Greyhound Derby 2010

As a massive fan of greyhound racing, I thought it would be fitting to start my site by discussing the progression of the English Greyhound Derby competition so far this month. I have attended the final of this event for the last 5 years, and every year I have a better time than the last, and thoroughly recommend it as a night out to anyone that likes to have the odd punt. This year will be no different, and I look forward to attending the newly refurbished Plough Lane to land myself a few quid courtesy of the whippets! Hopefully they have extended the bar area, as previous years have resulted in a mad dash to get served between races - anyone that's been in attendance on final night will know exactly what I mean!!!

This year has so far been a roller coaster of emotions for favourite backers, with the main casualties thus far being Eye on The Storm in round 1, after encountering trouble at the first and third bend and Fear Zafonic in round 2, whilst looking to emulate its run through to the final achieved in 2009.

At time of writing, the market seems to have generate a clear split with the top 4 in the betting(Toomaline Jack, Mesedo Blue, Bandicoot Tipoki and Barefoot Bullet) all being slashed to single figure odds, whilst the rest are available at 20/1 plus. Whilst all four have been impressive thus far, I don't think this fairly represents the competition which I believe to be the most open in years. Lyreen Mover is a dog that clearly deserves more respect than it's current price of 25/1 suggests, and with each way terms of 1/4 1-4 still available I think this represents an each way steel. Perfectly housed in trap 1 for its quarter final bow on Tuesday night, I think it will show enough early pace to be in the front 2 at the first bend and if avoiding a collision with the impressive Bandicoot Tipoki on the run up, will have few difficulties qualifying at the very least. And if it does manage to turn a handy position into a winning one, you can rest assured that its price will drop dramatically within the outright market. Considering this is a young dog which is still unbeaten in the competition, this HAS to be backed if anyone is looking for an alternative selection to the now established "big four".

Another dog worthy of some support in my view is Roo Come On - named after the Manchester United front man, and is something that I'm sure all England fan will be shouting from June 12th onwards. If this runner shows anything like the form of its namesake this season, I see no reason why it cannot continue to impress in the manner it did when cannoning out of the traps in Round 2, leading up to win impressively at big odds. With an each way price of 66/1 generally available, this dog appears to have been somewhat dismissed by the odds compilers yet any repetition of its tremendous split achieved in round 2 will see it go through to the semi finals at worst.

These are my two selections going into the next stage of the competition - and represent what I love about the greyhound show piece from a punting perspective - its one of the few events where ante post 200/1 shots are entirely feasible. Compare that to horse racing, football or darts - 200/1 tournament winners just don't happen. It would be like Glasgow Rangers winning the Champions League, or Phil Taylor finishing bottom of the Premier League, neither of which will happen(sorry Rangers fans!). Anyway, hopefully both can perform well in front of the Sky cameras on Tuesday, and put me in a healthy ante post position!

1pt each way Lyreen Mover 25/1 Skybet 1/4 1-4

0.75pt each way Roo Come On 66/1 Skybet 1/4 1-4