Saturday’s Wentworth Park tips, odds & quaddie | April 22, 2023

Dogs Only Final tip: Len Me Dad (Race 8)

It is impossible to go past Ruth Matic's big white and brindle boy. He was ultra-impressive from an awkward draw (7) in the heats and ran a fantastic time. With the other heat winners all drawn outside of him in this final, it will make it extremely difficult for them to overthrow him. Len is two wins and three placings from six goes here and his only miss was in the Easter Egg semi-finals. He is also three wins from three attempts from box two. Belmont Bullet, who made it to the Easter Egg final, was good in his semi, but the time was half a second slower (or 7.5 lengths) than Len Me Dad and he would need to improve markedly on the clock to win. I'm Loving It was also good in his heat, running a time which was only a nose (0.03s) slower than Len, but is horribly drawn with pace all around him. However, if he nails the start can definitely put himself into the race. The other heat winner was Spring Patriot, who somehow never went around a dog from box eight and ran down Major Ando late. The time was good considering what he did, and if the is any sort of trouble out in front and he can find the rails, he might prove to be the strongest dog in the race.

Value tip: Cumbria Days
He was forced to do all the chasing behind Len Me Dad last week and never once shirked his task. He enjoys an inside box and will need to begin well, push up, hold the fence and hope Spring Patriot doesn't collect him from behind, but is a chance if the speedy dogs mix up at the first turn. He should be double-figure odds and represents a good small each-way wager.

Bitches Only Final tip: Esme Watson (Race 5)

The bitches final looks like a race in two and could well be over 50m after the start. Oro Rojo has slightly better first sectionals than Esme Watson, and we might lean that way if the boxes were reversed, but Esme has been able to do it from the tougher draws against better fields. Esme has done us well in the past and we will stick with her, but there is nothing between these two talented girls. There was one-hundredth of a second between them on the clock in the heats, and both had nice cushy inside draws to help them. It will be a case of who nails the start best and who can set up a winning break early.

Value tip: Thrill
If you are looking outside the favoured couple for a small each-way wager, have a look at the number nine. She is also engaged in race two, but with the eight dog already being scratched in this final, this girl can offer great value if she lines up in box eight. She has had the outside boxes five times in her limited career to date and has never missed a place. She has only missed a place once at Wenty, and that was in the Listed New Sensation heats off an unsuitable inside draw. If the favourites tangle together early, she might be a big player at big odds.

Other best bet: Custard Monelli (Race 7)

This extremely talented Western Australian may be set to head home shortly and deserves a win here at NSW headquarters. He was superb during the Easter Egg series and only finished 4.5 lengths off the winner in third place. He then tried to go down to Nowra and pinch the Puppy Classic but ran into a red-hot Coin Model. He is a classy free-for-all greyhound and the rest in this race are third- and fourth-graders, so he will have a distinct class edge on his rivals. Box six being vacant will give him some room to move early and Redeem Our Cash will head straight for the fence with the vacant box under her. Custard Monelli should get all the breaks, and if he can produce his personal best or close to it, he will be winning this race and giving connections something to cheer about from their journey east.