel | Mick Cliffe | 20-1 | 28.58 | 3 |
| 6th | Gambling Man | Anthony McConnell | 12-1 | 28.59 | 4 |
Grand Prix, Walthamstow (Oct 14, 640m, £10,000) :
| Pos | Name of Greyhound | Trainer | SP | Time | Trap |
| 1st | Palace Issue | Linda Mullins | 1-3f | 39.32 | 3 |
| 2nd | So Breezy | Linda Mullins | 7-1 | 39.48 | 4 |
| 3rd | Countrywide Star | John McGee Sr. | 8-1 | 40.10 | 2 |
| 4th | Lady Jean | Ken Tester | 14-1 | 40.14 | 1 |
| 5th | Little Diane | Gary Baggs | 25-1 | 40.24 | 5 |
| 6th | Black Return | Mick Puzey | 20-1 | 40.26 | 6 |
St Leger, Wimbledon (Nov 7, 660m, £12,000) :
| Pos | Name of Greyhound | Trainer | SP | Time | Trap |
| 1st | Palace Issue | Linda Mullins | 1-2f | 40.74 | 3 |
| 2nd | Sonas Phantom | Linda Jones | 14-1 | 40.96 | 2 |
| 3rd | Early Flight | Nick Savva | 3-1 | 41.02 | 6 |
| 4th | So Breezy | Linda Mullins | 16-1 | 41.10 | 4 |
| 5th | Castlelyons Dani | Arthur Hitch | 16-1 | 41.11 | 5 |
| 6th | Lenson Ladson | Ray Peacock | 50-1 | 41.43 | 1 |
Oaks, Wimbledon (Dec 6, 480m, £6,000) :
| Pos | Name of Greyhound | Trainer | SP | Time | Trap |
| 1st | Ragga Juju | Joanne Page | 7-1 | 29.29 | 2 |
| 2nd | Countrywide Tams | John McGee Sr. | 5-1 | 29.31 | 1 |
| 3rd | Kinda Swell | Linda Jones | 10-1 | 29.32 | 4 |
| 4th | After The Tide | Linda Jones | 5-4f | 29.34 | 6 |
| 5th | Early Flight | Nick Savva | 20-1 | 29.40 | 5 |
| 6th | Ryefield Snowy | Brian Clemenson | 3-1 | 29.41 | 3 |
Cesarewitch, Catford 94, 718m, £5,000) :
| Pos | Name of Greyhound | Trainer | SP | Time | Trap |
| 1st | Lady Jean | Ken Tester | 11-8f | 45.63 | 4 |
| 2nd | El Poker | Linda Mullins | 5-2 | 46.03 | 2 |
| 3rd | Elderberry Vixen | Pat Ryan | 9-4 | 46.19 | 6 |
| 4th | Lenson Ladson | Ray Peacock | 8-1 | 46.57 | 1 |
| 5th | Larkhill Mist | Owen McKenna | 66-1 | 46.77 | 5 |
| 6th | Castlelyons Fuji | Barry Wileman | 25-1 | 46.87 | 3 |

### Principal Irish finals

Easter Cup Shelbourne (Apr 1, 525y) :
| Pos | Name of Greyhound | SP | Time |
| 1st | Mr Bozz | 7-4f | 28.94 |
| 2nd | Kishlawn Gold | | 28.98 |
| 3rd | Tearaway Prince | | 29.17 |
| 4th | Vintage Knows | | 29.19 |
| 5th | Scaldy Sarah | | 29.24 |
| 6th | Sandyhill Slip | | 29.25 |
National Produce Thurles (Apr 30, 525y) :
| Pos | Name of Greyhound | SP | Time | Trap |
| 1st | Moyne Rebel | 1-2f | 28.70 TR | 5 |
| 2nd | Official Leader | | 29.19 | 1 |
| 3rd | Kishlawn Gold | | 29.29 | 3 |
| 4th | Glossy Buttons | | 29.30 | 2 |
| 5th | Barefoot Ridge | | 29.36 | 4 |
| 6th | Gold Chief | | 29.68 | 6 |
Shelbourne 600 Shelbourne (May 6, 600y) :
| Pos | Name of Greyhound | SP | Time | Trap |
| 1st | Joannestown Cash | 6-4f | 32.49 TR | 3 |
| 2nd | Winetavern Sam | 8-1 | 32.77 | 2 |
| 3rd | Betting Ring | 12-1 | 32.84 | 1 |
| 4th | Kilmessan Jet | 5-2 | 32.94 | 4 |
| 5th | Glenwood Sassy | 7-1 | 33.12 | 5 |
| 6th | Tearaway Prince | 10-1 | 33.43 | 6 |
St Leger Limerick (Jul 1, 550y) :
| Pos | Name of Greyhound | SP | Time | Trap |
| 1st | Extra Dividend | 8-1 | 29.79 | 4 |
| 2nd | Shanless Park | 5-4f | 30.07 | 1 |
| 3rd | Upward Star | 6-1 | 30.17 | 5 |
| 4th | Deerfield Tycoon | 3-1 | 30.45 | 3 |
| 5th | Glossy Buttons | 6-1 | 30.46 | 2 |
| 6th | Crossleigh Fudge | 10-1 | 30.64 | 6 |
Oaks Shelbourne (Jul 8, 525y) :
| Pos | Name of Greyhound | SP | Time | Trap |
| 1st | Marinas Tina | 9-4f | 28.56 | 2 |
| 2nd | Stay Sharp | 5-1 | 28.86 | 1 |
| 3rd | Miss Tetley | 8-1 | 28.89 | 3 |
| 4th | Unsinkable Girl | 7-2 | 29.08 | 6 |
| 5th | Scaldy Sarah | 3-1 | 29.17 | 5 |
| 6th | Miss Allurity | 7-1 | 29.29 | 4 |
Foras na Gaeilge Champion Stakes Shelbourne (Jul 22, 550y) :
| Pos | Name of Greyhound | SP | Time |
| 1st | Lemon Ralph | 8-1 | 30.08 |
| 2nd | Mr Bozz | | 30.26 |
| 3rd | Droopys Vieri | | 30.36 |
| 4th | Spring Time | | 30.38 |
| 5th | Judicial Pride | | 30.60 |
| 6th | Currie Kid | | 31.06 |
Gain/Daniel J Reilly Puppy Derby Harolds Cross (Sep 29, 525y) :
| Pos | Name of Greyhound | SP | Time | Trap |
| 1st | Droopys Vieri | 4-6f | 28.36 | 3 |
| 2nd | Watch The Market | 9-1 | 28.71 | 6 |
| 3rd | Darter | 12-1 | 28.78 | 5 |
| 4th | Home Power | 9-1 | 29.13 | 4 |
| 5th | Byerley Bet | 12-1 | 29.20 | 2 |
| 6th | Curryhills Wade | 7-1 | 29.69 | 1 |
Laurels Cork (Oct 28, 525y) :
| Pos | Name of Greyhound | SP | Time | Trap |
| 1st | Barefoot Ridge | 6-1 | 28.69 | 3 |
| 2nd | Moyne Rebel | 4-5f | 28.72 | 6 |
| 3rd | Extra Dividend | 16-1 | 28.86 | 2 |
| 4th | O Rahilly Walk | 10-1 | 29.00 | 1 |
| 5th | Lemon Ralph | 12-1 | 29.11 | 4 |
| 6th | Marinas Tina | 13-4 | 29.46 | 5 |

## Totalisator returns

Extended content :
The totalisator returns declared to the National Greyhound Racing Club for the year 2000 are listed below. Although the tracks are listed in the order of largest to smallest turnover the actual figures were not released (with the exception of Wimbledon).
Stadium
Turnover £
Walthamstow
Wimbledon9,068,036
Romford
Belle Vue
Brighton & Hove
Hall Green
Peterborough
Catford
Sheffield
Perry Barr
Crayford
Stadium
Turnover £
Sunderland
Oxford
Milton Keynes
Nottingham
Shawfield
Monmore
Yarmouth
Poole
Portsmouth
Brough Park
Swindon
Stadium
Turnover £
Sittingbourne
Reading
Harlow
Stainforth
Kinsley
Wisbech
Mildenhall
Henlow
Rye House
Hull :