The Fate Of The Sport

The Fate Of The Sport

A recent report in the March '98 copy of "The Greyhound Star" confirms that greyhound racing on British soil could be under the same threat as it's Irish counterpart. With the appointment of a new boss at Bord na gCon in the guise of Mr. Pascal Taggart, he has spoken of new plans for the greyhound racing industry in Ireland by stressing that he has got no time for "lame ducks". He is quoted as saying that "I am not in the habit of papering over the cracks, and I do not intend in getting into a situation of subsidising bad greyhound tracks. I am a Business man and the sport will have to be run as a business from now on".

His master plan appears to focus around the four main tracks of Limerick; Cork; Tralee; and Shelbourne, which means that unless local people are prepared to support their local tracks, the smaller ones will have to close eventually. And when asked about Harolds X he was quoted by saying that Dublin did not need two major tracks but had no plans as yet to do away with it. Since his appointment he has used his political clout to remove the tax from Stud Dog Fees.

When asked "where does the Bord's priorities lie in the next 12 months" he replied "everywhere. The Bord are actively searching out new ideas to take them forward" "The response has been incredible, and there are a lot of people out there willing to help. We will listen to anybody who has a good idea on what we need to do". If Mr. Taggart is allowed to use his clout to its full potential we will see a number of smaller Irish registered tracks go to the wall.

What then will become of the small Independent tracks, will they end up going self-supporting, or will they, like the registered tracks end up going down the pan and being flushed away? Could this be one of the reasons why we are losing all our Independent local tracks, or is it a matter of the governing bodies deserting the locals to look after themselves?