Stewards wrap: Inquiry to be launched into greyhound mix-up

A SOUTH Australian greyhound trainer has been left red faced at Angle Park on Tuesday afternoon after two of her greyhounds raced wearing the wrong rugs.

The fiasco occurred in race three over the 388m trip and involved two dogs from the kennels of Wendy Matcott.

The circumstances of how the incident happened are still unknown but what is clear is the greyhound Norse Bale (box two) won the race – however after the race it was discovered that it was actually Zeke Bale wearing the black and white stretch vest.

The real Norse Bale competed as Zeke Bale and finished second wearing the white number three rug.

The debacle was even more shocking considering that the greyhounds look nothing alike – with Norse Bale being a red brindle bitch and Zeke Bale being a black dog.

Zeke Bale, who won the race as Norse Bale, was sent to the boxes as the $2.90 favourite, with kennel mate Norse Bale a $6.80 chance.

Unfortunately punters suffered, with both greyhounds disqualified from the event meaning that all money wagered on both dogs was lost.

The third placed dog, Lunar Luna was declared the winner.

In the stewards's report for the race, Greyhound Racing SA (GRSA) announced an will now be conducted into the matter at a date to be announced.

Kelly cops lengthy disqualification

PROMINENT SA trainer Todd Kelly has been disqualified from the sport for 15 months after one of his greyhounds returned a positive swab to amphetamine.

Kelly was slapped with a breach of GAR 83(2) which relates to a trainer presenting a greyhound to race when it is not free of a prohibited substance.

The charge arose after the greyhound It's No Myth returned the positive sample to the potent nervous system stimulant when it competed at on October 6, 2016.

Despite pleading not guilty, Kelly was found guilty by GRSA stewards and was handed down the ban as well as a $5,000 fine.

Kelly has had plenty of success within the industry in the past few years, with his kennel highlighted by greyhounds such as Gun Mcbain which has won 58 of his 147 starts.

Kelly's disqualification will commence at midnight on March 1, 2017.

Trainer found guilty of misconduct

A SA trainer has recently faced a GRSA inquiry after it was alleged that she left three greyhounds unattended in a trailer following the race meeting at Mount Gambier on Sunday January 22, 2017.

Amanda Darmanin was charged with a breach of GAR 86(o) which relates to , with stewards deeming her actions negligent.

Darmanin pleaded guilty to the charge. Stewards decided to suspend her licence for one month and issue a fine of $350. Her suspension commenced at midnight on Saturday February 25.

Vanderburg banned and fined

NEW South Wales trainer Leo Vanderburg has been found guilty of a breach of the prohibited substance rule by Greyhound () stewards.

Vanderburg was slapped with a breach of GAR 83(2) after his greyhound Shirloz returned a positive urine sample to cobalt at a concentration higher than the allowed threshold when competing at on April 4, 2016.

Vanderburg entered an early guilty plea and upon considering the circumstances, including a prior positive swab in 2012 which contained amphetamine and a metabolite of cocaine, stewards imposed a ban of six months as well as a $1,000 fine.

However, the stewards did alter the penalty to allow Vanderburg to continue to live at his current property with the provision that he does not engage in the training of any greyhounds on the property.

Two more arsenic positives in NSW

TWO greyhound trainers have faced separate GRNSW stewards' inquiries after their dogs returned positive urine samples to arsenic.

The first trainer, Maxwell McGovern, was charged with a breach of GAR 83(2) after his greyhound Miss Capone returned the positive when competing at on November 12, 2016.

The second trainer, William Schwencke, was charged with a breach of GAR 83(2) after his greyhound Benden Burst returned a positive when competing at on November 22, 2016.

Both participants entered an early guilty plea to the respective charges and were issued with a fine of $750.

Bell fined

RESPECTED Hunter Valley trainer Ron Bell recently fought a breach of GAR 83(2) after his greyhound Camacho returned a positive urine sample to o-desmethylvenlafaxine when competing at Gosford on June 21, 2016.

Bell pleaded not guilty to the charge, giving evidence that the swab was likely to have occurred as a result of contamination from a medication he had been prescribed. Upon considering the facts, stewards found Bell guilty as charged.

When deciding a penalty, stewards considered that Bell's greyhounds had been swabbed close to 400 times since he became licenced in 1973 as well as a previous positive swab to atenolol and o-desmethylvenlafaxine which was detected in 2015.

Stewards decided to impose a $2,000 fine, whilst they also disqualified the greyhound from the event in question.

Wakefield fined

trainer Lila Wakefield recently fronted the Victorian Racing Appeals and Disciplinary Board (RADB) charged with a breach of the prohibited substance rule.

The charge was in relation to the greyhound Ringading Sister which returned a positive urine sample to meloxicam, a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory, when it competed at a qualifying meeting at Cranbourne on October 10, 2016.

Wakefield pleaded guilty to a breach of GAR 83(2)(3) and gave evidence that she did not know what the drug was and had no idea as to how it came to be present in her greyhound.

The RADB made the decision to impose a $1,250 fine, with $1,000 suspended for 12 months pending no further positive substance offences during that time. The board considered several factors including Wakefield's period in the industry without infractions of the rules, her status as a pensioner and her husband's ill-health.

Ringading Sister was also disqualified from the event in question.

Furci found guilty of prohibited substance breach

Patrick Furci was the subject of a RADB inquiry last week after being charged with a breach of the prohibited substance rule. The charge was a result of Furci's greyhound Latte Donny returning a positive urine sample to synephrine.

An interesting point of the case is that synephrine is a naturally occurring substance which is found in some plants including the leaves and fruits of citrus plants.

According to GRV's Chief Industry Veterinarian Dr. Karamatic, bitter is usually the source of synephrine in herbal and nutritional supplements, while he also stated it is open to conclude that the greyhound could have returned the positive as a result of eating oranges found in the backyard of Furci's property.

Furci pleaded guilty to presenting the greyhound not free of a prohibited substance, but after considering factors, including the unusual circumstances of the positive swab, stewards imposed a $1,000 fine, wholly suspended for 12 months pending no further breaches.

Latte Donny was also disqualified from the event in question.