DROOPYS MAP FINDS THE ROUTE TO CONNACHT DERBY GOLD

Peter Farrell

Kindly sponsored by Karen Geoghegan, the Kilcolgan Castle Connacht Derby 550 produced several compelling weeks of action at Galway Greyhound Stadium, culminating in a superb victory for Droopys Map in last night’s €9,000-to-the-winner final.

Despite suffering his first defeat of the competition in the previous round, Grouchos Gregor still went to traps as the 5/4 favourite. Slippery Brian and Tiermana Hunter were next in the market as joint 5/2 second favourites, while Droopys Map and Donishall Sam were each priced at 9/2. Completing the line-up was Alison Coxon’s Hollywell Merlin, the outsider of the field at 10/1.

Early in the Derby campaign, Droopys Map attracted notable market support, yet he failed to register a victory in the earlier rounds and appeared to face a stiff challenge after drawing trap five for the final. For some, it suggested the odds were stacked against the Murt Leahy-trained runner. However, on the night that mattered most, everything fell into place as Droopys Map produced a superb front-running display, making every yard to secure the biggest success of his career.

IN FRONT EARLY

With much of the early attention focused on the inside pairing of Slippery Brian and Grouchos Gregor, neither managed to produce their best starts. Instead, it was Droopys Map who came away racing. Grouchos Gregor was impeded in the opening strides by the inward-moving Donishall Sam, which checked his momentum and allowed Hollywell Merlin to motor up the outside approaching the opening bend. The corner came in time for Droopys Map, however, and Martin Costigan’s tracker held a three-quarters-of-a-length advantage over Hollywell Merlin, while Slippery Brian faced a stiff task some six lengths adrift entering the back straight.

TRAP-TO-LINE

Turning down the far side it had developed into a two-dog affair, but Droopys Map was never seriously threatened by Hollywell Merlin, despite the latter matching strides with Leahy’s charge for much of the journey. With the bottom two bends approaching, Droopys Map was firmly in command as he stepped up the pace to put the race to bed. The gallant Hollywell Merlin began to tire on the run for home, allowing Droopys Map to stretch clear and cross the line three and a half lengths in front. It was a fitting conclusion to a terrific competition, with the clock stopping at a brisk 30.03 .10s.

MINNIE LANDS CONSOLATION

In the consolation final, Flyers Minnie produced a trap-to-line success for Colm Fitzgerald and the Zero-Zero Syndicate.

No stranger to competing in major competitions, Flyers Minnie had battled well in the main event before bowing out at the semi-final stage. Installed as the 4/6 favourite for the consolation decider, she made no mistake, producing a dominant display to score with three lengths to spare. Despite only a moderate break, the daughter of Ballyhimikin Jet and Liosgrabh Lila quickly asserted in the early strides and rounded the opening bend with daylight between herself and her rivals, opening up a five-length advantage over the chasing pack. With the result never in doubt, Flyers Minnie maintained her strong gallop throughout to cross the line three lengths clear of the staying-on Coolavanny Shona in second. The winning time was 30.24 .10s.