WILLOW IS IRELAND’S SOLE NOD IN UK AWARDS
Ian Fortune
Despite a wonderful year for Irish trained greyhounds in the UK, Flashing Willow is the only Irish nominee for the British Greyhound of the Year Awards which are to be held at Hove on Sunday, March 3rd.
The Pat Buckley trained star raced only three times across the water in 2023, going unbeaten through the ARC Kent Silver Salver at Central Park. As a result, he has been nominated alongside Quarteira and Bombout Bullet in the Sprinter of the Year category.
One notable absentee from the list of nominees is Gaytime Nemo, the English Derby champion. The Graham Holland trained star captured the biggest prize on offer in the UK but failed to get a nomination for the Standard Greyhound of the Year category with the places instead going to Link Maverick, King Memphis and Romeo Command, who chased home Gaytime Nemo in the Derby decider.
It is worth pointing out that the UK system seems to be favour consistency over the year, but the omission of the Derby champ does seem a little bit of a head-scratcher.