Rocky’s training ace dealt a tough hand in cup heats

By Pat McLeod

Premier Rockhampton trainer Ken Boody scanned through this Friday night’s heats of his local cup and shook his head, before offering: “I might ring the stewards and see if my girl can start on Thursday … then I might be half a chance!”

The five heats of the $112,525 Group 3 Rockhampton Cup (510m) are red hot.

Boody will be campaigning five dogs in the heats, headed by Dixie Gambles (Heat 3), one of the state’s top regional performers.

Boody and his class chaser, who won last year’s Cup Consolation, face two major hurdles – drawing Box 8 and the dog in Box 5, who is Albion Park 520m recent record breaker Jay Is Jay.

“The box draw is tough,” he said.

“You wait all year for races like these and then you get that. But, you can't do much about it.

“It's happened in the two biggest races of the year (Dixie Gambles also drew the eight last week when second in the Cup Wildcard, won by boom youngster More Peaches).

“That is what is so deflating. This will probably be Dixie Gambles’ last year to have a crack at the Rockhampton Cup. So that is what makes it disappointing.

“It is so hard to make a final like this, let alone win it.

“Of course there are people who have probably gone 30 or 40 years without making a final and here I am whinging because I might not make it this year.

“There is no doubt that these are very tough heats. I was going through the fields and I said to the missus that there is a dog in every heat that can break 30 at Albion Park. And then of course there are dogs that have won Group races or Listed races.

“I just can't see my girl getting over (to the rail). I can see her getting posted three deep again on that corner.

“Yes, give her clear air and she is a 29.6 dog on this track. But I am tipping that if Jay Is Jay gets clean air, he will go 29.20 or 29.30.”

Rockhampton’s best, except for the already ‘made it’ More Peaches, will be on show, but the $75,000 to the winner has certainly attracted an influx of power players from the big south-east Queensland kennels.      

They include:

Heat One: Last year’s winner Dulceria (Matt Heilbronn); Go Bing (Tony Zammit), Come On Aussie (Ned Snow); Springtime Jet (Sean Galloway); Bear’s Bullet (Travis Elson).

Heat Two: Another Chance (Selena Zammit); Hello Mike (Travis Elson); Villante (Chris Brydon).

Heat Three: Hope’s Golden (Travis Elson); Coonamble Kid (Chris Brydon); Jay Is Jay (Selena Zammit).

Heat Four: Locked On Scotch (John Catton); Cincinnati Bill (Travis Elson); Bundaberg Cup winner Springview Magic (Eric Conroy); De Ferran (Tony Zammit).

Heat Five: Shipwreck (Ned Snow); Isurava (Brent Kline); Inevitable (Selena Zammit); Adulate (Tony Zammit).

Boody’s runners in the Cup heats are: Ring Me (Heat One); San Marco (Heat Two); Dixie Gambles (Heat Three); Grim Madara (Heat Four); and Sir Banjo (Heat Five).

He would like local track knowledge to be a significant advantage, but does not believe that will be the case.

“The biggest advantage the local dogs and trainers have is that they might be travelling 30 minutes to the track whereas those coming from down south have to travel up six or eight hours,” he said.

“I don't think track knowledge is as vital with those experienced dogs. They handle it.”

Boody also believes there is no standout, at this stage, amongst the visitors.

“Although there are a lot of good quality dogs in these heats, many of them are drawn awkwardly,” he said.

“So, the heats will be interesting. It is very hard to choose a favourite at this stage. The box draws have made these series of heats very open.

“Shipwreck could be interesting from the one box. He trialed pretty well and could certainly push up from where he is drawn.

“But at this stage you couldn't really stand one out.”

Boody, 47, returned to greyhound racing just a few years ago.

He took a redundancy from his job in the mines, bought five acres just west of Rockhampton and decided to give full-time training at least six months, or until the money ran out.

That’s unlikely to happen soon. Last year he was a convincing winner of the Rockhampton club trainers’ premiership and already has a considerable lead this year.