Lively start to Limerick Puppy Stake

The Con and Annie Kirby Memorial Puppy Stake got off to a flying start with first-round heats producing fast clocks at the Limerick Greyhound Racing Stadium on Friday and Saturday.

Trainer Owen McKenna was the star of the show on Saturday night with a fine double, his Roxholme Buddy and Fear Big Star producing fast clocks for their 28.34 and 28.48 wins respectively.

Drawn in trap three in heat 11 on Saturday night, Roxholme Bully (Shaneboy Lee-Roxholme Sue) was first to the bend and then simply raced away from the rest of the field to win by 11 lengths with the fastest clock of the night.

Fear Big Star (Top Honcho-Kildallon Maid) was in trap three for the concluding heat.

He got the upperhand at the third bend from the early pacesetter Tally Ho Lee and overcame the late challenge by the Olly Bray-owned Royal Diva to get the verdict by a length.

The other heat winners on Saturday night were Bookie Buster (28.57), Holborn Junior (28.44), Leamaneigh Turbo (28.53), Glenanore Dancer (28.58) and Tambourine Man (28.72).

Owners Paddy Collins and Patsy Byrne also came away with a double from the opening-round heats of the stake on Friday night with Melodys Gamble and Melody Diamonds from the Royal Impact-Talita Beauty litter.
Melodys Gamble won with the best clock of the night – 28.68 – when beating Piercestown Lucy by five lengths while the clock stopped at 29.00 for Melodys Diamond when scoring a two-length win over Nippy Girl.

The first of the heat winners on Friday night was Stone Boy King (Hades Rocket-Wicked Marita) carrying the colours of Gort owners, Eleanaor Mullins and Mark Curtin. He led from the opening bend to win by three-and-a-half lengths from Skywalker Apollo, who recovered from a slow start. Beaten a short head into third place was Droopys Banner, owned by the Garrahy- Fitzgerald syndicate from Clonlara.

There was another litter double with Scolari Express and Ladbrokes Star (Scolari Me Daddy-Slaneyside Kelly) winning their heats in 28.87 and 28.97 respectively.

Scolari Express is trained by Pat Buckley for Mike Davis, Surrey and Niall Dunne trains Ladbrokes Star for Tom Gleeson, Thurles.

Third placed in the heat won by Ladbrokes Star was Mickys Scolari, trained by Maurice Mullaney from Gort for the Grow Up Fast syndicate from Newport.

Elsewhere on Friday night’s card, the Kilteely owned Leamaneigh Lucy (Micks Savings-Leamaneigh Beag) won an A8-graded 525 when getting up at the line to beat Messi Black by a head.

The runner-up is trained by Joe Collins for the Shanakyle syndicate from Parteen. One length back for third place was the Ennis-owned and trained Colossal Risk.

First-time runner, Bling Bling Kate, owned by John Meehan, Newmarket-on-Fergus, recovered from a slow start to be runner-up in an an A6-graded 525.

The winner by two lengths in 30.06 was the Kilmallock-owned Clogher Well.

The Pat Buckley-trained Boherna Betsy (Ace Hi Rumble-Hondo On Air) just held out to beat Shyladee Lass (Bridget Casey, O’Briensbridge) by a neck in the opening A2-graded 525 yards race in Limerick on Saturday night. The time was 28.96.