The 2022 BoyleSports Irish Greyhound Derby is on now at Dublin's Shelbourne Park Greyhound Stadium.
That only means one thing.. it is time to catch up with Sarah for the sponsor's view on the competition.
2022 BoyleSports Irish Greyhound Derby Blog
From 156 to the final 6!
Can you believe that we are here already? The final of the 2022 BoyleSports Irish Greyhound Derby is taking place this Saturday and it will be LIVE on Virgin Media 2 & RPGTV (sky channel 437). We were treated to some epic racing last Saturday with Callaway Pro Am and Ballymac Finn dominating their heats in superior fashion. It’s a wide-open derby with Owen McKenna’s Callaway Pro Am the 9/4 favourite with those odds cut from 7/1 after his 29.64 victory. It’s a very young field with siblings Ballymac Finn and Maries Wedding not turning 2-years-of-age until November so it really is a case of out with the old and in with the new eh?!
Happy Birthday Callaway Pro Am
Denis Murphy spoke extremely well at the derby lunch. Of course, all connections with a finalist spoke well but Murphy definitely said all the right things with a huge thanks to BoyleSports so thank you very much Denis. Callaway celebrates his birthday derby final night (because of the leap year Mr Murphy informed me!) so wouldn’t it be the perfect birthday present to win the derby title and €125,000? And to think that Owen McKenna is just days away from the possibility of winning back-to-back derby titles. Can he do it? Callaway is the only unbeaten runner in the competition with last year’s winner Susie Sapphire going into the final with the same stat. It might just be fate. Or is it faith, I always mix those two up!
The Derby Final Lunch
I adore the Derby Final Lunch. Everyone is buzzin to be there as it means they have a runner in the big one and all their hard work has paid off. It’s mad to think after 156 entries that only one can prevail but who will it be? The food was amazing at the lunch but I never got my sticky toffee pudding, so I wasn’t happy haha. The food at HQ is very good, it always has been. The staff were flat out looking after us all and I had the soup and beef which was FAB. We got a little trio of desserts then with a special BoyleSports branded chocolate. The attention to detail is brilliant so well done to the Shelbourne Park and GRI. Thank you for a lovely afternoon.
It was great listening to all the connections in the final being interviewed by Ian Fortune. I have added them all to my social media platforms so make sure you have a look. Denis Murphy and Callaway Pro Am kicked off proceedings and it can be viewed here.
The Burning Question
Who will win the 2022 BoyleSports Irish Greyhound Derby? There are three bitches and three dogs with girl power rocking as Keeley McGee and Jennifer O’Donnell have their first ever derby finalists as trainers. Best of luck!
1 - Callaway Pro Am – The fav, the unbeaten finalist and trained by last year’s winning trainer Owen McKenna
2 - Crafty Kokoro – mighty consistent & the best stayer in the race. Leaves it until the last second
3 - Maries Wedding – one of the youngest in the line-up and improving as each week goes by
4 - Ballymac Finn – Maries Wedding litter brother. A powerhouse with a nice style of running
5 - Born Warrior – early pace is his advantage but runs out of petrol on the home straight and runs wide. If he leads he has MASSIVE chance
6 - Droopys Nice One – the outsider but full of class. With a clear run she has just as much of a chance as anyone else
THE EXCITEMENT!!
It really is WIDE OPEN. A case can be made for all finalists. This is exactly what we want in a derby final.
*** My pick is BORN WARRIOR. I tipped him up at 33/1 at the start of the derby so fingers crossed.
All you need to know about the derby can be found on our blog site here and all the latest betting news can be found here.
I’m looking forward to seeing you all on Saturday and I hope you enjoy your night, especially those who won tickets from my social media competition. You’re welcome!!
May the best greyhound win and let them all come home safe.
Cannot wait!!
Sarah x
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2022 BoyleSports Irish Greyhound Derby Blog
When 24 became 12
There is always a wave of sadness when the numbers are beginning to get closer to single figures as it’s a sign that the derby is coming to a close. 24 became 12 on Saturday evening at Shelbourne Park and I must admit that I’m the most excited for Gortkelly Nestor. This Andy Murray trained star has now made the semi-finals of the BoyleSports Irish Greyhound Derby for the second year in a row. He was only denied a spot in the final last year by one length so I really hope he makes it into the final six and we get to meet Andy and his family at the Derby Final lunch at HQ next Monday. He is running brilliant without winning but he did win the Derby Trial Stake at Limerick Stadium beating Tullig Raven by seven lengths. He was only back from a break, so he is coming into his top form at the right time. Best of luck Nestor.
Major shocks
There was always going to be three connections in each of the four heats going home disappointed, but I didn’t think Romeo Magico was going to be one of them. I really fancied him in the opening heat, but his breaking let him down and he found trouble early doors. Ballymac Finn was a brilliant winner for Liam Dowling, however. He is a handsome dude too. He posed for me on the track as I took pictures of him for my social media, and he was loving life. He was fast away and always led. That’s all you need. 29.59 and the 2/1 favourite so he was great value. We still have not seen the best of Skywalker Barry but he is qualifying each week so that goes to show how classy he really is. The aforementioned Gortkelly Nestor grabbed third after flying home.
*** All the latest news on our ante post movers can be found here with Nestor now 50/1 from 66/1!!
Hoffa in cruise control
I take back any doubts I ever had. Coolavanny Hoffa was sublime on Saturday night and he is now just 7/4 favourite with those odds cut from 5/1. Michael J O’Donovan is one of the best trainers to ever put a lead on a greyhound and Hoffa’s 29.24 victory was a joy to watch. It was effortless. He beat Graham Holland’s Cryptopunk by four lengths with Vincenzo another length back in third for trainer Patrick Guilfoyle. Hoffa ended up Evens on the night with the bookies but was as short as 8/11 earlier that day. Many will say the derby is still wide open but judging by the way Hoffa ran on Saturday, some might even say it’s his to lose now. Many terrific derby stars have been in his kennel before him including Laughil Blake and Judicial Pride.
Born Warrior needs more petrol
I love Born Warrior. He has beautiful early pace, but he just gets the trip. I watch him coming off the last bend with my hand over my eyes hoping he will get there. He has qualified and that’s the main thing and I think he will make the final too. How good is Maries Wedding though. Keeley McGee is getting some tune out of her. She clocked a fast 29.44 to win by half a length. Droopys Nice One was third meaning we could have three ladies in the final with Crafty Kokoro making a show of the boys so far. All the single ladies, put your hands up!
Callaway Pro Am – puppy power!
Owen McKenna is brilliant. I mentioned before that this dog came in under the radar but he as marked his territory at HQ by dominating his rivals for the last four weeks and remains the only contender left UNBEATEN in this competition. 29.41 he clocked and he was awesome. Paw-perfect. He will turn two-years of age on the 25th September, a day after the Derby final and wouldn’t it be some birthday present if he was to win the title? He won by a head to the fast finishing and uber consistent Crafty Kokoro. The six-bend queen. Explosive Boy grabbed third for Guilfoyle giving the schoolteacher two semi-finalists. Come on Bertie, make the final for the second year in a row. Sad to see Bulletfromagun not make it through. He gave his owners some spin. Michael, Daniel and Brendan. All brothers and all enjoying their first-ever greyhound. Making the quarterfinals has certainly got them hooked now so we will be seeing a lot more of them in the future.
Ante post picks & charity bets
By the way, my two ante post picks are still there, Born Warrior and Vincenzo. Known at home as Nelson and Ollie. They are super good. Fingers crossed. GAA star and our ambassador Diarmuid Connolly is still there with his charity bet as Explosive Boy qualified so if he manages to win the derby then all the proceeds will go to the Dublin Simon Community.
Virgin Media 2 & RPGTV
It’s wonderful that the semi-finals and final will be shown live on Virgin Media 2. Make sure you tune in if you can’t make the track. RPGTV have been doing fantastic coverage so they will continue to show all races too (sky channel 437) with Rob Catterson doing an amazing job interviewing everyone with a runner in the derby. Greyhound racing is finally getting the coverage it deserves so long may it continue.
Droopys Sydney
Quick shoutout to stud sensation Droopys Sydney who sired three out of the four heat winners. He is worth his weight in gold now and the ladies continue to queue up to get to meet him despite a large fee! The Galileo of greyhound racing. Hopefully he throws plenty of more stars in the future or maybe Pestana will take over, who knows!
It’s the semi-final stage already!! Where has the time gone. I better get baking because Michael Dempsey has been very disappointed that I didn’t bake him any buns in the last few weeks!!
The semi-final heat betting can be found here with Coolavanny Hoffa and Ballymac Finn the favourites in their respective heats.
See you all Saturday when 12 will become 6. I’m buzzin.
Sarah xoxo
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Well done to Michael Dempsey & his team
When I left the house at 5pm on Saturday evening it wasn’t looking good that racing was going to go ahead. It was lashing rain in Dublin all day but the track staff at HQ did remarkable work to make sure that the third round would go ahead so well done to Michael Dempsey and his team. Behind the scenes in greyhound racing is not at all glamourous so the lads were covered from head to toe in raingear and braved the elements to ensure the conditions were safe for our canine friends. The night went extremely well and a special word to All About Ted, I hope you have a speedy recovery buddy. Thanks for the memories.
48 Become 24
We were treated to eight sensational heats with Tullig Raven becoming the first greyhound to book his spot into the quarterfinals along with Explosive Boy and Droopys Nice One. Explosive Boy (aka Bertie) was the 5/6 favourite to win but 9/2 chance Tullig Raven was just too good. It was an eye-catching performance to say the least but it’s hardly surprising as he did break the 525 yards track record at Tralee on debut!! Another big star for Pat Buckley with his outright odds hammered into 12/1 from 25/1 to give his trainer another derby title.
Our latest market movers in the outright can be found here
Don’t forget to check out our new Derby role of honour wall at the corporate entrance both downstairs and upstairs beside the lift. It’s super cool. Get a selfie with it and tag me on social media and you could just win some tickets to the quarterfinals this weekend!!!
Romeo Magico Still Improving? Also some charity bets are still alive
I still can’t believe you could get 25/1 about Badger (that is his pet name) before the derby started. An amazing price. He was very good in the opening two rounds, but he was particularly good in the third round. Graham Holland is a master at the derby as we have seen so the fact that Romeo is now only 6/1 from 14/1 speaks for itself. Come on Badger. Oh and Michael Bridge of Sky Sports is on Romeo Magico for his charity bet so fingers crossed for his chosen charity Prostate UK. Diarmuid Connolly has Explosive Boy for his chosen charity the Dublin Simon Community.
Callaway Double For McKenna & Murphy
Owen McKenna came into this derby under the radar (well to me anyway) with two stars who have exceled in this competition. Callaway Masters and Callaway Pro Am were both excellent when winning their heats for owner Denis Murphy. They are lovely people from Killarney, Co Kerry, and are a pleasure to deal with. Masters clocked 29.86 to beat Hoodoo Brown and Clona Blu (Kevin Losty’s second ever derby quarter-finalist). He was a classy winner as was Pro Am who won in 29.76 beating the ante post favourite Coolavanny Hoffa and Maries Wedding in a blanket finish with a head and short head separating them.
Crafty Kokoro SUBLIME
What a lady she is for Peter Divilly. To beat Born Warrior and Cryptopunk the way she did was very classy. She came from last to first and picked her rivals off one by one. It was cruel really haha, she made a show of them. She is 25/1 from 50/1. Imagine her in the derby final. She will be like BoyleSports King coming with that LATE SURGE. The excitement is just too much.
Barefoot Supremo is keeping the derby dream alive for Paul Hennessy after his hard-fought victory in heat 3 to beat the pace setter Bulletfromagun. Time 29.66. Bockos Budsit was another good winner for Graham Holland in 29.59 and a great run from Rachel Wheeler’s Annagh Bailey in second. Skywalker Barry is not at his best but still qualified.
Finally, VINCENZO.
I’m delighted because my two ante post selections are still alive, Born Warrior and VINCENZO. Patrick Guilfoyle knows how much I love him, but not as much as I loved Magical Bale so lets not get carried away! He was epic. He produced the fastest time of the night in 29.49 so his owner got presented with a medal to mark the victory. The story of the night as probably Gortkelly Nestor getting through for Andy Murray. A brilliant dog and a terrific effort in second. Droopys Gravy is through too for Robert Gleeson.
The third round sectionals can be viewed here for all you stat nerds.
Don’t forget to enter my ticket giveaway on twitter and Instagram to be in with a chance of winning tickets to the quarterfinals.
The heat betting is now available here and the Michael Fortune Memorial Plate is available too. What a night we have in store!
Have a great week and see you all Saturday.
Sarah x
BoyleSports Irish Greyhound Derby Blog – Second Round – Shelbourne Park
Great Crowd For Second Round At HQ
There was a huge response to my free ticket giveaway for the opening two rounds of the BoyleSports Irish Greyhound Derby which is great to see. I stood on the steps over at the kennel block to watch the opening race on Saturday and was pleasantly surprised to see such a healthy crowd so early on in the competition. The restaurant was fully booked and the atmosphere was brilliant – as well as 16 brilliant heat winners across the two nights. Every week for the derby I’ll be running a competition to win some free general admission tickets, so make sure you keep an eye on my Twitter @BoyleSportsSK
Social Media Reaction
I’d like to say a huge THANK YOU to everyone who gets behind my social media content. I have already hit over 50,000 views for behind-the-scenes content, so there is clearly a massive appetite for it. All retweets, shares and comments are appreciated, so thank you. We build-up so much hype and excitement ahead of the derby kicking off and just like that we are already into the third round; it’s just madness. Post-race content is so important, but all content in general is vital to the industry. The way we advertise and market greyhound racing is changing all the time, so it’s brilliant that we can use social media as a platform to showcase all the wonderful aspects of the sport. Greyhound enthusiasts want to hear from trainers, handlers and owners. They want to know everything there is to know about greyhounds, so it’s important that we continue to broaden our coverage online and show the world how great our sport is.
RPGTV will be at HQ this Saturday and will cover from the third round to the final. It’s a huge boost to have them live stream the derby along with so many other classics and events, so if you can’t make the dogs this weekend then tune into Sky channel 437, you won’t miss a thing.
I won’t mention all 16 heats and bore you all with my love for the remaining 48 greyhounds, so let’s take a look at some highlights:
Hoffa Steals The Limelight
96 became 48 in the most dramatic fashion at Shelbourne Park and we now have a new favourite. Coolavanny Hoffa was just sublime, wasn’t he? He was foot-perfect from start to finish. This son of Droopys Sydney and Coolavanny Ella clocked 29.13 with sectionals of 3.38 and 16.80. SENSATIONAL. I know we shouldn’t get carried away as it’s only the second round, but if this Michael J O’Donovan speedster can clock 16.80 to the third bend every week, then he will be very hard to beat. The betting indicates so too as he is our new favourite at 6/1 from 12/1 in the betting. No surprise there. Well done to team O’Donovan.
***FUN FACT***
Newinn Taylor is the only dog to go faster to the third bend as he clocked 16.79 in the third round of the 2020 derby.
Callaway Pro Am Strikes Again For McKenna
I really like this dog. He is only a September 2020 by Skywalker Farloe out of Bottle Of Banter. He clocked 29.64 in the opening round and then 29.33 in the second round. He has ten races on his card, so I think we are going to see some special things from him with his outright chances now cut into 20/1 from 33/1, but he was as big as 66/1 prior to the derby kicking off. Sad to see Singalong Sally fail to qualify, but we will see her again soon no doubt.
Mustang Jet A Handsome Boy
What a looker Mustang Jet is. His owner and breeder Sean Bourke was thrilled with his performance and calls his star by the pet name Lar. 29.72 was the clock, but we know he is faster as he won in 29.43 the week before. He is a gorgeous brindle dog weighing 75lbs and Dolores was telling me that he loves his treats, especially sausages. He has drifted in the betting however and he is now 20/1 from 16/1. Crafty Kokoro flew home as expected, but it was unfortune to see Kilgraney Sydney not qualify.
Bockos Crystal A Fine Bitch
It’s not often you see a bitch like Bockos Crystal, a.k.a. Eimear. Wow. She is a stunner. 70lbs she is, a tank. She won in 29.65 beating Priceless Jet and Iso Fantastic. It was eye-catching with her outright odds trimmed into 25/1 for 40/1 for trainer Graham Holland. Priceless Jet is 40/1 to win the derby. A true professional and a competition dog, so never dismiss him.
Gortkelly Nestor Ran The Race Of His Life
Andy Murray was just over the moon with Nestor and why wouldn’t he be? He faced a classy one in Ballinabola Ed and while there was no catching him, Nestor certainly gave it all to finish second in 29.27. That was his 52nd career start and he is now into the third round of the derby. We are all cheering for you.
Athlacca Zette Doing Athlacca Zette Things
I just love this dog. Well done to Noel Neenan from County Limerick and to his wife Angie and son Gavin who I had the pleasure of meeting. We always focus on the big favourites and the big trainers and owners who dominate, but how nice is it to see a small trainer do well? We love to see it. Well done Zetty, you ran a blinder to finish third behind Rachel Wheeler’s impressive Annagh Bailey and Oakfront Cadet in second. The time was 29.64 with Annagh Bailey now 50/1 from 100/1 in the betting.
Quick mention to Explosive Boy and All About Ted too. Both finalists last year and both unbeaten so far in this year’s derby.
The Future Of Greyhound Racing Is In Safe Paws!
I always like to give a special mention or shout out to someone each week, but this week I have several people I’d like to pay homage to. Greyhound racing thrives off the younger generation and as mentioned previously it also thrives off social media. There are many wonderful people who are putting in a huge effort to make sure it’s being highlighted from tipsters to breeders, from trainers to sponsors, from the Sporting Press to the traders. A shoutout this week goes to the likes of Barry Drake, Emma Buckley, Sarah Buckley, Mikey Cronin, Sarah Hennessy, Damien Lonergan (I always mention him!) Aoife Dunphy, Riverside Kennels and Kevin Hennessy. The future of greyhound racing is in safe hands, or should I say paws?! A special mention to Radio Kerry too for having me on every week to talk about the BoyleSports Irish Greyhound Derby with a special focus on Kingdom connections. All coverage is appreciated.
P.s. Yes I made butterfly buns myself on Friday and no my mammy did not bake them, and yes Imelda had one and said my buns were lovely. I’ll bake more for this weekend, but due to popular demand, I might just have to start charging for them!!!
See you all Saturday night for thethird round. It’s going to be special.
Sarah x
156 Become 96
We enjoyed a terrific start to the 2022 BoyleSports Irish Greyhound Derby in Shelbourne Park last Friday and Saturday with 156 becoming 96 after 26 sensational heats. It was great to see HQ buzzing with greyhound enthusiasts ahead of the opening round and I have a feeling that the final this year is going to be one of the biggest crowds we have ever seen. I have said it plenty of times already this year, but the depth of quality in this year’s derby is just mouth-watering. From the old men at the party like Beach Avenue to the future stars like Wi Can Dream. It had everything. The track was in tip top order and in terms of BoyleSports branding, well it’s definitely clear we are the sponsors as it’s a sea of blue – and we;re not even finished with it yet!
Nostalgia
This year feels different for me. I’m not sure if it’s the lifting of restrictions or my old age, but I’m feeling more nostalgic than normal. We have such a wonderful sport that I cherish so much. We should all be very proud of the product we produce because we really are the best in world. The best people, facilities, trainers, owners, sponsors (of course!), studs, kennel hands and above all, the best greyhounds who are loved. Right, that’s enough mush I think, let’s talk about our canine friends shall we?!
Mustang Jet
There were just too many outstanding performances so we will kick off with heat 1 – Mustang Jet. A son of Droopys Jet and Mustang Kay Cee and a very talented tracker. I really liked his performance. He is the most fabulous looking brindle too. I even made a reel of him on Instagram and it’s going down well. He is a looker for sure. 29.43 and a 17.09 to the third bend, the third fastest from the opening round. He is 16/1 from 20/1 but was trimmed before that gradually from 33/1, so he has been a popular choice, especially after his 29.57 solo trial. He was a short 4/9 and got the job done, so keep an eye on him.
Tullig Raven
Pat Buckley got his 2022 derby campaign off to a flying start with the exciting Tullig Raven landing heat 2 and one of his owners lost his voice from the excitement! Niall from the Foots In The Door syndicate was thrilled with his 29.38 performance and why wouldn’t he be with sectionals of 3.47 & 17.20. That was just his fourth race with the 525 track record in Tralee to boast on debut. It’s safe to say that the future is bright for this son of Droopys Sydney (how many times are we going to say his name!?) and Hail Cleopatra.
Peter Cronin and His Mighty Friday Treble
What a start for Peter. It was brilliant to see All About Ted back to winning ways. He might not be the same dog as he was last year, but he is showing all the right signs, so hopefully he can keep it going. Willie Rigney was ecstatic. Not only did Ted win, but Cronin’s All About Annie won heat 5 in 29.75 and showed plenty of ability to beat Park Blake and Scooby Duchess. They weren’t even going to run her in the derby so well done lads. Peter then topped off the night with a treble after Decs Guinness won heat 9 for owner Declan Landy and also Emily’s Jet qualifying in the same heat. Awesome start for team Cronin.
Cody Just Too Good
Patrick Guilfoyle is another trainer who enjoyed a brilliant start to the derby with Good Cody clocking the fastest time in the opening round at 29.25. He is one of the fastest in training, there is no doubt about it. His sprint form from last year is going to be crucial in this competition as it will help him set the pace and get a nice head start on his rivals. He just needs to keep doing things right and we could see him make the final. It’s no surprise to know he is the fastest to the third bend clocking 16.94, wow. He is 12/1 in the outright betting and he is Ian Fortune’s charity bet for the IRGT, so best of luck.
Ed and Sally – Best Friends
Ballinabola Ed and Singalong Sally are the best of friends at home in their kennel, but Ed wasn’t letting Sally win on Saturday night. The runner-up last year hit the front as expected but Ed just turned on the turbo power and took the lead at the third bend. Sally did try to come back again and there wasn’t much between them at the line in 29.62. Ed will come on loads for that. That was first time to race at HQ, so he is now the 10/1 from 12/1 favourite to win the €125,000 as punters clearly think he has what it takes to win the title. He actually did hit a low of 8/1, but we eased him back out. He remains one of the biggest losers in the book for us
Special
It's hard to fit them all in, but Romeo Magico deserves a mention too after the race he ran to finish second to Laurence Jones’ Well Met. Graham Holland will be delighted with that performance as he needed the race. The English Greyhound Derby champion has to be taken seriously in this competition with 14/1 available in the outright. A special mention too for Beach Avenue. A remarkable servant who loves what he does. Everyone loves him. See you this weekend Rory.
Explosive Boy, Sentimental Lad, Wi Can Dream, Athlacca Zette, Magical Kuba Kilgraney Sydney. The list goes on and on. We are spoilt for choice. I still really like Born Warrior and Vincenzo as my picks, but honestly I could mention ten more. What a competitive BoyleSports Irish Greyhound Derby.
The outright has been updated and the heat betting is also available. We are offering money back as a FREE BET if your selection finishes second in the derby heats. We also make it 8/1 for the track record to be broken!
See you all Friday and Saturday for the second round!
Sarah x
2022 BoyleSports Irish Greyhound Derby
We’re Back!
The 2022 BoyleSports Irish Greyhound Derby kicks off this Friday and Saturday with 13 heats spread evenly across the two nights and I’m BUZZIN’. Shelbourne Park is bracing itself for a busy six weeks, with massive crowds expected to fill the stadium ahead of the greatest greyhound race in the world! €125,000 to the winner. What would you do if you won that? I’d probably just buy more greyhounds and a year’s supply of spaghetti hoops. If you know, you know!
Most Wonderful Time Of The Year
This is always a busy period for me, but it’s also my favourite time of the year. We launched the event on Monday at HQ and the place looked great. Tommy Bolton and the lads have been flat out applying fresh licks of paint, planting flowers and cutting grass, so come Friday night, Shelborne Park will look like a shiny new penny. I say it every year, but it takes an army to run an event like this. From the restaurant to social media, the racing office to the groundsmen, the Tote to the bar, the GRI team to the Sporting Press and the most important thing of all, the work that goes into the greyhounds. We all put in 110% over the six weeks and come the end there is a champion… but who will the 2022 winner be?!
We Miss You Susie, But We Still Have Sally
It's hard to believe that it’s nearly a year since Susie Sapphire was crowned 2021 winner. It goes without saying that we are going to miss her presence this year, but she owes her connections nothing. To win the Puppy Oaks, the Oaks and the Derby and then win the Easter Cup the following year is just REMARKABLE. We will probably never see another like her, but her babies will hopefully produce some magic. I remember the hype surrounding Susie last year for the derby and it was warranted as she dominated the entire competition wearing the red jacket. To win the Derby title by three lengths in 29.18 to another fast lady in Singalong Sally took some doing. We might not have Susie this year, but we do have Sally and she can be backed at 50/1, with those odds already trimmed from 66/1. It was all going so well in the draw on Monday when I drew her in trap one. I was thrilled until I pulled out her kennelmate and joint 12/1 antepost favourite Ballinbola Ed!! It shouldn’t be a problem for Sally though. She loves HQ, so hopefully she gets the chance to go one place better this year.
Romantic Scenes In The Oaks Suite
The draw went really well. The Oaks Suite has never looked as well with candles (so romantic), and fresh scones and croissants on offer along with cream. Very fancy altogether. It was a lovely morning. I caught up with Ian Fortune afterwards to record his charity bet video. Social media is such a huge part of our industry now so I’m glad I get to play a part in it. We gave Ian €300, so he picked Good Cody at 16/1 and if he wins, all proceeds go to the IRGT, a worthy cause. Michael Dempsey and his team played a blinder. It’s not an easy task when putting 156 greyhounds into the draw and poor Michael does be up to all hours of the night with the phone hopping. It went great and you can catch up on some post draw reactions here.
Damien Lonergan
A special mention to our very own Damien Lonergan. We would be lost without him. He puts in mighty hours to make sure all heats are priced along with some specials too like Top Bitch etc. But the icing on the cake this year is the brand-new special offer…our biggest offer EVER!
Place a bet on any BoyleSports Irish Greyhound Derby heat and if your selection finishes second you will get your money back as a FREE BET.
All Roads Lead To HQ
I’m so excited about this year’s Derby because there are no more COVID-19 restrictions. It was a nightmare to say the least, but we pulled through and if anything, it actually gave us a great window of opportunity to showcase our industry through social media while everyone was stuck at home. I beg you to please come to Shelbourne for the BoyleSports Irish Greyhound Derby. It’s the biggest and best competition in the world. The facilities are brilliant, the racing is top-class and you will meet some fantastic people. Come racing all the time, but especially for the Derby.
Virgin Media 2
It was tough keeping the secret about the BoyleSports Irish Greyhound Derby returning to TV, so it was great to see the news finally released on Monday with Ivan Yates and Ian Fortune to present the semi-finals and final live. RPGTV do a tremendous job and they will be doing their usual coverage too from the third round onwards, so you won’t miss a thing. Our great sport deserves this so well done to GRI and Virgin Media on agreeing on this brand-new deal, it’s a move in the right direction. The only way is up. In the words of Joe Sheahan, DRIVE ON.
All that is left to say is best of luck to each and every one of you with a runner in this year’s BoyleSports Irish Greyhound Derby. May the best dog/bitch win. See you all at HQ. I’ll be the one with running around recording videos for my social media, so don’t forget to give me a follow.
Twitter: @BoyleSportsSK
Instagram: SarahKinsella3
See you Friday.
Sarah x
Key Dates
1st Round Heats Friday 19th & Saturday 20th August
2nd Round Heats Friday 26th & Saturday 27st August
3rd Round Heats Saturday 3rd September
Quarter-Finals Saturday 10th September
Semi-Finals Saturday 17th September
Final Saturday 24th September
BoyleSports Irish Greyhound Derby 2022, (place terms: 1/4 the first 6)
12 Coolavanny Hoffa
12 Ballinabola Ed
14 Swords Rex
14 Good Cody
14 Vincenzo
16 Twoinarow
16 Explosive Boy
16 Coolavanny Calvn
16 Kildare
16 Romeo Magico
20 Mustang Jet
20 Tullig Cyrname
25 Droopys Edison
25 Part Blake
25 Magical Kuba
25 Bockos Budsit
25 The Other Kobe
25 Raha Mofo
25 Born Warrior
33 One Time Only
33 Da Bold Freddie
33 Sunshine Dream
33 Droopys Nice One
33 Ballymac Finn
33 Barefoot Supremo
33 Sentimental Lad
40 Ballymore Border
40 Flaminmoneybags
40 Wi Can Dream
40 Crokers Spirit
40 Tullig Raven
40 Savana Hero
40 Bockos Crystal
40 Hoodoo Brown
40 Dealy Showtime
50 Storys Cashout
50 Callaway Pro Am
50 Kilgraney Sydney
50 Hello Hammond
50 Ballymac Leon
50 Droopys Nextone
50 Killeacle Phelps
50 Bockos Melody
50 Ballymac Bronze
50 Garryvoe Joe
50 Pablo Escobark
50 Velasco
50 Hare Larey
50 Clona Rebel
50 Maries Wedding
50 Droopys Rocker
50 Toolmaker Wilde
50 Crafty Kokoro
50 Droopys Gloss
50 Skywalker Barry
50 Scooby Duchess
50 Singalong Sally
50 Bockos Leah
50 Ballymac Fairone
50 Bobsleigh Dream
66 Disco Pants
66 Crafty Bonanza
66 Cu Mochua
66 Coolboy Rusty
66 Gaa Gaa Carla
66 Kilcolgan Zeus
66 Fernandes
66 Callaway Masters
66 Bockos Palace
66 Toolmaker Beach
66 Beach Avenue
66 Emilys Jet
66 Ballymac Joey
66 Gaston Pecas
66 Stream Of Sydney
66 Skywalker Cilla
66 Ballymac Ben
66 Stefans Rock
66 All About Ted
66 Laughil Roy
66 Illnotbeback
66 Scooby Prince
66 Well Met
66 Priceless Jet
66 Epic Hero
100 Urban Fire
100 Churchtown Syd
100 Cryptopunk
100 Galloping Sydney
100 Storys Peewee
100 Cushie Concorde
100 Carrauntoohil
100 Glendalough
100 Hanover Phantom
100 Kilcolgan Comet
100 Macho Pride
100 Moorstown Jet
100 Oakfront Cadet
100 Ringthemoon
100 Tommy Too Many
100 Townview Syd
100 Cabra Kronk
100 Gortkelly Nestor
100 All About Annie
100 Annagh Bailey
100 Bulletfromagun
100 Cape Cloud
100 Decs Guinness
100 Iso Fantastic
100 Kilgraney Clang
100 Patient Crusader
100 Petersburg
100 Insomnia
100 Deadly Destroyer
100 Conamara
100 Dream Step
100 Droopys Gravy
100 Ringabella Boy
100 Ross Dame
100 Some Playboy
150 Athlacca Zette
150 Dromana Fury
150 Gymcrack
150 Own Spice
150 Cricket Score
200 Abigails Sam
200 Elite Crystal
200 Gaytime Nina
200 Benalmadena Roxy
200 Manalishi Chief
200 Valegro
200 Whats Up Jack
200 Hunigassoon
200 Famous Eight
200 Drumcrow Winx
200 Early Pilgrim
200 Flying Honours
200 Granard Thunder
200 Millridge Andy
200 Millridge Bryce
200 Outdoor Rainbow
200 Rowlers Road
200 Brynoffa Jenson
200 Clampett Danny
200 Midfield Deano
200 Sign On Rocket
200 Ardfert Josie
200 Beepers Chris
200 Blue Rumble
200 Clona Blu
500 Kingdom Bound
500 Youcantcatchme
500 Peach Tree East
500 Ballygraigue Jim
