Irish Sports
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I was invited to HX last night by some friends for a meal. Arrived around 7.30 and went straight up stairs, met my friends who thinking I would know a little more than them, how stupid can they be I hear you ask, asked my opinion on the opening races.having picked the first winner simply pure luck I can assure you,I then proceeded to see what I would be backing later on. F Black and G Mcgee had a couple of runners that caught my eye, after talking to them for awhile I decided to pop down to see someone I assumed would know about these dogs and was stopped in my tracks as I left the stand and walked outside,not a bookmaker in sight.In all my years of going to HX I had never seen anything like it , never thought I 'd say this but it was a dreadful sight. Those familiar voices unheard ,not a whisper of take 4/6 etc. A strange feeling came over me as it says in the song.
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It happens this time every year, when both tracks race on the Saturday night to facilitate Christmas parties the bookies go to Shelbourne, who can blame them either, no doubt their turnover is way greater with the Christmas Oaks and National Puppy Stake (or whatever they're calling it) on
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Bleak is the only word that discribes HX last night Premier, a few shrewdies tucked away in a corner obviously taking on the mugs on the tote. They would normally be in Shelbourne on a Sat. No matter were you go its seems there are Vultures lurking.
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Sad to hear stories like this . Makes you wonder will there be any interest in "the dogs" in the future . I am told there are approximately 4 bookies ( on a good night ) at Ballyskeagh up here . Used to be 200 plus at Celtic and Dunmore in the good old days . Nowadays there are only about that number of punters in attendance at most tracks . Cant see any future for the game unfortunately without some form of help for those involved .
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In fairness Kelly it was going to be hard for these bookies to survive up North with people of your calibre around the place.
With a strike rate like yours I'm surprised there's even four left up there . I don't know what's the story in Harold's Cross, the last time I was there was about 4 years ago and I was genuinely afraid . The kind of low life that was at it was akin to being at a Shamrock Rovers soccer match . You'd be afraid to have a bet in case anybody saw you pulling money out of your pocket. The place was crawling with nasty opportunists . One of my mates was even propositioned by a lady of the night after about 6 races. |
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The toilets in Harold's Cross must be in pristine condition as Mincer makes no complaint.
The only complainants were the unfortunates who had to use them after Mincers many trips,A quarantine sign definitely needed. That lady of the might must have been down on her luck to try to entertain some indecipherable trembling gentlemen with a touch of scour. |
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I was thinking about you Dan when i read that article about Kevin Manning and the food in Dundalk.
He remarked and he was 100 % correct, that the food at every single racecourse in Ireland is disgraceful, not just Dundalk where he was faced with cold soup. But the bit that made me laugh was where he said that he shouldnt have to pay 2 euro for a portion of soup, he felt he was entitled to get it for free. That just about sums up the "brave men " perfectly, the dirty horrible yokes are so mean that they want everything for nothing. If there is a more unworthy cause in the history of mankind than the injured jockeys fund then i'd like to see it. |
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I don't believe there should be any free food,I don't believe in free entry.
I've followed the Irish Fields series on owners and listening to their bleatings I thought of the parsimonious Irish Guy. He famously wanted free entry into all racecourses if you ever owned a horse or even part of a horse,the owners want free food and now free drink,someone should tell them its a rich mans hobby,its already partly sponsored by government that should be enough. There is a huge difference between flat jockeys and jump jockeys,a huge discrepancy in their incomes and in danger. The jump jockey is the bravest of the brave,savagely underpaid and treated disgracefully by stewards,treated poorly sometimes by the gentlemen bleating for free food and drink also. One thing about the Injured Jockeys Fund is unlike the trendy charities the money doesn't get harpooned,doesn't go on huge salaries,it goes whereits needed. |
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I know what id give the injured jockeys anyway Dan, you only have to look at poor Kieren O Connell and his funeral. After singlehandedly raising thousands for them over the years, not one of the little rats turned up, not one.
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OConnell was a journalist,I wasn't aware of all his largesse til you told me about it,its possible neither were the jockeys.
Jockeys are persecuted on a regular basis,the latest one being inside information,this makes it undesirable for jockeys to be associating with journalists. Especially gambling ones. |
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Oh they knew about him alright, they were very happy when he was working tirelessly for their cause. I know for certain that one top jockey remarked to another that it would be only right that they had a presence at the mans funeral. They both agreed as long as it wasnt any one of them, and these are big name National Hunt jockeys. The very minute the man was no longer any use to them, they couldnt give two fukks about him. If they were given a monkey a man appearnce money though, there would have been a hundred of the dirty rotten towrags there.
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If any of your mob were offered a monkey a man to appear somewhere,you would be knocked down in the stampede.
I'm not a fan of Cheltenham previews but they ran one in Birr for a few years,the jockeys who appeared on that panel received no payment neither did they look for it. I get the blaming of jockeys when your bet gets beat ( guilty myself ) but when you see the injuries these lads get you realise these men are a breed apart. |
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I'd say a few of them have pulled the wool over poor Mincers eyes over the years,his pal Davy in particular would have cleaned him out a few times and smiled as he walked away ..
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Most jocks couldnt string a proper sentence together wonks, not to mind pull wool over anybodys eyes.
The bulk of them would make you look bright wonks. |
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Some of the best thieves in Ireland can't speak a word of English ,so your little snub to jockeys misses the point. I 'd say be the sound of ya , and the hate you have for them, springs from a deep well .They probably feed you what you wanted to hear for awhile , then they took you to the cleaners and left you full of shame that you were that stupid to be taken in so easily. Never mind Mincer you can always come on here and bleet about them .
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" most jockeys couldn't string a proper sentence together "
I can't agree,I'm surprised at how articulate they are. Ruby Walsh highly intelligent and a great analyst,seems made for TV. Barry Geraghty erudite and direct Davy Russell well able to get his point across. Even the lesser known jockeys seem unfazed when a microphone is thrust into their face,when you factor in how circumspect they must be you realise these lads are eloquent. |
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Some of the jockeys like in all walks of life may not be very articulate but they are not there to talk. They do their talking in the saddle and thats what they are paid to do.
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