Golden Easter Egg Final – WENTWORTH PARK (520m)
1- SLICK SPLITS $3.00
Produced the run of the semis, covering extra ground throughout. Despite having no luck down the back straight he wound up from the corner to race away with the victory in 29.45. If he can hold his position from the coveted draw early on & keep them at bay going into the first corner. He should then be able to move off the track as he likes to do and give himself clear air. It will take a very good one to run him down in that scenario.
2- CLASSY BANDIT $8.50
Really nice effort last week in the semi behind Off The Chart after jumping well, but was crossed going out of the straight. She chased hard throughout, only to be beaten 2 lengths by the winner. From the draw I feel she will have to jump well again and find the rail as the red will want to come off slightly early on. She can run into the money with some luck at the start.
3- TAW GALAXY $10.00
A very consistent greyhound who won the Goulburn Cup last year. He ran second in his heat to Off The Chart and followed that up with a win in his semi over Consigliere. He usually begins well & runs a very straight line from the boxes, so giving inside greyhounds a chance to kick up. Can run a solid race and has each-way claims.
4- CONSIGLIERE $10.00
This Jodie Lord runner has been around the mark in everything he has competed in over the past few months. Ran a gallant 3rd in The Australian Cup and has placed in the heat & semi of this edition of the Egg. Generally a faultless beginner, he will push forward and make it harder for the dogs drawn around him. If he is within striking range, he can drop on them late.
5- OFF THE CHART $4.00
He is a real up-and-comer in the sport who has recently dominated, winning the Shepparton and Ballarat Cups, and he has handled the step up to two-turn tracks with ease. He won his semi from the yellow last week and although he didn’t step as well as usual, he showed tremendous acceleration, bursting through the pack to lead by 2 lengths at the first corner. He ran 29.32 and will take plenty of catching again if he finds the lure.
6- HE’S A PEARL $3.50
The son of the marvellous bitch in She’s A Pearl for the Clover Park team was lucky to make it through the first round of heats after encountering trouble early on but rallied well enough to advance. Jumped much better in the semi and was able to work across them to lead throughout in the fastest time of 29.27. Not a great deal of speed directly to his right so may get a charmed run into the bend. Looks extremely hard to beat.
7- SUMMER QUINN $15.00
Over the past couple of months this girl has found her form again for Peter Lagogiane. She jumped well from the stripe last week in her semi and tracked He’s A Pearl throughout, finishing beaten 3.5 lengths. She’ll need plenty of luck from box seven, but with a 78% place strike rate, she can certainly run a drum.
8- CANYA HANDLE IT $41.00
Was the shock qualifier of the semi-finals when he showed plenty of speed from the boxes and also courage to hold on for second behind Slick Splits. He will find it much harder to get across here but if he manages to ping the lids, it will cause all sorts of problems for his rivals on his inside. Market has him at $41, which is a good guide to his chances.
9- ZIG ZAG MAN (1R) $26.00
He always has a chance in any race he contests. He usually gives away a start but can rocket to the line as was again on display when he flew home to grab third in the semi behind Off The Chart. If he gains a run, have something each way on him at the big odds.
10- TEXAS BANDIT (2R) $15.00
Another very consistent greyhound with an 81% place strike rate. He won his heat in 29.62 and then just missed 2nd place in the semi behind Slick Splits. Unlikely to gain a start but if he did get a run from an inside draw, he wouldn’t be hopeless.
Summary
Leaning towards SLICK SPLITS (1) after drawing the cherry, he can jump and push up on the inside and hold the lead at the first corner. His strength at the end of the race should serve him well and finally add another Group 1 to his cabinet after his Maturity win last year. The danger is HE’S A PEARL (6) who is racing well and will likely sit just outside the red. He can run the hands off the clock, so he will be right in the contest. A roughie to consider is CONSIGLIERE (4), who is very strong over the last part of the race and if the leaders bunch up, watch out for him. Of course if ZIG ZAG MAN gets a start, throw him in all your exotics.