By Pat McLeod
Brent Kline’s proven record as a greyhound tactician goes on the line with two key plays in the Brisbane Young Guns heats on Thursday night at Albion Park.
The Ipswich-based trainer has Isurava and Carton Of Bear in two of the four heats of the $45,000 Group 3 series.
Isurava is a proven talent, who just scrapes into the 30-month age limit, while Kline believes youngster Carton Of Bear has the potential to make a name for himself in this feature.
The Brisbane Young Guns is dripping with talent, and while Kline emphasises he will never put the weight of expectation on his chasers, he believes both his dogs are capable of victory.
And, there is a strong case to at least acknowledge that he can place a dog for a race.
Case in point: Isurava’s win in the recent Rockhampton Cup Consolation Final.
Kline took Isurava and kennel king, Keen, up for the Rockhampton Cup. The Final was run last Friday with both his dogs running in the Consolation Final. Isurava took the chocolates while Keen finished back in seventh.
However, Kline says the $75,000-to-the-winner Cup was never his target. The Consolation event, worth $12,025 to the winner, was the real bullseye.
“The Consolation was the aim, absolutely,” he said. “The quality of dogs drops off in that Final, compared to the Cup.
“So that was my goal, to target the Consolation. I know that sounds a bit weird because most people would see the Consolation as just that, that you have missed the Final.
“The Consolation was worth $12,000 to the winner and the reality is in that race you are running against the dogs that ran second and third and fourth.
“Of course in the Final it was $75,000 to the winner and, don't get me wrong, if we had made that it would have been nice. But, the reality is, little pieces of pie are often better than the whole pie itself.
“You have got to look outside the square. A lot of people see the big dollars, but there is more to it than that.
“I just planned for that (Consolation) race and that is how it worked out.
“Isurava’s first look at the Rockhampton track was in the heat (where he ran third behind Shipwreck and Adulate). The fact that he hadn’t seen the track didn’t bother me because he is very fast early, so being a short run to the first corner, that suited him.
“I knew that he would be out in front and gone anyway. And, that is the way it panned out (in the Final).”
That winning form made the decision very easy to then send Isurava towards the Young Guns.