Parker prepares to pop the champagne with Bubbles And Brie

By Isaac Murphy

Bubbles And Brie put together a glowing CV in South-East Queensland, with her 30.25 and 30.58 bests over the 500-metre times at Albion Park and Ipswich well above your average chaser.

However, knowing she couldn’t mix in in open company, trainer Tony Brett and owner Sarah Johnson called on the services of Tony Parker in Townsville who has the bitch on the verge of winning the North Queensland Cup on Tuesday night.

She has won five times over the 498-metre journey since arriving in July, saving her best for last week’s heats, and despite a tough draw for the Final is well and truly capable according to Parker.

“She was drawn perfectly out in box eight in the heats and couldn’t have done much more being the fastest qualifier of a really handy bunch of sprinters,” he said.

“It lets us know her best is good enough to win the Final but we’re not getting too carried away, she has to jump from box five this week and is going to need a bit of luck.

“She generally gets out with them, if she can just avoid contact to that first corner and be in the front half of the field she really gets motoring out in the middle of the track and will be one of the strongest home - I really hope she gets her chance.”

Parker sees most of the dogs he will face on a weekly basis and has a fair idea of what it’s going to take for his charge to get the best of the hot field.

“Analysing the race, the four dogs inside her will probably all beat her out, it’s going to come down to what Cult Hero does outside us in box six,” he said.

“If he misses it we’re a chance, if he crashes it’s going to be tough.

“Murphy Rumble and Gold Assassin should carve over, and I think the big improver in the race might be Over Time for Darren Taylor in box one who is second up at the track.”

“Major Gibson in the four is a seriously classy dog, he took a hard fall in the Young Guns and Brad (Belford) did a great job getting him to the track last week - at his best he’s the one to beat.”

While others may have an edge on talent, Bubbles And Brie never shirks the task and her trademark racing pattern jus might help her tonight.

“She loves running wide our girl, we’ve joked that if you give her a paintbrush, she could do up the outside fence as she’s going past,” Parker laughed.

“We knew that’s the way she raced and more often than not it plays to her advantage, it’s a pretty unique style very different to her competition and has won her plenty of races since arriving.

“She’s built a really nice record from the 498 start, she’s only been out of a place twice and that’s when she’s been crowded early from inside boxes, she needs 20 metres and nothing to touch her and she’s away.”

The Townsville greyhound community are thriving and since going all-in with his training, Parker dreams of winning a race like the North Queensland Cup.

“I’m stoked to have a runner in the race, unlike the Townsville Cup there’s no Oh Mickey or Hara’s Panda, it’s a true test of who’s the best sprinter locally and a trophy you want in your case,” Parker said.

“Over $8000 for the winner, that’s a lot of money we can reinvest into our kennels and dogs without having to travel for a crack at it.

“We used to have a small operation and recently have moved to a property and we’re always looking to upgrade the facilities for the dogs.”

Parker and Brett have had a long running connection spanning generations and were happy to help each other out when it came to anything dogs.

“Tony (Brett) has stayed with us a couple of times over the Townsville Cup, including the year he won with Zabdon Ferrari and that’s how we really got to know each other,” he said.

“There was a connection previously through his dad (Dave), when I as a young fella we sent dogs down to him at Mackay and they were always accommodating.

“Tony and I have always kept in touch and he rang me in June saying he had a sprinter called Santorini Miss he wanted to send up and he called again the next day and asked if I wanted another one - that was Bubbles And Brie.”

It didn’t take long for the partnership to flourish, and there’s been plenty of happy faces since the bitch arrived.

“It took them both a few starts to find their feet in a different environment, but once they settled in, they loved the slight drop in grade and has been going great guns since,” Parker said.

“It’s been fantastic for both parties in the end, I’ve got a really good Free For All bitch in the kennels and I know Tony’s niece Sarah (Johnson) who owns her is loving seeing her rack up the wins and has made the trip up from Brisbane to watch the final.

“It’d be one hell of a night if she was able to go out and win, but regardless she’s got plenty more wins in her before she’s done.”