Gunshot Ridge wins Wagga Gold Cup for Lorraine and Jack Roy

Taking advantage of the one box, Gunshot Ridge produced a storming effort to mow down his rivals and win the Ladbrokes Graeme Hull Memorial Cup (525m).

Veteran trainers Lorraine and Jack Roy have been training in the Riverina for over 40 years and finally tasted success in the region’s feature race.

Jack Roy was thrilled to come away with the win.

And after enjoying a long association with the Hull family it meant even more.

“I’m very pleased as the prizemoney is good for a start, but besides that Graeme Hull was a monument to greyhound racing when he was alive and he was a good mate of mine,” Roy said.

“I used to come over here and speak to him all the time and I’m friends with his son as well …. so it is a good race to win.”

The Wallendbeen trainers had power in numbers after qualifying Gunshot Ridge, Charlie’s Chance and Barbie’s Chance for the final.

None of them won a heat last week, but Gunshot Ridge fired when it counted it most.

The Braddon pair Ferrero Miss ($2.70 fav) and Spring Jazz ($3.40) looked like they going to fight out the finish before Gunshot Ridge ($6.30) went on by to win by 1¼ lengths.

Roy was very pleased with how he finished off, but wasn’t surprised by the performance.

“I thought he was a good chance and luck pays a part in all these big races,” he said.

“He had to come from behind, and you only have to get a check and you are not there, but he had the luck and fortune goes to the brave.”

Roy now has some more happy memories from the feature race.

“It is a bit of a change of luck as they last dog I did have here in a Wagga Cup got killed on the first turn,” he said.

However the big night wasn’t without some controversy.

Following a strong finish in the consolation of the cup, Bella Bellissimo collapsed after coming second and died.

The Riverina Men of League 1-4 Wins final (320m) was also declared a no race following a box malfunction.