Hogan’s lady keeps keen View on Kirby crown

The 2019 Con & Annie Kirby Memorial continued with a dramatic session of quarter-final heats at Limerick Greyhound Stadium on Saturday which saw many of Ireland’s most talented young greyhounds scrambling for precious qualification places in chase of an €80,000 winner’s prize.

A poor start before striking the rail at the opening bend saw the Pat Guilfoyle challenge end when an unlucky passage for Cabra Firmino saw him just miss out on a place, settling for fourth in Heat 2.

However, our local aspirations in the richest juvenile race on the planet remain alive through Michael Hogan’s Grangeview West (Zero Ten/Portumna West) after she proved much more fortunate in the opening quarter-final.

Facing a treacherous task from an unsuitable Trap 5 draw, the young Lorrha bitch made a good start but any attempts to move towards the inside were halted as she was matched by rivals to her left. Sandwiched in a line of four runners upon tackling the first bend she would suffer significant bumping which saw her disputing last position at the crown of the bends. Gathering herself however, she would make her way to fourth when galloping powerfully to the top of the back-straight where Cuore Di Ferro took a nasty fall while contesting the lead. Desperate bad luck for the Liam Dowling trained runner was conversely good fortune for Grangeview West as she now occupied a qualifying third place and she would defend that position to the line when four lengths adrift of Deadly Diamond in 28.70.

 

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