Racing: Finn McMissile chasing $3000 bonus

Amberley trainer Luke Philips and his greyhound, Finn McMissile,  could snare an extra $3000 at...
Amberley trainer Luke Philips and his greyhound, Finn McMissile, could snare an extra $3000 at Forbury Park today. Photo by Stephen Jaquiery.
Finn McMissile's love affair with Forbury Park could pay off today in the $2900 final of the Triple Hit feature.

The Luke Philips-trained dog by Fanta Claws is the only greyhound still eligible for the $3000 bonus after winning heats run on August 6 and August 20.

Finn McMissile won the $11,000 New Zealand Racing Series final at Forbury Park in May, and has won eight of his 15 starts overall on the Dunedin circuit.

Of those eight wins in Dunedin, three have come over the sprint distance of 310m - including the two heat wins - from five starts. Most of his recent racing prior to the Triple Hit series had been over the middle distances, but a start over 390m at Ascot Park in late May also produced a win.

He will jump from box 6 in the final, and is joined in the field by kennel-mate Oscar Tuivasa (box 3), who won his first heat before earning a third behind Rosca in his second heat on Tuesday.

Cawbourne Queen (box 1), who won a first-round heat, is one of two runners for Christchurch trainer Craig Roberts.

The Brett Lee bitch usually shows box speed but did not quite fire in her second heat last Tuesday.

''She missed away the other day and went no good,'' Roberts said.

''She pulled up sore, so we just hope she's OK for the final.''

Cawbourne Queen has placed once from three goes from the inside box, but Roberts is not too concerned where she starts.

''It doesn't matter with her. It just depends whether she jumps or not - she had been jumping really well up until that last start.

''She likes to lead, but she also uses a bit of the track. She'll give the rail to something if there's something underneath her that's good enough.''

Fizzle Bale (box 5) is Roberts' other runner, although just getting the Collision dog to Forbury Park today will be an achievement.

''He's a day-to-day proposition - he's got a few problems.''

Roberts will not be down in Dunedin with his greyhounds today as he continues to recover from a broken leg suffered playing football in early July.

''I haven't handled any dogs yet - I'm probably two or three weeks away from that.

''The dogs have been ticking over pretty well. My daughter has been doing most of the work with them. I'll probably get told to stay on the La-Z-Boy.''

 

Add a Comment