Simply Limelight out to upset Albion Park champion in Origin series

By Jordan Gerrans 

Peter Rodgers concedes Albion Park track record holder Jay Is Jay will be hard to hold out in Thursday’s Origin Match Race but he believes he has the “alpha male” that can go close.

The Listed Origin Match Race will be just one of three hotly contested events at Brisbane Greyhound Racing Club as the home state aims to hold onto the famous shield they won in 2022.

The inter-state rivalry will reignite with the Group 3 Origin Sprint and Origin Distance, along with the Listed Origin Match Race.

The NSW selectors have gone with Rodgers’ star dog Simply Limelight in the one-on-one event, that will round out the three races that will decide this year’s Origin Greyhound Series.

The Freemans Reach-based Rodgers has been training dogs for 50 years and knows a stand out when he sees one, referring to the brilliant resume Jay Is Jay boasts.

But, he has a stack of confidence in his own Group 1 champion in Simply Limelight.

“You get these big alpha males and not too much worries them,” Rodgers said of his Golden Easter Egg Final winner. 

“They are big, strong, hard chasing dogs and that is why they are so good. They do not care about anything, they just want to win. They want to get to the front and they want to be first.

“There is no timidness in them, they just push forward.”

Blues coach Terry Hill is still smarting from last year's defeat but is confident with the squad he has picked, headlined by Simply Limelight.

“Trainers are knocking me down so their dogs can get a start,” Hill said.

“We are getting the best NSW dogs and the best Queensland dogs, so trainers are upset when they do not get their dogs in the final field.

“These Blues trainers take it seriously and it is a concept that has just got stronger and stronger.”

Veteran dog man Rodgers has an enormous amount of respect for Jay Is Jay and the feeling is mutual from the Zammit clan to Simply Limelight.

“My info is that he is exceptional one out,” kennel representative Mick Zammit told The Greyhound Recorder.

“He’s won a Golden Easter Egg coming from behind and you only have to look at his career to know he is a fabulous dog.

“And, Peter Rodgers who trains him, has done a fabulous job with him.”

Rodgers will be making his first appearance in the Blues side for an Origin series this week.

He believes his kennel star will thrive in the Origin Match Race style.

“I think he will love it,” Rodgers said.

“One thing he does love is the one-on-one competition and I know he is racing an absolute champion in Jay Is Jay.

“Jay Is Jay will make him work and he will make Jay Is Jay work, as well. It will be a great contest but this is Simply Limelight’s forte, he is very strong.

"He will definitely lead us and then we will just have to run him down.

“Jay Is Jay must be strong to be able to hold the track record at Albion Park, considering all the champions that have gone around there over the past.”

Simply Limelight had a minor setback in April of this year but showed that he was back on track with a victory over two-time Group 1 winner She’s A Pearl in late May.

She’s A Pearl took out last year’s Million Dollar Chase and has collected over $1.7 million in prize money.

She’s A Pearl was also set to represent NSW but will not make the trip north this week. 

Simply Limelight has raced at Albion Park on three occasions, winning a heat of the Group 2 Queensland Derby, before running fourth in the Final to his opponent on Thursday night – Jay Is Jay - earlier this year. 

The trainer thinks the experience on the Brisbane surface will be key come the Match Race.

“It is just going to put him in great stead, instead of going in blind,” Rodgers said.

“He has been there – he has been there three times – and he has raced dogs like Jay Is Jay in the Derby Final.

“He is a dog that has had 47 starts and he knows every trick there is or every short cut. It will play well for him.”

As of Tuesday afternoon, the TAB has Jay Is Jay listed as a $1.55 favourite to claim the Match Race with the NSW visitor at $2.45.

The TAB has the Queenslanders as slight favourites to hold onto the shield after NSW opened as the public elect.

Regardless, Rodgers is not reading too much into what the bookmakers have to say.

“Queensland has been saying forever they are underdogs in the rugby league so we cannot have that happen in the greyhounds as well,” he said.

“I think Queensland has a strong team and I think NSW has a strong team. Both states have selected the best dogs that they could have on the night.”

There’s more than just state rivalry on the line, with the Group 3 Sprint and Distance – previously run for $75,000 – both doubling in prize money to be run for $150,000 each.

The Listed Origin Match Race has also received a $15,000 boost, with a $60,000 purse on offer.

Click here for more information on the 2023 Origin Greyhound Series.