Pink Summer racing for trainer's father

By Jordan Gerrans

In the hours leading towards having a triple bypass surgery on his heart, Bundaberg’s Noel Clark was not about to miss the heats of the Listed Ipswich Young Guns.

Clark’s daughter – Churchable trainer Casey Dargusch - had a number of chances in the heats and despite suffering a heart attack the Sunday before, the keen greyhound follower had his eyes planted on Sky Racing.

Clark was in a stable condition in the days after his shock heart attack as he prepared for the major surgery after being flown to Brisbane.

The Dargusch kennel collected two victories in the heats – Bora Blue and Pink Summer – while My Dream Girl ran into second.

Despite Dargusch’s old man getting ready for his significant surgery the next morning, the dogs performance's gave him a serious thrill.   

“On Saturday night, he actually made the orderly wait to do something to him so he could watch Pink Summer race,” Dargusch said.

“He told them they had to wait.

“He saw her win impressively and I think he missed the other ones, but he watched the replays, and he was very excited.

“The dogs put him in good spirits leading into the operation.”

Just as the litter sisters had on Saturday evening at the Ipswich Showgrounds complex, Clark had a positive result on the operating table on Sunday.

Dargusch was off to visit her father on Wednesday ahead of Saturday evening’s Listed Final over 520 metres.

“He is going ok, his heart is really good and now it is a matter of getting lungs back up and he should be alright, hopefully,” she said.

“It was very scary at the time, it was pretty terrible. He is a tough old bugger.”

The Dargusch clan are a key cog in the dog industry in the Sunshine State.

Dargusch and husband Alan own and operate Golden View Greyhound Complex at Churchable, where their sons Bailey and Riley have grown up to fall in love with the animals.

They also prepare their own team, which has been motoring along nicely of late.

They have collected 13 victories from their last 50 race starters with Olly Olly Olly looming as another win at Capalaba on Wednesday afternoon.

It was Clark who first got Dargusch involved in the sport.

“He conned us to going one day, we got sucked into going and one dog eventually turned into two and then into three,” she said.

“He had mates who had dogs and he would often go watch his mates’ dogs run.

“A mate of his talked him into buying a dog and it has gone from there.”

Dargusch was in the president’s role at the Bundaberg club for three and a half years before relocating to South East Queensland.

She is also a previous winner of the Woman in Racing Award in the Sunshine State.

Clark keeps a close eye on how his daughters greyhound's are going.

“He watches the dogs race and gives his critiques and everything like that,” she said.

“He loves it.”

Pink Summer was the quickest qualifier for the Final from the five heats, running home in 30.39 seconds from the green alley.

The sisters - Bora Blue and Pink Summer - are from a Zambora Brockie and Blue Texada litter.

The Young Guns heat winners are most certainly the stars of the litter, combining to claim 17 races so far in their emerging careers.

The Darguschs raced Blue Texada up until the early stages of 2020, winning 11 of her 35 career starts before turning her hand to being a brood bitch.

Bora Blue won from the four alley in the heat and will start in the blue again for the Final.

Pink Summer will be alongside her sister in the five.

Dargusch believes Pink Summer is the kennel’s leading chance of taking out the black-type event.

“I would have preferred Pink Summer a bit closer to the rail but if she can jump like she did on Saturday night then the only one that can lead her is Bora Blue,” she said.

“Cataclysmic probably still has some improvement with only having a couple of looks at the track.

“The pace has drawn out wide in seven and eight in the Final.

“Hopefully my ones can get a clean run to the start into the first corner.

“If Pink Summer is up there, I think she can go close because she is strong.

“It is going to be a good Final as all the times were pretty close in the heats and that first turn of the race will probably be make or break.”

Bora Blue is raced by Matthew Rieck, who is a first-time owner to the greyhound industry.

The brindle bitch is already a 10-time career winner with a promising future ahead.

My Dream Girl, who ran second to Cataclysmic in last week’s heats, is the second emergency for the Final.