2013 AGRA GOTY Awards
At a gala AGRA Awards night held at the Langham Hotel in Melbourne, the Australian Greyhound Racing Association last Friday night announced Miata the winner of the 2012- 2013 AGRA Australian Greyhound of the Year.
It was a night of nights on the National scene with Delegates and club members coming together from all over Australia to celebrate the AGRA Awards night.
For the second time in six months the Melbourne Greyhound Racing Association, led by CEO Marg Long and her extremely competent team hosted the Awards night which now takes place with the National Championships in August each year. It was another night to remember and a glittering affair in one of Melbourne’s classiest Hotels. Each State that has staged the event since 2006, have gone to great lengths to put on an outstanding show, with the MGRA no exception.
New South Wales & Western Australian owned and trained staying sensation Miata won the Greyhound the Year for a second time. This time she defeated Victorian owned and trained Destini Fireball and New South Wales owned and Victorian trained Xylia Allen.
The winner was selected by panel of judges consisting of administrators and media representatives from each state plus a group of national media representatives from Print, Radio and Television. The panel was asked to allocate votes 3, 2 and 1 to the three finalists in order of each judge’s preference in a secret vote.
Accepting the award from Sky Channels Mark Duclos part owner and trainer Paul Stuart was surprised his champion had won the award twice. Remaking what a fantastic ride it had been with Miata who retired in May. Miata had travelled far and wide throughout the year thrilling crowds where ever she racing and had truly become the sports pin up girl with enormous popularity particularly in her home state of Western Australia where at Cannington she had proved unbeatable.
Listed below are Miata achievements during 2012-2013.
MIATA
(October 2009 Red Fawn Bitch Bombastic Shiraz – Winsome Bluebird)
Race starts 2012-2013: 22 – 18 wins, 1 second, 2 third.
Owner: Paul Stuart & Nicole Wheeler-Whye.
Trainer: Paul Stuart (Oakford, Western Australia)
Winner: Group 1 Galxay; Group 1 Bold Trease; Group 1 National Distance Championship; Group 3 Topcat Video Cup.
Finalist: Group 1 Sandown Cup (3rd); Group 1 Zoom Top Classic (3rd).
Total Career Prizemoney: $715,508.
The previous winners of the AGRA Australian Greyhound of the Year are
2002 Boomeroo,
2003 Bombastic Shiraz,
2004 Whisky Assassin,
2005 Pure Octane,
2006 Betty’s Angel,
2007 Flashing Floods,
2008 El Galo,
2009 Cindeen Shelby,
2010 El Grand Senor,
2011 Dyna Tron
2012 Miata.
Earlier in the night under the sterling guidance of MC Catching Pen host and Sky’s very own Dave Carlson the AGRA announced the other award winners in the following categories.
2012-2013 Brood Bitch of the Year was It’s A She
John Newsun accepted the award on behalf of Tasmanian owner Leigh Alexander. It’s A She won with 48 points from Amelia Bale 47, Grey’s Destini 44, Princess Bale 43, Winsome Bluebird 28 and Incoherent 25.
2012-2013 Sire of the Year was Bombastic Shiraz
Darren Cairns on behalf of his family accepted the award.
Bombastic Shiraz won with 1611 points from Where’s Pedro 1114, Collision 956, Premier Fantasy 529 and Bartrim Bale 476.
This was Bombastic Shiraz’s fourth title having won the award in 2010, 2011 and 2012.
2012-2013 Run of the Year went to Xylia Allen for her outstanding performance coming from a hopeless position in the Group 1 Sapphire Crown. She ran down front runner Punch One Out in the home straight to win the Group 1 at Sandown in May. She was nominated an unprecedented three times during the year. Xylia Allen’s New South Wales owner Paul Wheeler accepted the award. She is trained in Victoria by Graeme Bate.
The Run Of the Year was determined from the 12 runs of the month, then by a vast panel of judges from each state. This year some 36 people cast their opinion in the nationwide poll deciding a clear cut victory to the performance of Xylia Allen while special mentions were given to the efforts of Bell Haven and David Bale.
2012-2013 Trainer of the Year was Graeme Bate
Graeme was on hand to accept the award. It was clearly acknowledged what an extraordinary year Graeme Bate had had in 2012-2013. He trained the following Group winners. Group 1 Top Gun (David Bale), Sandown Cup (Irma Bale), Sapphire Crown (Xylia Bale), Peter Mosman Classic (Xylia Bale) and Maturity Classic (Barcia Bale). Group 2 winners Laurels Classic (Gunda Bale), McKenna Memorial (Irma Bale), Summer Plate (Irma Bale), Bogie Leigh Futurity (Purcell Bale) and Launceston Cup (Xylia Allen). Graeme also trained the Group 3 Devonport Cup winner Allen Benji plus the listed Bill Collins Memorial winner Fully Advanced and Melbourne Cup Night Sprint winner Imry Bale. His total first prizemoney for the winning Group races was $815,000. It was another remarkable feat by the training icon. Graeme has now won the award three times after previously being judged the winner in 2009 and 2011.
The trainer of year is determined after nominations are put forward to the AGRA CEO’s who cast votes at a meeting held in July.
The panel takes into account a number of different aspects of the training side of things it included. Group wins, and finalists, State city wins, number of runners and dogs in work, percentage per runners ect.
The Hall of Fame Inductees were as follows:
Stud Dog – Byamee - Legendary Coursing Superstar of the 50’s Byamee virtually created his own category as the acknowledged best Coursing dog in history, he was also a top class race dog and made a major contribution at Stud. Bred raced and trained by Hall of Fame trainer Ray Herbert, his son Robin and Grandson Adam were on hand to accept the award on behalf of their late father.
Stud Dog – Brother Fox – Superstar race dog and later an amazing Sire of Sires Brother Fox was inducted and acknowledged for his contribution mainly to the Australian bloodlines not only here in his own country but also overseas. Owner – trainer Steve Kavanagh accepted the award with great pride and relived some fond memories of a greyhound that changed his life. Steve was delighted Brother Fox had been inducted and remarked that his star of the early 80’s now appeared in over 80% of the pedigrees of the current race dogs.
Administrator – Ray Foley – Ray Foley was one of Tasmania’s finest Greyhound administrators, serving as permanent part time Secretary of the Launceston Greyhound Racing Club for twenty two years, but also as the founder, financier and long term editor of the “Bible of Tasmanian Greyhound Racing” The Greyhound Guide. Ray’s son Ray Junior was on hand to accept the award on behalf of the family of his late father and expressed with pride what an esteem honour it was that his father had been recognised nationally for his service to the sport he loved so much.
The presentation of the inductees to their acceptors was as always an emotional one with many family members and friends flying thousands of kilometers to honour the very worthy new members of the AGRA Hall of Fame.
It concluded a fantastic night which is sure to be repeated next year in August, in Sydney for the 2014 version of AGRA’s National Championships, Greyhound of the Year, Annual meeting and Conference.