Matt first went racing in February 1982 at just 3 months old. Attracted to the sport by Desert Orchid in the late 80's, a media degree started a path to horse racing journalism. Owner of many horses and greyhounds through the years, the latter has led to the formation of the myracing greyhound syndicate, a Greyhound Writers Association membership as well as appearances on Racing Post Greyhound TV.
Jose is at it again on Saturday night, setting new benchmarks for the syndicate as our first top grade runner. He arrives looking for a hat-trick of victories, with his latest win in A2 well franked on Thursday afternoon when the runner-up was an impressive winner in the same grade. Our greyhound tips will be up before 6pm, looking to continue a great week.
10.19pm Crayford 20/01/2018 A1 Grade
Tinas Paddy – Veteran has hit a run of rude health in recent weeks, a dual winner in this grade on the 26th December and the 2nd Jan. He doesn’t boast a lot of early boot but he knows where the line is, with a vacant trap inside him giving him plenty of room to operate.
Raymonds Return – Took advantage of Jose missing the kick on the 15th December to score an A2 victory, following up in this grade the following week. He stays this trip strongly and should lead up the 2 which makes him a very dangerous dog.
Minas Flash – All action once her paws touch the sand, she was in A5 at the start of October but early pace round here pays the bills, climbing rapidly since. She didn’t quite manage to clear Raymond’s Return to the bend last time out, that is her biggest issue once more.
Snowdon Hank – Picked his moment when landing a big pot at the start of December, the same final where Jose was knocked over. He was behind Jose in the heats there and unable to contain the 3 since in this grade, he needs a big step forward once more.
Meenagh Mourinho – Has produced flying sectionals the last twice to pick up a pair of wins. There is plenty of early pace in 3 and 4 here, but neither have quite the brute speed that Jose possesses to the bend. He will need another of his sub 3.50 splits in top grade, but he arrives in top form and holds a solid chance of landing the hat-trick.
Conclusion
A first run in top grade for Jose, a level that should be within his grasp if he can smash the lids once more. There are some smart hounds inside him, with the 3 especially dangerous if he were to get loose. The 2 has picked up a couple of wins in this grade recently and the 5 picked up an A2 final that Jose was part of, so it’s a strong line-up as one would expect from an A1 event.