Spotlight On Our Owners – Debbie & Mick
SPOTLIGHT ON OUR OWNERS – NUMBER 5
DEBBIE WILLIAMS and MICK McCRORY (Part One)
Mick and Debbie
Firstly we must apologise that our involvement with Greyhound racing is nowhere near as comprehensive or as far reaching as the previous owners who have penned their experiences. Debbie and I were both involved in Greyhound racing from an early age, our fathers both Irish born & bred – loved the game, from Debbie’s fathers twice weekly excursions to the White City Stadium to my own Dads exploits as the unofficial bookies runner at the Vickers Armstrong factory in Weybridge. Plus the yearly watching of the TV Trophy on a grainy black & white television. Debbie also had the advantage of being part of the great Betty Weldon Turf Accountancy Empire which, if not known globally, was certainly very prevalent in Chiswick!
My first venture into Greyhound ownership was in the late 1980’s, going half shares with my business partner in a white & black bitch called “Ballinderry Jinny“. Costing £1,500 she was, a good top class grader at Wimbledon, trained by Mary Harding in Turners Lane, Hersham. She won a lot of races before injuring her hock.
We had a lump sum in the bank but rather than buy another dog we hit upon this fool proof plan!!! We’ll breed our own champions!!! The first job – pick a sire! “Flashy Sir” was just embarking on his stud duties. His ability, our bitches looks, a match made in heaven! How could it fail? As it turned out spectacularly! She had five pups all white & black to differing degrees. One was very small & was adopted as a pet very early on. The other four then embarked on their training regime. I can’t recall all the misdemeanour’s committed at their trials but one kept turning in the traps, one was useless, one trialed in but wouldn’t run under lights. The best one of the litter won his three dog trial by a mile but waited for the other two runners to arrive at the line then attacked both of them! I thought the grader was a bit harsh as he disqualified him! So hurdles was the only option, again he was a country mile ahead at the line but stopped and ran back to display his pugilistic attributes! He was sold to go flapping. (A cautionary tale). I then had my greyhound interests curtailed as my ex-wife seemed intent on owning more horses than the Aga Khan.
Whilst going to the dogs at Wimbledon regularly we never gave much thought to actually owning one, but with our pathological Staffi not the ideal dog for walks in the park, Debbie started walking the retired greyhounds for a while. We then both had this eureka moment – we’ll buy a greyhound! “It won’t cost much and it will be ours”. So in early 2010 our first encounter with Burhill Kennels and Norah McEllistrim and her staff! It was memorable, Norah introduced everybody, Gemma and Tim seemed a blur, Mary was teaching Anglo Saxon, and Norah was Norah! Then Rhian was bought out our first Greyhound together! “Wayward Rhian” not the best looking bitch to grace a track but as game and genuine as they come, winning frequently at Wimbledon from A6 to A1. She also won 3 in a row! We then thought about another dog, so knowing absolutely nothing about dog sales we went to Crayford, buying a lovely fawn bitch (with Brian Harrison’s help) named “Princess Orlaith”. I also fancied an impressive black dog called “Close Marker” but because we’re sensible we thought one dog was enough!!! However Debbie decided I needed a present and when we arrived at the kennels “Close Marker” was bought out and given to me! His 1st Wimbledon trial was 29.15 sec, hers was 28-74 sec, which got them both into A2 grade! They both won and graded to A1. Then tragedy struck on the same weekend, “Marker” won his A1 but snapped his pisiform and “Orlaith” broke her hock in an open race at Romford. We’d had them 2 months and just 6 races each!!! Peter O’Dowd the Romford racing manager sent us a cheque for £150-00 a great gesture! So we were back with owning just the one dog – well for about 2 months!
Brian had found a fawn bitch called “Ballymac Sharon” so we thought we’d give it one more go and in February 2011 she duly arrived at the kennel. She won her trials and graded into A4 winning a couple before hurting her shoulder muscle after 6 races. I sensed a pattern forming!!! Norah said that she would need 4 to 5 months rest and suggested sending her back to Liam Dowling to have a litter as she was out of “Blonde Returns”. What could go wrong!!! Nothing as it happened, so back to one dog, (another pattern forming!!!)
Liam Dowling and Debbie with next litter
In March we were cajoled into attending another of Brians sales “Up north”. Hall Green I think! During the auction we (the Power of Seven) bid and bought “Cals Patron”, a fine dog running some 90 times & winning 15 plus races for us, but not quite the same as owning your own dog!
So we thought just one more go!! Debbie spotted this dog on the net “Rathglass Hero”. We phoned the owner Ricky Hollaway and arranged to see the dog, a rangy black dog, we negotiated a price & he was ours! He was running at Romford on that Friday so went to watch him. He ran superbly to finish a short head behind “Glenard Bay” and he looked different class. He trialed in at Wimbledon grading and winning in A1. Norah thought the Coronation Cup might be a bit of fun for us! So Tim, “Dave” (the dog”) and us decamped to Romford hoping against hope that he might qualify for the next round – which he did!! The semi-final was his best race coming from 2 lengths last to second place, we were in the Final of the Coronation Cup, how’d that happen!!! The final is still a bit of a blurr, with Gemma and me shouting while Debbie and Norah were screaming from different parts of the stadium, as “Dave” pinged out winning by 5 lengths, aided by trouble in behind, but doing the fastest time of the competition in the process. The 14/1 price didn’t hurt either!
Debbie & Micks Story will be continued!
Debbie, Norah & Rathglass Hero, Coronation Cup, 2012
Rathglass Hero, Coral Coronation Cup, Romford, 2012
Rathglass Hero Coronation Cup presentation, 2012