Greyhound racing ban: Sad day for the battlers’ sport

WHAT a sad day for the Australian racing industry. I, like many others, have been a greyhound racing owner and fan for decades, Phil Rothfield writes.

Phil Rothfield had a great time racing Einstein Miss with some work colleagues. Picture: Warren Kirby

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WHAT a sad day for the Australian racing industry.

I, like many others, have been a greyhound racing owner and fan for decades.

I loved it because it was a battlers’ sport.

You didn’t have to wear a flash suit and tie to go and watch. We’d have a beer and a pie in the betting ring rather than champagne and prawns in the corporate suites.

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Those who couldn’t afford to buy a thoroughbred or pacer bought a greyhound.

Some work colleagues and I threw in about $200 each and brought a pup called Einstein Miss. It cost us about $50 a week to kennel her in the backyard of hobby trainer Jack Fitch.

She won about 20 races, including two at Wentworth Park.

We took her to Bulli, Dapto, Cessnock, Canberra, Newcastle, Grafton and Gosford.

Greyhound racing in NSW has been suspended for seven days.

One day we drove all the way to Lithgow to chase first prizemoney of $120 in a maiden. She won but half the prizemoney went towards petrol and a quarter to the trainer. We drank what was left over.

Every time Einstein Miss won she was rewarded with a Cornetto ice-cream.

We reckon it made her chase that little bit harder.

But it was all about the fun. And that it was affordable.

Thousands of others are in greyhound racing for the same reason.

NSW Premier announced on Thursday that greyhound racing in NSW will be banned from July 1 next year.

What the Premier may have forgotten is that there are bad people in every industry. Taxi drivers, the construction industry, gambling, finance and everything else.

In greyhound racing there is no defence for the cruelty that animals have suffered.

But not everyone kills their slow dogs. Not everyone is into live baiting.

Instead of getting rid of the criminals, they are penalising innocent people.

People, who like my old syndicate of journos, got great enjoyment out of it.