A bumper crowd rolled out for the combined Devonport Harness Racing Club and North West Greyhound Club meeting staged at Devonport on Friday night.
Opinion was divided in the judge’s box as to when the last combined meeting was held at Devonport until it got the better photo-finish operator Peter Farren who disappeared halfway through the night to search for photographic evidence.
He returned looking like someone from CSI Miami, carrying an envelope full of race finish negatives, marked Jan 21, 2000.
While it may not have been the last combined meeting it has put to bed the many confident quotes bandied around during the week of “I clearly remember it was late 80’s early 90’s”.
On the track the action was fast and furious, last season’s leading driver Todd Rattray took the honours steering home a winning double with Metro Mouse and Ten Crystals (pictured), taking his 2017/18 driving tally to 37 while Sassafras trainer Shelley Barnes moved into second place behind Juanita McKenzie in the Leading Female Trainers Premiership preparing the book-ends on the card, Volkova Leis and Moto Kenny.
Volkova Leis ($7.50) was finally rewarded for her consistency breaking her maiden status at start 14.
The Bettor’s Delight – Azarenka Leis four-year-old mare was set alight from the tail at the bell by Rohan Hadley and sustained the run to topple Triple Aitch Fella and odds-on favourite Invictus.
Charlie Castles put the icing on the cake for Shelley showing his prowess in the sulky to rate Moto Kenny to perfection in the Claimer, doubling his total career wins as a promising Junior driver.
Stepping straight to the lead from the pole Moto Kenny staved off its rivals in the home stretch to win by a half neck in a four-way photo.
Todd Rattray’s winner’s price average lifted dramatically with his double.
Todd usually finds himself driving one of the fancied runners from his powerful stable but last night it was a different story with his long-shot race-to-race double.
Todd partnered the Michael Laugher-trained Metro Mouse ($20.80) in the Hardings Hotmix Pace and scored a runaway 8.8-metre victory to notch up its second success of the season.
The Metropolitan-Maisie Mouse five-year-old won five races last season but has struggled to recapture that form for the majority of this campaign with its most recent success coming at Cranbourne in October.
Todd followed up in the next, biding his time on the Adam Emery-trained Ten Crystals ($27.40) before making a powerful finishing run to win by a head from Safari Rose with Ready To Fire flashing home for third.
The Always A Virgin – Shez Dripping Diamonds was an impressive Burnie winner three starts back and has now won four races for the season.