The third round of the English Derby is a favourite among punters as it is the first time the entire field appears together on the same card. King Memphis has rejoined De Lahdedah at the top of the betting, with the pair splitting opinion among the bookmakers. Both are among an unbeaten group of nine greyhounds.
From the third round onwards, traditionally, the non-railers tend to close up on the pack. The winning traps to date are T1-6, T2-8, T3-12, T4-9, T5-5, and T6-7.
The current betting odds were as follows:
9/1 De Lahdedah, King Memphis, 12/1 Boylesports Bob, Superfast Gorden, Swords Rex, The Other Kobe, 14/1 Clonbrien Treaty, 20/1 Antigua Hawk, Crafty Shivoo, 22/1 Gaytime Nemo, 28/1 Ballinabola Ed, King Combs, 33/1 Ballymac Finn, Jaytee Etienne, 40/1 Ballymac Gizmo, Churchfield Syd, Glengar Martha, Newinn Syd, 50/1 Cooliogold, Faypoint Sean, Hawkfield Blue, Singalong Dolly, 66/1 Ballymac Slick, Droopys Pivotel, Druids All Go, Edwards, Road Exile, 80/1 Bockos Thunder, Droopys Doughnut, 100/1 Coss Tokyo, Grouchos Duke, Unreal Bruiser, 125/1 Azurite, Droopys Supply, Havana Top Note, McNeill, Miracle, Scaglietti, Whyaye Man, 150/1 Bluejig Baron, Bramble Elvis, Burj Khalifa, Hawkfield Abbie, Savana Jackpot, 175/1 Aero Convey, 225/1 Never Say No, Wrighty, 300/1 Beatties Sparkle.
The Other Kobe is the great news story of the Derby to date. Out of luck in the 2022 Irish Derby, eventually won by litter brother Born Warrior, Kobe put matters right for Jennifer O’Donnell last year. When he joined Graham Holland for this year’s English Derby campaign, it seemed it was just ‘a farewell tour’. Nothing could be further from the truth. Only five greyhounds have broken 4.00 for the split, including Kobe’s 28.99 win last time out. Given his pre-competition trial and trial stake, that will have come as no surprise.
Kennelmate Clonbrien Treaty looks certain to get a clear run on the outside. He does give away lengths at the bend, and those aren’t lengths he can spare in the latter stages of the race. The third qualifying place could be very tight. Given his record for reaching finals (five to date), Whyaye Man is a born battler and looks well-drawn.
Possibly the ‘least early paced’ heat of the eight due to be staged, which should play into the hands of Ballymac Finn, the only second-round winner in the line-up. Liam Dowling’s hound reached last year’s semi without ever looking like a serious player, and last week’s win was his first in seven attempts over the course and distance. Given he is normally surrounded by ‘EP’, he was able to dominate last week and could do so again. The likely favorite is fellow compatriot Boylesports Bob, who pulled up trees to qualify last week. Trainer Paul Hennessy loves to send ‘600-yard’ hounds to Towcester for significant success, and although Bob hasn’t yet tackled that distance, it seems only a matter of time before he does.
Not a lot of ‘early’ in here either, with one notable exception. It seems almost impossible to imagine anything other than Churchfield Syd leading here, and there is no De Lahdedah to catch him this time. In fact, there is only one winning line of Derby form in the race. Kevin Boon thinks a lot of youngster Bockos Thunder who, like Syd, was a ‘beaten sub 29.00 runner’ last time out and looks the danger.
Superfast Gorden showed significant progress from the first round when winning last week. He will start favourite here and is impossible to oppose. Firstly, he has the early pace to lead, and as pointed out on Thursday, front runners hold a significant advantage over course and distance. Throw in the fastest times too, and it would be a surprise if he gets beat here. However, ‘surprise’ and ‘shock’ are not the same things; after all, Jaytee Etienne was made favourite when the pair met last week. Savana Jackpot is currently being quoted at 25/1 to win this heat. While predominantly a stayer, it is a big price for a dog with 28.78 on his card.
Cooliogold is the last of the unbeaten runners to go to traps, and there is every chance that he could retain that record. This is what he did in the second round. However, he is vulnerable in the latter stages, and the strong-finishing Unreal Bruiser looks decent value to cause an upset from a plotted draw on the inside. Druids All Go has come off second-best against the big hitters, but this is a slight drop in quality.